Apple Ranked Number Two in BusinessWeek Study

Apple took the number two spot behind Amazon in BusinessWeek's annual InfoTech 100. The study ranks companies according to four criteria: return on equity, shareholder return and revenue growth, and weight-adjusted total revenues. Amazon claimed the top spot for the second year running, with RIM, Nintendo and Western Digital rounding out the top five spots. The study notes the growing absence of American innovators on the list, with US representation dropping from 43 to 33.

I have a little trouble with the inclusion of Amazon in this list. I guess one could argue that they do create gadgets, like the Kindle Wireless Reading Device. But their first business is online retail, not creating technology products. Therefore, in In my humble opinion, Apple tops this list.

The list is weighted entirely upon the aggregate scores of financial performance. It would be interesting to see the relative scoring used to rank the companies. Just how close was the race? And what would the list look like if it included innovative products? Apple would clearly top that list. Apple is number one in my book, but then I might be biased.