Conference Abstracts
2. Ameli, Saied R; University of Tehran, Iran:
"Vireal City: Solution and Destination for Developing Countries"
The new information and communication technology moved
society to the new era called ‘information society’.
Tremendous development comes through information society in which
‘virtual city’ and ‘E. Government’ should
considered as two major results, organized by the Government in
the city and national level. Virtual City is result of strategic
city planning for controlling and managing ‘time’, ‘transformation
of the population’ and inter-communication between customers
and public sector in the city. The actual target is increasing the
‘speed, energy saving, security and satisfaction’ for
the advantage of citizens in particular in the megacity. Juxtaposition
of the real city and the virtual city emerged new city; conceptualized
as ‘Vireal City’ which agglomerate all physical and
informational potential of the city and give opportunity for less
destruction of the man power and more energy saving and consequently
minimization of working time with much extensive, faster, denser
and tighter connection between customers and public sector (Ameli,
2004a and 2004b).
The vireal city, theoretically affected by ‘dual globalizations
paradigm’ (Ameli 2003a and 2003b). According to this paradigm
two synchronic space, the real and virtual, while distinct form
each other, explain as two interlink and complementary space in
which without each other can not survive. Virtual city is all industrial
and all information based and it is outcome of ‘simultaneous
communication Industry’. The use of information and communication
industries in commercial transactions as grown tremendously since
the mid-1990s; this is particularly true or the use of Internet
and e-commerce. An explanation of the popularity of Internet and
e-commerce services can be found in network externality theory (Katz
and Shapiro 1985, Capello 1994; Economides 1996). The network externality
theory explain positive consequences of network communication that
include those of increasing returns and first-mover advantages.
Increasing returns means the network increases its user value. Subscription
to any of web resources enables actors to set up ongoing local and
global communication (Geenhuizen, 2004).
By emergence of internet, the vireal city is inevitable. Vireal
city is bringing centrality and decentrality of the city resources
and city services. Centrality referrers here to reduction of transit
time and direct inter-communication between costumers and public
services. It is central because it is more organized and accountable
in every second without any limitation of working day and working
hours; services in the vireal cities are 24 hours. Decentrality
is also a positive aspect of the ‘vireal city’ because
it gives accessibility to the city resources to all no matter they
are near or far and without any advantage or disadvantage for those
who live in central city and those who live in periphery or even
other city, region and countries around the world.
Here my argument is that the vireal city planning is an opportunity
for all advanced cities to take over their city problems in particular
in megalopolis and the megacity of the developing countries through
virtualization and virealization of the city services which eventually
will minimize unnecessary transformation of the population. However,
like the real city, vireal city needs actual city planning, other
wise like poor city of the developing world which has grown up without
any structural city planning will extend a vireal city with more
fragmented and disintegrated element.
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