Or so says Millward Brown’s tenth annual BrandZ brand value report.
Following Google’s 12 months at the top after hitting the number one spot in 2014, Apple has reclaimed the crown of most valuable brand once more following its winning streak between 2011-2013.
The report details Apple’s value as $246.9 billion, significantly ahead of Google’s $173.7 billion. That’s a massive 67% increase in brand value for Apple, according to Millward Brown, whereas Google only managed a 9% increase.
A table from the report showing the top brands of the last 12 months
As in previous years, tech is huge business. Though Google has dropped to second, Microsoft and IBM round out a technology-led top four.
Apple’s massive growth is no doubt down to the iPhone 6’s better than expected figures. As the report notes: “After Apple introduced its iPhone 6, the brand reported quarterly earnings of over $18 billion, the highest corporate quarterly profit in history for a public company.”
Of course, since then Apple has also launched a new product category: the Apple Watch, which has also performed strongly.
The lengthy report with more detail and analysis can be found here [PDF].