Disney is the world’s most powerful brand and Apple the most valuable, an annual study of some of the biggest companies on the planet has found.
Brand valuation and strategy consultancy Brand Finance puts thousands of the world’s top brands to the test every year.
They are scrutinised to work out which are the most powerful – based on factors such as familiarity, loyalty, promotion, marketing investment, employee satisfaction and corporate reputation – and which are most valuable, and ranked to form the Brand Finance Global 500.
Disney has knocked toy brick-builder Lego off the perch for the most powerful brand this time, thanks to the record-breaking success of its new Star Wars film.
Brand Finance said: “Disney’s strength is founded on its rich history and original creations, however, its now dominant position is the result of its many acquisitions and the powerful brands it has brought under its control.
“ESPN, Pixar, The Muppets and Marvel are all now Disney-owned but perhaps its most important acquisition of all has been Lucasfilm, and thus Star Wars.”
Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens has broken countless box office records, becoming the fastest to take US$1billion (nearly £700million), enjoying the most successful opening weekend (£370million) and based on its total box office gross of nearly £1.4billion is Disney’s most successful film ever. Meanwhile, Star Wars toys have generated more than £490million.
Brand Finance estimated the value of the Star Wars brand at £7billion, dwarfing the £2.8billion Disney paid for Lucasfilm in 2012.
Lego may have lost its place at the top of the table but Brand Finance said it was still a “very powerful” brand despite recent controversies threatening to affect its wholesome image.
The Danish company was fined by German regulators for trying to stop retailers discounting its products and also accused of colluding in censorship for trying to prevent dissident Chinese artist Ai Wei Wei using Lego in his work.
Lego has since reversed its policy of restricting purchases to be used for political ends following widespread condemnation, including from Ai Wei Wei himself.
Apple has maintained its dominance at the summit of the Brand Finance Global 500 in terms of brand value, thanks to the huge success of the iPhone 6 and recently released iPhone 6s.
Revenue for the fourth quarter of the company’s 2015 tax year was a record-breaking £35.9billion, with profits at £7.8billion, while revenue for the whole year was £162.7billion.
The technology giant’s recent sales growth has disappointed but Brand Finance said that with 74.8million handsets sold in the last quarter in a saturated market, “assertions that Apple has gone rotten are premature”.
Troubled German car manufacturer Volkswagen is perhaps not surprisingly among Brand Finance’s worst performing brands following its diesel emissions scandal.