Fair Use in the U.S. Economy – 2025 Edition

A range of exceptions to copyright protection under U.S. law, classified here under the broad heading of fair use, sustain companies that represent nearly one-fifth of total U.S. GDP. This study finds that in 2023, value added by fair use industries was 18 percent of the U.S. economy, employing 1 in 7 U.S. workers, and contributing $4.9 trillion to U.S. GDP. From 2017 to 2023, the real output of these primary core industries accounted for 15.7 percent of real GDP growth. Moreover, as the training of artificial intelligence relies on fair use, these figures are poised to grow further.