Today concerns about national competitiveness and economic development are closely linked to notions of the information society and knowledge-based economy. Some see the emergence of a new economy, based on information, communication, media and biotechnologies. As in previous bursts of economic growth, these innovative industries emerge and grow in specific geographic locations, now called clusters. The well-known case of Silicon Valley was merely the first of a large number of such clusters to have developed in the late 20th and early 21st century. Clusters are characterized by co-operative...