A study commissioned by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) about the ad-supported internet found that the industry generated a stunning $1.21 trillion for the U.S. economy in 2016, which is more than double the contribution it made in 2012.
The study, led by Harvard Business School professor John Deighton, also found that the ad-supported internet has today created a total of 10.4 million U.S. jobs. That figure is twice the number of jobs that the industry spawned in 2012, and comprises 7.3% of all non-farm employment nationwide. Interestingly, 86% of these jobs lie outside of conventional internet industry hubs like San Francisco, Manhattan, and Seattle, with states like North Carolina, Texas, and Utah boasting big numbers as well.
This year’s report, dubbed The Economic Value Of The Advertising-Supported Internet Ecosystem, marks the third such study released by the IAB, an ad business trade organization, following comparable iterations in 2009 and 2012.
Other findings from the study include the fact that the ad-supported internet today accounts for 6% of the U.S. GDP, or the monetary value of all finished goods and services. And online video has been the biggest driver of new Internet traffic since 2012, according to the IAB, largely due to the growth of OTT television. Other prominent traffic drivers include e-commerce, on-demand platforms (like Uber
), user-generated content platforms, music streaming services, and cloud computing.“The internet fills an ever-widening role as market-maker to the U.S. economy, first as a retail platform, next complementing traditional advertising media, then becoming a mobile platform to reach people on the move, and now as a platform to make markets in on-demand services,” Professor Deighton said in a statement. “It is little wonder that it’s growing at 20% per year.”
For additional information or to see a state-by-state breakdown of the ad-supported internet economy, click here to read the IAB’s study in full.
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