Dubai: Etisalat has been named the Middle East’s most valuable brand for the first time, dethroning heavyweights such as Emirates, Etihad, and Saudi Telecom Co. (STC), according to the latest Brand Finance Global 500 report released on Wednesday.
The Abu Dhabi-based telecom operator posted a 40 per cent increase in its brand value, reaching $7.7 billion, according to the report.
The brand consultancy say that Etisalat, which has risen through the ranks consistently since the list’s inception in 2010, is cementing its place as a strategic enabler in the UAE’s digital transformation.
Brand Finance point to Etisalat’s renewed support for its global football sponsorships, with further focus on its partnership with Manchester City Football Club, as indicators of the strength of its brand.
Andrew Campbell, managing director of Brand Finance Middle East, said in a statement: “The UAE’s focus on digital innovation has helped support Etisalat brand’s success and paved the way for future growth ahead of Expo 2020. With its stated strategy of ‘Driving the Digital Future’, Etisalat has adapted to a new competitive marketplace dominated by the rise of tech giants”.
Globally, Amazon took the top spot as the world’s most valuable brand, ahead of Apple and Google, according to the report. The e-commerce giant’s brand value increased by 42 per cent year on year to $150.8 billion.
Not everyone agrees with Brand Finance’s valuation of Amazon: Forbes said that the company’s brand value in 2017 was $54 billion, highlight discrepancies in the two group’s methodology, while Kantar Millward Brown, part of the WPP advertising group, said that Amazon’s brand was worth $139 billion last year.
Despite having a valuation of Amazon that more closely resembles Brand Finance’s, Kantar Millward Brown’s top four ranked companies are vastly different.
While Brand Finance lists Google as third, with a brand value of $120.9 billion, Kantar Millward Brown say that Google’s brand is worth closer to $250 billion, and ranks it as the most valuable brand in the world.
California-based tech giant Apple, on the other hand, comes second in Brand Finance’s list, with a value of $146.3 billion. It is second in Kantar Millward Brown’s list, too, albeit with a very different valuation: $234 billion.
Campbell, Brand Finance’s regional representative, could not be reached for comment on the difference in valuations.
All valuations have one thing in common: Technology companies are now the most valuable brands in the world, with digital firms claiming all of the top five places in the Brand Finance league table for the first time since its inception.
Samsung (fourth, and valued at $92.3 billion) and Facebook (fifth, and valued at $89.7 billion) both recorded a year-on-year brand value growth of 39 per cent and 45 per cent respectively, overtaking AT&T (sixth, $82.4 billion).
Brand Finance say that change at the top is reflective of a wider global trend, as the technology sector accounts for more than twice as much brand value as telecoms.
The dominance of digital is set to grow even more in the coming years, as other brands make their way up the Global 500.
Google-owned YouTube more than doubled its brand value to $25.9 billion, jumping 70 places to 42nd. Chinese technology brands, taking advantage of captive market conditions, can also boast high brand value growth, with Alibaba (12th), Tencent (21st), WeChat (49th), Baidu (57th), JD (65th), and NetEase (121st), going up by an average of 67 per cent year on year.
TABLE
1 Amazon.com 150,811
2 Apple 146,311
3 Google 120,911
4 Samsung Group 92,289
5 Facebook 89,684
6 AT&T 82,422
7 Microsoft 81,163
8 Verizon 62,826
9 Walmart 61,480
10 ICBC 59 47,832
