Chinese Academy of Press and Publication recently completed a Survey Report on the Economic Contribution of China’s Copyright Industries in 2020. The report showed the added value of copyright industries was RMB 7.51 trillion, with a year-on-year growth of 2.58%, accounting for 7.39% of GDP, the same as the previous year. Copyright industries continued to recover steadily and expand despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020), copyright industries have witnessed the added value grown by 38% from RMB 5.46 trillion to RMB 7.51 trillion and the contribution of that value to GDP steadily increased from 7.33% to 7.39%, at an annual average rate of 8.3%, 0.2% higher than GDP in the same period. The copyright industries greatly helped complete the 13th Five-Year Plan by providing high-quality and rich products necessary for the spiritual and cultural needs of the people.

According to the survey, of the core sectors of copyright industries, traditional sectors such as books and newspapers declined due to the impact of COVID-19 while emerging sectors, such as software and IT services, digital publishing and online audiovisual services, grew against the trend. The core sectors registered an added value of RMB 4.75 trillion, 3.5% up year on year, accounting for 63% of copyright industries.

In 2020, the stable and sound development of copyright industries helped ensure the economy is stable on six fronts and secure in six areas. There were 16.1652 million or 9.49% of urban employees in copyright industries.The foreign trade of copyright industries grew steadily, with the export of USD 388.725 billion worth of goods, 15.01% of the national total (actually above 11% for many years in a row).