Apple brand tops the table
APPLE has become the most valuable brand in the world, at the expense of its increasingly bitter rival Google.
Steve Jobs’ firm has an estimated brand value of $153bn (£93bn) according to WPP subsidiary BrandZ.
Apple knocked Google off its perch following a run of four years with the search giant at the top of the table.
US technology giants dominated the rankings, with Apple, Google, IBM, Microsoft and AT&T all ranking in the top 10.
The results are similar to last year’s poll, in which Google came top, followed by IBM, Apple and Microsoft. However, Apple’s brand growth has been meteoric, rising in value from $83bn last year and from just $16bn in 2006. In this time Apple – led by talismanic boss Steve Jobs – has seen unprecedented success in its iPhone, iPod and iPad ranges and has flown past iconic brands inclusding Coke and McDonalds.
BrandZ says it uses a number of factors to determine the list, including the contribution of the brand to the company’s earnings and what people think about the firm’s branding.
Last year Vodafone was the sole British company to make the top 10, with its branding estimated to be worth around $44bn – a decrease of 17 per cent on 2009.