Apple could be about to drop off the top spot from Forbes magazine's prestigious World's Most Admired Companies list. The list doesn't come out until later in the week, but according to a blog post by Brad Chase, the company isn't likely to retain its number one placing.
It's not all bad news for Apple though. It's just been voted top of the Business Superbrands list here in the UK, and second in the Consumer Superbrands. Swings and roundabouts.
Chase writes that while Apple "isn't going to disappear anytime soon," the company's image isn't what it once was. "[T]he value of the once-invincible brand is teetering on the edge of a long, steady drop," he writes. And what does he reckon is the cause of this discontent among Apple fans? He puts it down to "glitches, missed deadlines and high prices", citing the debacle over Apple Maps, ethical issues with Foxconn plants in China, the proliferation of viruses attacking Macs, and increased competition from Google and Facebook, among other things.
Apple has won the Most Admired award five times on the trot, so it'd be quite a shock if it was snubbed this year.
The company is still doing well on these shores though, only behind Rolex in the minds of consumers according to the Superbrands survey, which identifies the UK's strongest brands. Apple came one spot ahead of Microsoft, and four ahead of Google. Facebook was the only other tech company in the top 20, placed at 14.
Apple also topped the Business Superbrands list, two places ahead of Google, five ahead of IBM, and seven ahead of Microsoft.
The consumer Superbrands survey asked more than 2,900 consumers which brands they thought had the best reputations. The business poll quizzed more than 1,900 professionals about their companies of choice.
[Source: CNET]