Broadband Drives U.S. Economic Growth, USTelecom Analysis Shows
Source: USTelecom

New USTelecom analysis reveals that the broadband-fueled Information, Communications and Technology (ICT) industries far outpace all other sectors in contributions to U.S. economic growth and provide among the highest-earning, fastest-growing jobs in the country. The analysis, “The Economic Benefits of Broadband & Information Technology,” was published in the latest edition of New York Law School’s Media Law & Policy journal.

The converging sectors of broadband, media and information technology add nearly $900 billion annually to the nation’s economy and are expanding at a rate that is two to five times faster than the overall U.S. economy. The USTelecom analysis also points out that jobs in the broadband/ICT sector pay 50% more than the hourly national average, and broadband-enabled jobs are projected to remain among the leading high-growth areas for at least the next 10 years.

Based on our analysis of the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment Statistics, there were more than 10 million broadband/ICT jobs in 2007, with 5.7 million in ICT industries such as broadband service providers, content producers and equipment manufacturers. Additionally, the data shows 4.4 million ICT-centric jobs in industries outside of the ICT sector (e.g., network administrators in schools and hospitals). And, these employment tallies do not count the many more jobs made possible by broadband as an enabling technology—for example, self-employed rural Americans working from home over the high-speed Internet.

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This entry was posted on Sunday, May 17th, 2009 at 11:10 pm and is filed under Business and economics, Internet, Technology, Telecommunications. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.