Analysis
NAICS 533 is the 2022 subsector for lessors of nonfinancial intangible assets (except copyrighted works), part of 53 (Real Estate and Rental and Leasing).
It has only one more detailed code, 533110, which covers exactly the same activities; the definition, index entries and statistics are on that page.
County Business Patterns counts 2,701 US establishments in this code in 2023, employing 44,095 people at an average annual payroll of $136,596 per employee (95th percentile of national industries). 64% of the establishments have fewer than five employees, which marks it as a small-business industry.
By establishments it ranks 3rd of the 3 codes at this level within Real Estate and Rental and Leasing, with 0.6% of them.
Between 2018 and 2023 the number of establishments fell 1% and employment rose 13%. The 2018 count used NAICS 2017, so part of a large move can come from codes being redefined rather than from businesses opening or closing.
Official definition
Industries in the Lessors of Nonfinancial Intangible Assets (except Copyrighted Works) subsector include establishments primarily engaged in assigning rights to assets, such as patents, trademarks, brand names, and/or franchise agreements, for which a royalty payment or licensing fee is paid to the asset holder. Establishments in this subsector own the patents, trademarks, and/or franchise agreements that they allow others to use or reproduce for a fee and may or may not have created those assets.
Establishments that allow franchisees the use of the franchise name, contingent on the franchisee buying products or services from the franchisor, are classified elsewhere.
Excluded from this subsector are establishments primarily engaged in leasing real property and establishments primarily engaged in leasing tangible assets, such as automobiles, computers, consumer goods, and industrial machinery and equipment. These establishments are classified in Subsector 531, Real Estate, and Subsector 532, Rental and Leasing Services, respectively.
Source: US Census Bureau, NAICS 2022 Manual.