Apple Tops Best Global Brands 2020 List; Instagram, YouTube, and Zoom Make the Cut

Apple is the top brand of 2020 according to the Interbrand Best Global Brands 2020 list. The personal technology behemoth has retained the first spot with an impressive growth of 38 percent in supposed brand value — a fraction of the company's actual market valuation of about $2 trillion (Rs. 147 lakh crores) — bringing it to almost $323 billion (roughly Rs. 23 lakh crores) and securing the number one spot again. More impressive, however, has been the rise of Amazon that has grown 60 percent in brand value to close at number two with $200 billion (roughly Rs. 14.7 lakh crores).

Microsoft has toppled Google by a slight margin to enter the top three this year in Interbrand's list of most valued brands. Its brand value is up by a notable 53 percent to $166 billion (roughly Rs. 12.2 lakh crores). The brand Google, on the other hand, contracted by 1 percent to slip to the fourth spot, tailing Microsoft very closely at $165.4 billion (roughly Rs. 12.1 lakh crores). Samsung at number five with a brand value of $62 billion (roughly Rs. 4.5 lakh crores) has some catching up to do with the Big Tech. Ironically, this list comes hard on the heels of a massive lawsuit against Google. The influence of the Big Tech and their ways of gaining it has got them in the crosshairs of regulators and lawmakers in many countries.

The top three brands, all technology, have gained an average of 50 percent in value. The report notes that the turbulent year has split the list in two — the brands that gained from the effects of the pandemic and those that didn't. The next five on the list, all non-technology, for instance, have had negative growth. Coca Cola with $56.8 billion (roughly Rs. 4.1 lakh crores) at six, Toyota with $51.5 billion (roughly Rs. 3.8 lakh crores) at seven, Mercedes with $49 billion (roughly Rs. 3.6 lakh crores) at number eight, McDonald's with $42.8 billion (roughly Rs. 3.1 lakh crores) at number 9, and Disney with $40.7 billion (roughly Rs. 3 lakh crores) to close the top ten.

COVID-19 has struck a devastating blow to human contact and technology has been on the job to patch it up with a workaround. The Best Global Brands of 2020 has four new entrants and three of them are technology brands. Instagram joins the ranks at 19, YouTube at 30, and Zoom at 100. It's a special feat for Zoom, the young video-conferencing company that has come with a socially distant rescue plan in these troubled times, to be noted among the world's top brands. And it comes as no surprise that it has taken the world by storm. The report says that Zoom's market capitalisation has risen a magnificent 389 percent in the past 12 months and its revenue is up 270 percent. The brand is valued by the report at $4.4 billion (roughly Rs. 32,300 crores). The only other brand to have made the list for the first time is Johnnie Walker at spot number 98 valued at $4.5 billion (roughly Rs. 33,100 crores).

Another noteworthy mention in this year's list is Spotify, which has gained a brilliant 52 percent, bringing its brand value to $8.3 billion (roughly Rs. 61,000 crores) and rank at number 70.

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