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World’s most valuable brands: Apple overtakes Google, but now behind Amazon

Brandz is out with its annual analysis of the world’s most valuable brands, and there is good news and bad news for Apple.

On the upside, Apple has overtaken Google; on the downside, both have been beaten to the top slot by Amazon

Last year’s rankings saw Google rated #1, with Apple #2 and Amazon #3. But Brandz says all that has changed this year.

  1. Amazon
  2. Apple
  3. Google
  4. Microsoft
  5. Visa
  6. Facebook
  7. Alibaba
  8. Tencent
  9. McDonalds
  10. AT&T

The ranking is based on objective data, but uses proprietary algorithms based on a subjective take on the factors that matter when calculating how much value a brand name adds to its products. CNBC explains that services were considered key.

BrandZ’s list combines measures of brand equity based on interviews with more than 3 million consumers about thousands of brands, with analysis of each company’s business and financial performance, using data from Kantar Worldpanel […]

Doreen Wang, Kantar’s global head of BrandZ, said Amazon’s jump was due to it selling a variety of services. “Amazon’s phenomenal brand value growth of almost $108 billion in the last year demonstrates how brands are now less anchored to individual categories and regions. The boundaries are blurring as technology fluency allow brands, such as Amazon, Google and Alibaba, to offer a range of services across multiple consumer touchpoints,” she said in a statement emailed to CNBC.

This focus on services likely also explains Apple overtaking Google.

David Roth, chair of BrandZ, said the companies that did well were those that mastered this new model of different services. “Brands need to understand the value this type of model can create and should embrace its approach to be successful in the future,” he said in an emailed statement.

Apple regularly scores highly in a range of global rankings, most recently getting a perfect score in the Corporate Equality Index, and last month earning a Cannes Lions ‘creative marketer of the year‘ award.

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Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Ben Lovejoy

Ben Lovejoy is a British technology writer and EU Editor for 9to5Mac. He’s known for his op-eds and diary pieces, exploring his experience of Apple products over time, for a more rounded review. He also writes fiction, with two technothriller novels, a couple of SF shorts and a rom-com!


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