One of the great traps of technology-based economic development is the herd mentality. Everyone wanted to be like Silicon Valley. Then everyone want to be the leader in bio-tech. Then nano-tech. Now its "green." The simple fact is that not everyone can be a leader in the hottest fad. In fact, chancing the hottest technological fad is a sure way to accomplish nothing.
But, there are still specific parts of any new technology where localities can gain an edge. One example is high-tech in New York City -- sometime incorrectly referred to Silicon Alley when it should be called Digital Alley. As a recent story in the Economist notes:
Today, much tech innovation focuses on the media and advertising industries--both of which, for all their recent troubles and changes, remain lucrative and largely New York-based. That is why, for example, the bulk of Google's 500-odd advertising staff, the source of a large chunk of its profits, are in New York, not in the Googleplex in Mountain View, California.
To read the full, original article click on this link: Niches within tech clusters - The Intangible Economy
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