ABSTRACT
This chapter compares the different urban e-visions and strategies. It synthesizes the experiences in the cities in the fields of content, access, and infrastructure, respectively. The chapter argues that 'turning the flywheel on' could bring benefits for cities in several respects. It suggests that its dynamics can be represented as a local 'digital flywheel'. The chapter discusses the governance of local content. It also compares the electronic service provision of cities with that of some private companies in the consumer market, the performance of cities is rather poor. The chapter discovers four types of portals: territorial, target-group oriented, project/topic oriented and municipal. It applies a number of critical factors that play a determining role, which can be summarized under the heading of 'organizing capacity'. The first factor is the presence of a vision on e-governance and the translation of that vision into effective strategies. The second factor concerns the presence of leadership.
