Size, Structure and Growth of the U.S. Information Economy

This paper presents the results of our empirical research in measuring the size and structure of the US information economy in 1992 and 1997, and in assessing the growth experienced by different industries and sectors since Porat’s research on the US information economy in 1967. The study indicates that the share of the information economy in total GNP grew from about 46 percent in 1967 to about 56 percent in 1992, and to 63 percent in 1997. The study further indicates that during this time period the share of service sector information activities in total GNP increased substantially, while the shares of non-service sectors declined correspondingly. The industries displaying the highest growth rates include business services, and medical and educational services. The paper also provides a critical assessment of Porat’s methodology and suggests specific improvements that may be made to obtain a more plausible measure of the size and structure of the information economy.