Online advertising accounted for 3.7% of the US GDP in 2011, with two million people directly employed as a result of the sector alongside a further 3.1 million indirect jobs.
The study, titled Economic Value of the Advertising-Supported Internet Ecosystem, was commissioned by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and produced by Harvard Business School professor John Deighton with research associate Leora D. Kornfeld serving as the principal investigator.
According to the report, the interactive advertising industry contributed $US530 billion to the U.S. economy last year, close to double 2007 figures of $US300 billion.
While the findings are unsurprising given the report was sponsored by the IAB, the figures nonetheless highlight the growing economic importance of online services such as Google, mobile apps, online media outlets and social media services to the US economy.
Andrew Sadauskas is a former journalist at SmartCompany and a former editor of TechCompany.
