Many a number of books and articles have been published on the transition from industrial society to a new form of society, the post-industrial society (Bell 1973) or the information society (see, e.g., Lyon 1988, Rasmussen 1995, Webster 1995). According to the theories, the transition to the information society is characterised by a number of changes in production and consumption. The key argument is that production of information is gaining more importance relative to other forms of production and that employment is shifting towards information-related activities (Bell 1973, Negroponte 1995). A similar trend, it is argued, can be observed in consumption patterns as the sonsumption of information goods and services increase as do their economic and social value (Castells 1996). These shifts are in turn seen as leading to profound social changes. One central prediction is that machines and factories are no longer the most important means of production, but rather the competence and skill that workers possess individually. It is also postulated that the opposition between workers and capitalists is weakening or disappearing altogether.