ABSTRACT
Parallel to the intensification of globalisation processes and ideologies the bigger cities are competing increasingly. However, there are different causes, driving forces and reinforcement processes behind theses unifying dynamics which are impacting the material basis of the cities on the one hand as much as the blueprints and cultural orientations on the other hand. Freedom of capital transfers, enlarged information networks, lowered transport costs, deregulation of former protectionist trade barriers and establishment of free trade and tax zones led to the fact that value-added chains are not linked to specific places anymore but can be decentralised and newly organised. For this reason the selection of the ideal place for every step within the value-added chain can be chosen.
