Knowledge-based Clusters and Urban Location: The Clustering of Software Consultancy in Oslo

The paper examines the reasons for the clustering of Norwegian software firms in Oslo. The analysis focuses on how software firms perform individual activities and how they interact with other players in performing the activities. The clustering of software firms in Oslo rests first of all on the need for very close interaction between consulting companies and important customers, and among software consulting companies themselves. The fact is that consulting activity is project-based and involves lots of coalition-building and face-to-face contact which is facilitated when players co-locate. Demand-side factors are important in explaining the concentration of software companies in Oslo, while important supply-side factors are the possibilities of meeting persons in other software firms and the gathering of information in formal and informal settings.