Apple

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) formerly Apple Computer, Inc. is an American multinational corporation that designs and sells consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company's best-known hardware products are the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad. Its software includes the Mac OS X operating system; the iTunes media browser; the iLife suite of multimedia and creativity software; the iWork suite of productivity software; Aperture, a professional photography package; Final Cut Studio, a suite of professional audio and film-industry software products; Logic Studio, a suite of music production tools; the Safari web browser; and iOS, a mobile operating system. As of July 2011, Apple has 357 retail stores in ten countries,[5] and an online store.[6] It has been the largest publicly traded company in the world by market capitalization,[7][8] swapping spots with ExxonMobil, and the largest technology company in the world by revenue and profit.[9] As of September 24, 2011, the company had 60,400 permanent full-time employees and 2,900 temporary full-time employees worldwide;[4] its worldwide annual sales totalled $65.23 billion, growing to $108.249 billion in 2011.[3] Fortune magazine named Apple the most admired company in the United States in 2008, and in the world from 2008 to 2011.[10][11][12][13] However, the company has received widespread criticism for its contractors' labor, and for its environmental and business practices.[14][15] Established on April 1, 1976 in Cupertino, California, and incorporated January 3, 1977,[16] the company was named Apple Computer, Inc. for its first 30 years. The word "Computer" was removed from its name on January 9, 2007,[17] as its traditional focus on personal computers shifted towards consumer electronics.[18]