On April 26, the Chinese Academy of Press and Publication released Research Outcomes of the Economic Contribution of Copyright Industry in China in 2017 in the 2019 National Conference on Copyright Protection and Development in Digital Environment. It has also introduced significant achievements made by the copyright industry in promoting economic development, maintaining social stability, and expanding opening-up since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, copyright industry in China has been developing with good momentum. In the five years from 2013 to 2017, industry added value of the copyright industry had been increasing year by year. By 2017, it had exceeded RMB 6 trillion yuan, with increasing proportion in national economy which accounted for 7.35% of total GDP of China. In particular, core copyright industries represented by news publishing, radio and films, software design, animation games had more rapid development, with the industry added value accounting for about 63% of the whole copyright industry, becoming the important pillars in the development of copyright industry in China.

In terms of employment and merchandise exports, during the five years from 2013 to 2017, the number of urban employees in copyright industry had grown steadily, with its proportion to all urban employees increasing from 9.08% in 2013 to 9.48% in 2017, playing an important role in promoting employment and maintaining social stability. In recent years, the proportion of merchandise exports from the copyright industry had remained above 11% of total exports in China. The revenue of merchandise exports in 2017 exceeded USD 260 billion.

The study of economic contribution of the copyright industry was an international research project organized and guided by the World Intellectual Property Organization. It had been carried out in more than 40 countries and regions including the United States, Australia, South Korea and Canada. The proportion of copyright industry in GDP in China was higher than that of the average level in the world, but there were still gaps compared with that of developed countries such as the United States, South Korea and Australia. With continuous development of copyright industry in China, this gap was decreasing. In 2006, the added value of copyright industry in China was only about 14% of that in the US. By 2017, the added value of copyright industry in China had already reached about 40% of that in the US.