At the same time, Nintendo itself is in third place.
Japanese consulting company Nikkei BP Consulting has published the results of its annual Brand Japan 2026 study, which reveals the specifics of brand perception among different generations. The data show a noticeable gap between the preferences of young people and older audiences, especially in the automotive and electronics industries.
According to the report, the popularity of traditionally strong Japanese brands such as Toyota is declining among people under 20. A similar trend is observed for Panasonic and Sony. While they occupy 26th, 4th and 10th places respectively in the overall ranking, their positions among young people fall to 149th, 27th and 40th places.
At the same time, the study revealed a rapid increase in the influence of gaming and digital brands. For example, Nintendo Switch took 2nd place among respondents under 20, second only to YouTube, but ahead of such popular brands as Nintendo (3rd place), Pokémon (7th place) and The Walt Disney Company (10th place).
It is noteworthy that in the overall ranking, Nintendo Switch occupies only 59th position, while Nintendo and The Walt Disney Company are significantly higher - in 12th and 14th places respectively. This highlights the significant differences in brand perception between generations.
The study was conducted in November last year and covered more than 37,000 respondents who evaluated over 1,000 brands.
