Information and cultural industries

North American Industry Classification System code (NAICS): 51

This sector comprises establishments primarily engaged in producing and distributing (except by wholesale and retail methods) information and cultural products. Establishments providing the means to transmit or distribute these products or providing access to equipment and expertise for processing data are also included. The unique characteristics of information and cultural products, and of the processes involved in their production and distribution, distinguish this sector from the goods-producing and services-producing sectors. The value of these products lies in their information, educational, cultural or entertainment content, not in the format in which they are distributed. Most of these products are protected from unlawful reproduction by copyright laws. Only those possessing the rights to these works are authorized to reproduce, alter, improve and distribute them. Acquiring and using these rights often involves significant costs. The intangible nature of the content of information and cultural products allows for their distribution in various forms. For example, a movie can be shown at a movie theatre, on a television broadcast, through video on demand, or rented at a local video store; a sound recording can be aired on radio, embedded in multi-media products or sold at a record store; software can be bought at retail outlets or downloaded from an electronic bulletin board; a newspaper can be purchased at a newsstand or received on-line. In addition, improvements in information technology are revolutionizing the distribution of these products. The inclusion in this sector of telecommunications services providers reflects the increasingly important role these establishments play in making these products accessible to the public. The main components of this sector are the publishing industries, the motion picture and sound recording industries, the broadcasting industries, the telecommunications industries, and the data processing and hosting services industries. There are establishments engaged in culture-related activities that are classified in other sectors of NAICS. The most important are listed as exclusions below.

511 · Publishing industries
230 Jobs

This subsector comprises establishments primarily engaged in publishing newspapers, periodicals, books, databases, software and other works. These works are characterized by the intellectual creativity required in their development and are usually protected by copyright. Publishers distribute, or arrange for the

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512 · Motion picture and sound recording industries
41 Jobs

This subsector comprises establishments primarily engaged in producing and distributing video and audio recordings or providing related services, such as post-production services, exhibition services, and motion picture processing and developing services. Sound recording studios are also included. Information and cultural

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515 · Broadcasting (except Internet)
78 Jobs

This subsector comprises establishments primarily engaged in operating radio and television broadcasting studios and facilities. Information and cultural industries

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517 · Telecommunications
130 Jobs

This subsector comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing telecommunications and/or video entertainment services over their own networks, or over networks operated by others. The establishments of this subsector are grouped into industries on the basis of the nature of services

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518 · Data processing, hosting, and related services
401 Jobs

This subsector comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing the infrastructure for data processing, hosting, and related services. Information and cultural industries

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519 · Other information services
80 Jobs

This subsector comprises establishments, not classified to any other industry, primarily engaged in providing other information services. The main components are news syndicates, libraries and archives, Internet publishing and broadcasting, and web search portals. Information and cultural industries

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