Motion Picture,TV & Video Production NAICS 512110
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Industry Summary
The 17,100 motion picture, TV, and video producers in the US produce a variety of video content, including movies, videos, TV programming, and commercials. Major revenue categories include domestic licensing rights; sales of copies of audio/visual works, international licensing rights; contract production services; and merchandise licensing. Movie and video production companies may specialize in a particular category, such as animation, commercials, films, music videos, or TV programming.
Delayed, Uneven Cash Flow
Productions incur the majority of expenses months to even years before realizing a single dollar of revenue.
Piracy
Video piracy is a growing problem, particularly internationally, where copyright protection is lax and illegal activity is more likely to go unnoticed.
Recent Developments
Mar 20, 2026 - Movie Theater Association Wants Merger Of Media Giants Blocked
- Movie theater trade organization Cinema United will ask federal lawmakers, the Justice Department, and states to block the merger of industry giants Paramount and Warner Brothers Discovery (WBD), according to The Hollywood Reporter. Cinema United cited the need to stop further consolidation of the contracting movie industry, claiming that "A combination of Paramount and Warner Bros., for instance, would consolidate as much as 40 percent of each year’s domestic box office in the hands of a single dominant studio." Netflix withdrew its $82.7 billion bid to buy WBD after WBD reopened the bidding process for the company in late February.
- On-location film and TV production in Los Angeles decreased 13.2% year over year in the third quarter of 2025, according to FilmLA, the city and county’s film permitting office. The decrease was largely driven by a significant drop in reality TV production after several high-profile series wrapped up. The result continues a multi-year trend of declining local production. Feature films increased 9.7% with 522 total shoot days. Television, the region's main production driver, was down 20.7% to 1,441 shoot days.
- New Jersey is an increasingly important site for new film and TV production, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The state’s tax-credit program is among the most generous in the country and minimizing red tape has been a major sales pitch, the Reporter notes. “New Jersey offers the best of both worlds: proximity to New York without the complexity, and a state government that’s deeply invested in growing the industry the right way,” Gannon Murphy, co-founder and president of the state’s film-industry advocacy group Screen Alliance New Jersey, told the Reporter.
- Motion picture, TV, and video production industry employment has recovered from a steep pandemic-related drop in 2020 and but remailed below pre-pandemic levels in late 2025 while average wages for nonsupervisory employees have decreased from pandemic-driven highs, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Motion picture, TV and video production industry sales are forecast to grow at a 2.75% compounded annual rate from 2025 to 2029, slower than the growth of the overall economy, according to Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc.
Industry Revenue
Motion Picture,TV & Video Production
Industry Structure
Industry size & Structure
The average motion picture and video production company operates out of a single location, employs 13 workers, and generates $5.2 million annually.
- The motion picture and video production industry consists of about 17,100 firms that employ about 229,300 workers and generate about $89.3 billion annually.
- The industry is highly concentrated; the top 50 firms account for 76% of industry sales.
- Large firms with production operations include the Walt Disney Company and Twenty-First Century Fox, Lions Gate Entertainment, and Comcast (Universal Pictures). The major studios produce and distribute the majority of movies released in the US.
- Large firms may be vertically-integrated. For example, some companies are involved in production, distribution, and broadcasting of content.
Industry Forecast
Industry Forecast
Motion Picture,TV & Video Production Industry Growth
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