As the United States economy shifted away from manufacturing industry dominance in the 1970's, business service industries grew in size and complexity to become the dominant driver of knowledge-based metropolitan economies. Knowledge-based modern economic growth is increasingly reliant upon the commoditization or production, dissemination, and consumption of knowledge. Economic competitiveness and growth in knowledge-based economies are influenced by the technical expertise and technological innovations created through the provision of professional knowledge in customized products or services. Knowledge intensive business services (KIBS) are at the forefront of modern economic growth through the use of specialized knowledge and advancements in innovation. This research examines the distribution and growth of a highly relevant KIBS industry that has previously been overlooked. As one of the fastest growing economic sectors, the computer service industry has the ability to promote knowledge production and metropolitan comparative advantages in business processes and innovation. The purpose of this research was to (re)define and clarify the fundamental principles that characterize the growth and development of modern knowledge-based metropolitan economies and to derive an understanding of the future growth and spatial distribution of KIBS, as informed by the computer service industry. The findings provide a greater understanding of the industrial structure of modern knowledge-based economies. The results indicate, in aggregate, a measured diffusion of KIBS down the urban hierarchy and a continued diffusion to the non-core counties of metropolitan areas. Subsector research reveals details obscured by aggregate groupings, in that the larger subsectors, which define the industry in general, appear predominantly in economic and population centers while other subsectors are developed in specialized service centers rooted in local characteristics.