Exploring cities of Central and Eastern Europe within transnational company networks: the core-periphery effect

After the Fall of the Berlin Wall, Central Eastern European cities (CEEc) integrated the globalized world, characterized by a core-periphery structure and hierarchical interactions between cities. This article gives evidence of the core-periphery effect on CEEc in 2013 in terms of differentiation of their urban functions after 1989. We investigate the position of all CEEc in transnational company networks in 2013. We examine the orientations of ownership links between firms, the spatial patterns of these networks and the specialization of firms in CEEc involved. The major contribution of this paper consists in giving proof of a core-periphery structure within Central Eastern Europe itself, but also of the diffusion of innovations theory as not only large cities, but also medium-sized and small ones are part of the multinational networks of firms. These findings provide significant insights for the targeting of specific regional policies of the European Union.