That’s according to a newly released report from the Boston Consulting Group based on three years of research including economic estimates and surveys of businesses and consumers.

The Internet economy in G-20 developed markets will grow at an annual rate of 8 percent, outpacing just about every other traditional economic sector, BCG projected. Meanwhile, in developing markets the average annual growth rate will be 18 percent.

All told, the Internet economy is set to add 32 million jobs between 2010 and 2016.

BCG noted, “Policymakers cite with envy the GDP growth rates of emerging markets, but they look past similar rates we have in our own backyard, with the Internet economy growing at a healthy 6.5% per year in the U.S. At the same time, the U.S. risks losing some of its competitive edge unless it increases its growth rate, which is below the average of other developed nations in the G-20.”

A few more interesting observations:

• The U.K. is way out in front when it comes to the Internet’s portion of national GDP. That was 8.3 percent last year, estimated to grow to 12.4 percent in 2016 — thanks in large part to a thriving e-commerce market. Check out the chart above — the U.K. bar shoots out beyond the rest of the G-20.
• Developing Internet markets tend to be extremely social. “People are just coming online in rapid numbers, and moving straight to the latest tools and technology,” said report co-author Paul Zwillenberg. “Social is today what AOL was 10-15 years ago in the U.S.”
• Also, BCG did one of those cute survey things where they ask people how much they’d want to be paid to live without Internet access. U.S. respondents said $2,548 per year, in France $4,453 and in Turkey $323. BCG noted that in most cases people are paying much less for Internet access than they say it is worth to them.

The new economy is the Internet Economy. The Internet Economy is reshaping the fortunes of business, countries and people, leveling the playing field for everyone, and driving the most significant economic shift since the Industrial Revolution.”

– Cisco CEO John Chambers, Sept. 24, 1998

When he appeared at our D5 conference in May 2007, Sen. John McCain said that, given the chance, he’d hire Cisco CEO John Chambers for his cabinet. Now, in the run-up to the November presidential election, it looks like Chambers has some competition for that spot. In an interview with Reuters today, McCain said that Chambers–who’s contributed quite a bit to the McCain campaign–is still on his short list of potential Treasury secretaries, but the Cisco (CSCO) CEO has some company. “I think it would be someone that Americans would recognize that would inspire trust and confidence,” McCain said. “There’s people like John Chambers, there’s people like [former eBay (EBAY) CEO] Meg Whitman, there’s people like Warren Buffett.”

Apparently, current Secretary Henry Paulson doesn’t quite cut it anymore. Anyway … it’s curious that McCain would include Buffett among his choices for Treasury secretary since his appointment would almost certainly outrage tax-cutting fiscal conservatives to near-aneurysm. Indeed, it already has. Said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, “Warren Buffett is a goddamned Democrat and he doesn’t understand that a 28 percent capital gains tax would be a bad thing. He might be a good bridge partner, but he’s awful on policy.”

Incidentally, Barack Obama’s list of potential Treasury secretaries includes no Silicon Valley CEOs, current or otherwise. According to people close to his campaign, it includes New York Federal Reserve Bank President Tim Geithner, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and former deputy Treasury secretary Roger Altman.