(By Balachander) Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) has maintained its domination as the world's most valuable brand for the second year in a row, followed by IBM (NYSE: IBM) and Google (NASDAQ: GOOG), a study showed.
The maker of iPhone and iPad jumped 19 percent in value and is now worth $182.9 billion, according to the annual BrandZ study by market research agency Millward Brown.
Meanwhile, IBM took the number two spot from Google, which dropped to the third position. IBM rose 15 percent in value to $115.9 billion, while Google is now worth $107.8 billion.
Of the top ten positions, technology-related companies took seven of those.
"This year, those businesses that leveraged technology, focused on the customer experience or boosted control of their brands thrived," says David Roth of advertising group WPP, which commissioned the survey.
McDonald's (MCD) and Microsoft (MSFT) retained their fourth and fifth places, respectively, according to the study. McDonald's value came in at $95.2 billion, followed by Microsoft's $76.7 billion.
Other technology firms in the BrandZ top 10 include Verizon (VZ), AT&T (T) and China Mobile.
Facebook (FB), which made its public debut last week, leap-frogged to the nineteenth spot. The eight-year old social networking giant surged 74 percent in value to $33.2 billion, making it the fastest brand value riser in the ranking.
Acoording to the study, Apple continues to innovate and maintain its ‘luxury' brand status, but faces future competition from Samsung, which is successfully outpacing Apple in a significant number of markets by positioning as a cool, well-priced alternative to the ubiquitous iPhone."
Samsung is now worth more than $14.1 billion, partly attributable to the success of its Galaxy handsets, the study showed.