Tech News: Apple Crowned Number 1 Brand in the World

The last decade has been kind to a certain Californian computer giant. Rising from the ashes of a failing business model and product line up in the late 1990s, the company revitalised the technology industry launching products that users wanted, though not necessarily needed.

Riding on the wave of success it has encountered over the last decade, the company was crowned number one in this year’s Milward Brown ‘BrandZ’ Survey of brand value. This unexpected news also meant that Google, last year’s chart topper, finally lost its 4 year grip at the top. Apple had formerly been charting well below 30th place four years ago, though tech insiders have been quick to comment that its rise had largely been due to the company’s diversification.

Apple had previously been going through a rough patch before Steve Jobs returned in 1998. With the company approaching the brink of collapse, Jobs revitalised its offerings with the original iMac G3. He later allowed Apple to gain a reputation of being a company that was ahead of the curve, a clear example being its iPod line of digital music players.

The ‘iCEO’ also became a notable player in the burgeoning digital media market when it announced that Apple would be tying together its iTunes Store with the iPod. The company’s crowning glory would be in 2007 when it finally launched the much speculated-over iPhone. Focussing on making the user experience as unique and easy to use as their computers, the company set the benchmark so high, it left rivals with no chance of launching their ‘iPhone killers’.

Last year, in the midst of a troubling year for the press and publishing industry, Apple launched the iPad tablet computer. Combining the ease of use of its iOS operating system, cutting edge design thanks to Jonathan Ive and ease of use, it created what critics have said to be the perfect slate device.

It proved that yet again, Apple was ahead of the curve. Users didn’t want fully featured operating systems on a device that would share the same weight as a laptop. They wanted light, slim and sleek looking devices that allowed them to build their digital media life around it. Allowing them to access their emails or watch videos whilst on the move.

Apple thoroughly deserves first position in this brand survey, as it has worked hard at building its reputation of quality over the last decade. Whether it can hold pole position amidst its current controversies is another matter, though it shouldn’t be a problem. With only a few months until the launch of its iPhone 5, users are sure to forget any qualms they currently have with the company.