Silicon Valley in the Polder? Entrepreneurial dynamics, virtuous clusters and vicious firms in the Netherlands and Flanders

High technology starters do not operate in a vacuum, and innovation is not a solitary activity. The activities of technology based companies take place within a social-economic framework, composed of other companies, investors, universities, vocational institutions and others. The geographical proximity to these institutions and to infrastructure hubs will influence the ICT companies¿ decision when choosing a location. Furthermore, many high- tech companies develop clusters in or near areas in which their major clients are located. The topic of this article is regional clustering, within the context of Internet and ICT technology. A dynamic model previously developed for the analysis of ICT entrepereneurship and networking will be applied in a critical analysis of five ICT clusters in the Netherlands and Flanders(northern part of Belgium). They are: the Louvain Technology Corridor, the Flanders Language Valley, the Amsterdam Valley, the Dommel Valley and Twente.