All Times ET
Program is Subject to Change
TBD
Toward a Digital Economy Satellite Account (308041)
*Jessica R. Nicholson, Bureau of Economic AnalysisThomas F Howells, Bureau of Economic Analysis
David Wasshausen, Bureau of Economic Analysis
Keywords: digital economy, supply-use tables, satellite accounts, national accounts
BEA’s GDP statistics include economic activity associated with the digital economy, but they do not allow data users to separately identify the contribution of the digital economy to economic growth. BEA produces supplemental digital economy statistics within a supply-use framework. This paper outlines the methodology used by BEA to identify and measure digital activity and discusses related research to advance the estimates. In 2019, the digital economy accounted for 9.3 percent of U.S. GDP—just below the contribution from the U.S. manufacturing sector. Digital economy real value added grew at an average annual rate of 6.8 percent per year from 2005 to 2019, compared to 1.8 percent growth in the overall economy.