New Report Reveals The Size Of The U.S. Cloud Economy At 2 Million American Jobs And $214 Billion In GDP

HOOTON: “Expanding our understanding of the cloud’s macroeconomic impacts is essential to ensuring it continues to be a major economic driver. The U.S. cloud sector now rivals the agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting industries combined and is growing every day.”

Washington, DC – Internet Association (IA) today released a new report entitled, “Examining The Economic Contributions Of The Cloud To The United States Economy.” The report found the U.S. cloud economy has tripled in size in the last 15 years, enabling more than 2 million American jobs and adding $214 billion in GDP.

“The cloud’s rapid adoption has made significant contributions to the U.S. economy,” said IA Chief Economist Christopher Hooton. “Expanding our understanding of the cloud’s macroeconomic impacts is essential to ensuring it continues to be a major economic driver. The U.S. cloud sector now rivals the agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting industries combined and is growing every day.”

Commercial cloud computing uses the internet to facilitate access to services and resources, including storing and managing data, running applications, or remotely accessing software tools. The report uses government data to estimate the size of the U.S. cloud economy.

Key findings from the report include:

• $214 Billion In GDP: The cloud added approximately $214 billion in value-added to U.S. GDP in 2017.

• 2.15 Million Jobs: The cloud economy accounts for approximately 2.15 million jobs as of 2017. For comparison, the combined agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting industries covered 2.3 million jobs as of 2016.

• Tripled In Size: In approximately 15 years since 2002, the cloud economy has nearly tripled in size.

“Cloud technology is a fundamental part of the country’s internet and economic systems. Policymakers and other stakeholders should recognize its major impact and continue fostering the growth of cloud computing,” said IA Director of Cloud Policy and Counsel Alla Seiffert. “Commercial cloud solutions cut down operational costs, provide scaling flexibility, offer built-in cybersecurity solutions, and allow private and public sector entities of all sizes to keep up with the pace of innovation.”

To read the full report, click here.

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