Apple Inc.

Apple Inc., (NASDAQ: AAPL) formerly Apple Computer, Inc., is an American multinational corporation which designs and manufactures consumer electronics and software products. The company's best-known hardware products include Macintosh computers, iPod portable media players, and the iPhone. Apple software includes the Mac OS X operating system, the iTunes media browser, the iLife suite of multimedia and creativity software, and Final Cut Studio, a suite of professional audio- and film-industry software products. The company operates more than 200 retail stores in eight countries[4] and an online store where hardware and software products are sold.

Established in Cupertino, California on April 1, 1976 and incorporated January 3, 1977,[5] the company was called "Apple Computer, Inc." for its first 30 years, but dropped the word "Computer" on January 9, 2007 [6] to reflect the company's ongoing expansion into the consumer electronics market in addition to its traditional focus on personal computers. [7] Apple has about 28,000 employees worldwide[8] and had worldwide annual sales of US$32.48 billion in its fiscal year ending September 29, 2008.[2] For reasons as various as its philosophy of comprehensive aesthetic design to its distinctive advertising campaigns, Apple has established a unique reputation in the consumer electronics industry. This includes a customer base that is devoted to the company and its brand, particularly in the United States.[9] In 2008, Fortune magazine named Apple the most admired company in the United States.[10] [11]