Starship leasing was a concept under which operators could rent starships. The Pac-Men were especially adept at leasing starships, both as lessors and lessees, once they became warp-capable. Four tiers of starship leasing existed. However, starship leasing was more common for civilian uses. Operators leased starships for a variety of reasons, the most common being to operate starships without the financial burden of purchasing them (however, this did not apply to Federation operators that leased starships from other Federation operators) or to provide a temporary increase of capacity. (RIS Bouteina: "Extraordinary Summit")