Apple tops CoolBrands for fifth year running

Apple - cool again
Apple - cool again

Apple has kept its place at the top of the Coolbrands survey for the fifth year running, but the big story is the rise and rise of streaming services like Netflix, Spotify and YouTube which have all bagged top 10 places.

The CoolBrands awards are judged by a host of influencers - including MOBO's founder Kanye King, designer Kelly Hoppen and the author of this article - as well as by the public.

As you may gather from the name they are designed to ascertain the coolest brands, and it's no surprise to see Apple heading up the list yet again.

The top 10 is dominated by technology brands - with the only exceptions being grand old music festival Glastonbury, car giant Aston Martin and sports brands Adidas and Nike.

Stream

After Apple, streaming and social services feature heavily. Netflix has bagged the bronze medal, ahead of Instagram and Spotify in 6th and 7th position and YouTube in 10th.

Sony's PlayStation is in the 9th position - boosted by a fine year in which it has outsold nearest rival Xbox.

Into the longer list - Google is just outside the top 10, and other notable tech entries include Bose (14), Sonos (16) and GoPro (18).

Stephen Cheliotis, Chairman of the CoolBrands Council said Stephen Cheliotis, Chairman of the CoolBrands Council said "while Apple is still perceived by influencers and the public alike to be the UK's coolest brand, a concerted wave of fast-growing, entrepreneurial businesses are building momentum to seriously challenge its position.

"Disruptive brands like Netflix, Spotify, Instagram, Airbnb and GoPro (proving Apple no longer has a monopoly on cool tech) continue to boost their credentials, consolidating their positions by either moving further up the Top 20 or entering for the first time."

Patrick Goss

Patrick Goss is the ex-Editor in Chief of TechRadar. Patrick was a passionate and experienced journalist, and he has been lucky enough to work on some of the finest online properties on the planet, building audiences everywhere and establishing himself at the forefront of digital content.  After a long stint as the boss at TechRadar, Patrick has now moved on to a role with Apple, where he is the Managing Editor for the App Store in the UK.