Sector 51: Information

	Questions about this sector			List of all forms in this sector
	General Q's and A's

This section provides information about census coverage and reporting for establishments in the Information sector.

Establishments Covered

Information services establishments produce and distribute information and cultural products; provide the means to transmit or distribute these products, data and other communications; and process data. NAICS classifies establishments in the Information sector using numbers that start with 51.

The Economic Census covers information services establishments that operated during all or part of calendar year 2002. Businesses that make equipment to produce, transmit or distribute information are classified in NAICS sector 31-33, Manufacturing. Examples of establishments included in the Information sector are:

• Publishing establishments that report, write, edit, produce and issue copies of works for which they usually possess copyright; and that publish newspapers, periodicals, books, directories, greeting cards, mailing lists and software.
  
  
• Motion picture and sound recording establishments that produce and distribute recordings, and specialized production and postproduction services. Included are producers, distributors, theaters, exhibitors, and studios for motion picture, video, and sound recording. Note that wholesale distributors and mass reproducers of videocassettes and sound recordings are classified in other NAICS sectors.
  
  
• Broadcasting establishments that create or acquire the right to distribute and broadcast content. Included are radio and television broadcasters, and cable and other subscription programming services. Radio and television broadcasters operate broadcasting studios and facilities for over the air or satellite delivery of programs. Cable and other subscription programming establishments operate studios and facilities for broadcasting narrowcast programs (such as news, sports and education) on a subscription basis.
  
  
• Telecommunications establishments that operate, maintain, or provide access to facilities for the transmission of voice, data, text, sound and video. Included are telecommunications and related services; wired, wireless and satellite communications services; cable and other program distribution services; and other specialized telecommunications services.
  
  
• Internet and information service establishments that provide internet, web search portal and data processing services. Included are Internet Service Providers (ISPs), web search portals, data processing, web hosting, and related services. Data processing services include processing, storing, arranging access to, searching and retrieving information.
  
  
• Other information services establishments that supply, store, arrange access to, search and retrieve information. Included are news syndicates, libraries and archives, telephone-based information services, stock photo agencies and other information services.

Census Mail Package

Information services establishments with paid employees will receive a census mail package with several types of materials. The materials are similar in content but customized to make reporting easier for different groups of information services establishments. Each establishment will receive an Information Sheet and a census form.

Information Sheets provide general information about the census and instructions for reporting selected items on the census form. Information sheets for information services establishments are numbered SV-xx(x).

Census Forms describe each data item for information services establishments, and provide instructions and formats for reporting them. Census forms for information services establishments are numbered IN-51xxx.