Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
impact of this new GPT on productivity levels and the changing nature of communica-
tion and organisation. The use of computers in business and households disseminated
quickly. In the second half of the 1990s, the rise of the internet stimulated a further
growth of the use of ICT. For instance, in 2003, 80 per cent of the Dutch population
had access to a computer and more than 90 per cent of all businesses owned one or more
computers. Furthermore, an increasing part of the economy relies on the support of ICT,
which is illustrated by the more than 60 per cent of all people whose daily work involves
working at a computer (Statistics Netherlands, CBS, 2003). A similar process of dif u-
sion can be observed in other countries. The economic ef ects seem to be clear as most
economists sustain the idea that productivity increased, and that the opportunities for
the communication and the optimisation of logistic and other networks were consider-
ably improved. ICT has also had an ef ect in terms of its inl uence on the organisational
structure of companies and markets, particularly related to its impact on transaction
costs.
The spatial ef ects can be distinguished in those on the global level and the impact on
urban regional space. Like Kim (2005) observed about the spatial impact of the introduc-
tion of the steam engine, it is not the PC as such or 'teleworking' that is the main driver
of change, but the organisational restructuring of corporations and of the global com-
modity chains. In the case of ICT, the evolution of new spatial patterns may seem dif-
ferent from those in the time of the Industrial Revolution. The changes will develop less
strongly in physical space, as in the sense of the rise of new kinds of city, but more in the
organisational structure and the relations in networks. Many changes can be observed at
the global level of the division of labour. New 'windows of new locational opportunities'
are created in the 'emerging economies' (Boschma, 1994). ICT has created in Taiwan,
Israel and India new opportunities for 'mobile innovators' (or 'New Argonauts'), living
and working in two economic environments, the USA and their home regions (Saxenian,
2006). This new GPT has not only been the source of the rise of Silicon Valley as a new
agglomeration in the San Francisco Bay Area, but has also of ered new opportunities
to multinational enterprises and innovative small i rms. This new mobility has raised a
new and rapidly growing number of publications on the nature of communication and
the rise of networks and global networked organisations (Huber, 2007; Lambooy, 2006).
In spatial terms, it could lead to a scenario in which every workplace with access to the
worldwide virtual network is a viable alternative to urban oi ce concentrations as a place
in which to work ef ectively and ei ciently. Companies are thought to become 'footloose'
because ICT renders them less dependent on the local market. For the regions and the
regional real estate market, this will arguably have signii cant consequences. For many
companies, the traditional urban setting might no longer be the automatic choice of
location, although empirical evidence shows that they still prefer locations within metro-
politan areas (Weterings, 2006).
The ef ects on urban space are as yet not entirely clear. Cairncross (2001) coined the
term
death of distance
.
The Economist
went on to describe this 'end of geography' as the
most signii cant force to shape society over the next 50 years. Its impact will be compara-
ble to the introduction of electricity. The rapid developments and the widespread adop-
tion of ICT have led to many speculations about the spatial ef ects of this technology.
Sometimes teleworking and the use of the internet are seen as a possible future replace-
ment of the oi ce, leading to further urban sprawl. Households and companies seem to
