Report Spotlights Economic Value and Jobs Created by U.S. Copyright Industries

On December 14, the International Intellectual Property Association (IIPA) published "Copyright Industries in the U.S. Economy: The 2022 Report." The report analyzes the contributions to the U.S. economy between 2018 and 2021 by "core copyright industries" whose primary purpose is to create, produce, distribute, or exhibit copyrighted materials.

According to IIPA's 2022 report:

• In 2021, core copyright industries added over $1.8 trillion in value to the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP), amounting to 7.76% of the U.S. economy. 
• Core copyright industries employed 9.6 million workers in 2021, comprising 5.53% of total private employment in the U.S. 
• Between 2018 and 2021, core copyright industries grew at an aggregate annual rate of 6.15%, an amount three times higher than the average annual 1.76% growth rate of the entire U.S. economy during that four-year timespan. 
• Core copyright industries accounted for 52.26% of the U.S. digital economy in 2021.
• Sales of U.S. copyright products in "selected" core industry sectors – recorded music; motion pictures, TV, and video; software publishing; and non-software publications including newspapers, books, and periodicals – amounted to $230.3 billion in 2021, an increase. 

IIPA's 2022 report also estimates the value of economic contributions by "total" copyright industries in the U.S., including industries in which copyrighted goods are only an aspect of their businesses as well as industries that facilitate the creation and production of copyrighted works and industries that develop computers and other devices that support usage of copyrighted goods. According to the report, the value added to GDP by total copyright industries was more than $2.9 trillion, or 12.52% of the U.S. economy. 

In our book, Modernizing Copyright Law for the Digital Age: Constitutional Foundations for Reform (Carolina Academic Press, 2020), Free State Foundation President Randolph and I credit the wisdom of the American Founders in according copyright protections to authors and other creative artists in the U.S. Constitution's Article I, Section 8 Copyright Clause. As we explain in chapter 3 of our book, those constitutional protections rest on a foundational understanding of copyrights as unique forms of private property that can be used and exchanged in a free market setting. IIPA's 2022 report shows that the American public, including the creators who make their living by creating, performing, and selling copyrighted content, continue to benefit greatly from the Founders' constitutional policy favoring copyright protections.