Top Value: Google #1; Coke Slips From Top 10
MediaPost, 3/23/11
Google has edged out Microsoft as the most valuable brand in the world, while Coca-Cola has dropped out of the top 10 for the first time, according to the BrandFinance Global 500 2011 rankings.
Google’s estimated $44.3 billion brand value as of year-end 2010 pushed it up from #2 in last year’s rankings, while Microsoft’s $42.8 billion pushed it up to second place from a #5 ranking last year. The two tech giants superseded last year’s #1 brand, Wal-Mart ($36.2 billion), now ranked third.
Brand Finance, a leading brand valuation consultancy, calculates brand values using a discounted cash flow technique to discount estimated future royalties at an appropriate discount rate, to arrive at a net present value of the trademark and associated intellectual property. The firm also ranks brands by benchmarking their strength, risk and potential relative to competitors, on a scale ranging from AAA+ to D.