Businesses in outlying regions, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), are having to face a broad range of different challenges in order to maintain their competitiveness. An important input factor has in the past always been the supply of public services. In recent years,...

Switzerland is a small country and possesses only two or three major economic regions of a metropolitan character. From a Swiss perspective the most important region is the European Metropolitan Region of Zurich (EMRZ). The EMRZ covers the whole of the Zurich economic area as well as adjacent...

In the wake of a general process of economic transformation public services in recent years have undergone a number of radical changes. Under the key word of ?liberalization? the markets of public services in Europe have been opened up to market competition. Questions of efficiency and...

The liberalisation process has many faces. It gives rise to economic, social and cultural change. From a spatial point of view, fears are frequently expressed that liberalisation can lead to disadvantages for peripheral regions, especially in the sparsely populated Alpine region. Companies in...

The concept of ‘polycentric spatial development’, a central principle of the European Spatial Development Perspective, is closely linked to the concept of ‘sustainable urban development’. But ‘polycentricity’ has different significance at different spatial scales. Within a European...

Mega-City-Regions (MCR) as a new large-scale urban phenomenon have been gaining attention recently: In research, empirical studies address their functional consistency, and spatial planning policies underline the strategic role of MCRs for territorial competition of a country. But increasingly a...

In a world of continuing globalization mega-city regions (MCR) are of increasing importance. MCR are defined by a high concentration of regulation, innovation and gateway functions. Planners and politicians alike recognise that competition on this new spatial scale is becoming a strategic tool...

We assume that the territory of Germany is experiencing a reorganisation of functional division of labour in favour of the knowledge economy. New forms of network economies and functional differentiation between cities and towns can be observed. The increasing importance of emerging network...

The knowledge economy plays a key role in the spatial development of cities and towns. Options of flexible spatial organization of company locations have influenced business strategies and decision-making in choosing locations. This process establishes complex network economies in which...