Business These Are the 10 Brands That Could Disappear in 2012

It has a very modest presence in the rapidly growing smartphone industry, which is dominated by Apple, Innovation In Motion's Blackberry, HTC, and Samsung. Nokia runs the outdated Symbian operating system and is in the process of changing to Microsoft Window mobile OS, which has a tiny share of the market. Nokia would be an attractive takeover target largely because the cost to "buy" 25 percent of the global handset market would only be $22 billion based on Nokia's current market cap.

Microsoft, which is Nokia's primary software partner, could easily buy the company and is often mentioned as a suitor. The world's largest software company recently moved furthermore into the telecom industry even though its purchase of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) giant Skype, which has 170 million active clients. Two other large firms have many reasons to buy Nokia. Samsung, part of one of the largest conglomerates in Korea, has openly set a goal to be the No.1 handset company in the world by 2014.

The first quarter

Soap Opera Digest's first quarter advertising pages fell 21 percent in the first quarter and revenue was down 18 percent to $4 million. In 2000, the magazine's circulation was in excess of 1.1 million readers. By 2005, it fell below 500,000 where it has remained for the last 5 years. Source Interlink Media, the magazine's parent, which as well owns automotive, truck, and motorcycle publications, has little reason to support a product based on a dying industry.

8. MySpaceMySpace, once the world's largest social network, died a long time ago. It will be buried shortly. News Corp bought MySpace and its parent in 2005 for $580 million, which was considered inexpensive then based on the web property's size. MySpace held the top spot among social networks based on visitors from mid-2006 until mid-2008 according to several online technology services.

7. Kellogg's Corn PopsThe cereal business is not what is used to be, until further notice for products that are not considered "healthy." Among those is Kellogg's Corn Pops ready-to-eat cereal. Sales of the brand dropped 18 percent over the year that ended in April, down to $74 million. That puts it then behind brands like Cheerios and Frosted Flakes, each which have sales of over $200 million a year. Private label sales have as well hurt sales of branded cereals. Earnings in this category were $637 million over the same April-end period. There is as well profit margin pressure on Corn Pops because of the sharp increase in corn prices.

6. Sony EricssonSony Ericsson was formed by the two large consumer electronics companies to market the handset offerings each had handled separately. The venture started in 2001, earlier the rise of the smartphone. Early in its history, it was one of the biggest handset manufacturers along with Nokia, Samsung, LG, and Motorola. Sales of Sony Ericsson phones were originally helped by the popularity of other Sony portable devices like the Walkman.

Sony Ericsson's product development lagged behind those of companies like Apple and Technology In Motion which dominated the high end smartphone industry early. Sony Ericsson as well relied on the Symbian operating system which was championed by market leader Nokia, however which it has abandoned in favor of Microsoft's Windows mobile operating because of license costs and difficulty with programmers.

In a period when smartphone sales worldwide are rising in the double digits and sales of the iPhone double year over year, Sony Ericsson's unit sales dropped from 97 million in 2008 to 43 million last year. New competitors like HTC now outsell Sony Ericsson by widening numbers. Sony Ericsson management expects several more quarters of falling sales and the company has laid off thousands of people.

5. SearsThe parent of Sears and Kmart-Sears Holdings-is in a lot of trouble. Total revenue dropped $341 million to $9.7 billion for the quarter, which closed April 30, 2011. The company had a net loss of $170 million. Sears Holdings was created by a merger of the parents of the two chains on March 24, 2005.

4. American ApparelThe once-“hip” retailer reached the brink of bankruptcy previously this year, and there is no indication that it has gained anything more than a little time with its latest financing. It currently trades as a penny stock. The company had three stores and $82 million in revenue in 2003. Those numbers reached 260 stores and $545 million in 2008. For the first quarter of this year, the retailer had net sales for the quarter of $116.1 million, a 4.7 percent decline over sales of $121.8 million in the same period a year ago. Comparable store sales declined 8 percent on a constant currency basis.

Example of evolution: Apple’s Macs never get a large share of the market from PCs. They design the iPod, emerge in a new market, and the company is revitalized. The new branding as well helps lagging computer sales, nevertheless the company has evolved from a computer-based one to something new.

actually, natural selection does fit. Natural selection in such a case refers to the most sound business model to be able to survive in nature or, in Apples’ case, find a niche to be able to thrive in its own way

frankly, I’m surprised the ones that are nevertheless with us are everything considered with us. Our society is built on a free trade market and companys must evolve and with the infrastructure) can squeeze the life from it ) that has promoted it’s growth over the past 50 / 60 years can only take it so far earlier it tops out . Most of them are dug in so far with what they do that they can’t survive any other way { it’d be like some kid getting a full ride on a basketball scholarship, going on to the pros, having some career ending injury at the time becoming a hobo begging for money because he didn’t get a degree, and he had no plan-b. They were to blinded by a souless financial success and greed to see what was happening to them – to naive and thoughtless to realize it could all crumble like a house of cards.

THE brand of cell phone

Nokia-I remember 10 years ago when they were THE brand of cell phone. They as well used to make Oki bag phones back in the mid to late 90s. They actually blew it. Going with Microsoft for its OS isn’t going to fix anything either since MS makes a crappy OS for cell phones. And Sony Ericcson stopped making CDMA phones in 2002 to focus on GSM. They too had a good market position years ago. It just goes to show you not to become complacent. I think the moral of this story is SHTF is coming in 2012!

Maybe Obama can save them for us!! Nevertheless if he does, I will give them the same kind of business I give GM…The finger

GM treats America like dirt. I urge all REAL Americans to NEVER give GM their business. I give them a 1-finger salute with both hands whenever I see one of their billboards or ads on TV. GM blows. ‘Nuff said.

Sears. We used to get so excited when the new catalogs came out. Me and my little brother would write the key code number, page number and description down on a piece of paper for all the toys we wanted for Christmas. We loved the catalog. At that time Sears started charging for the catalogs and we didn’t get anymore. We had bought nearly every non-grocery item from Sears previously the catalog charge. Then and there when the credit card craze hit and everyone started buying items from the catalog by phone using their new credit cards, Sears decided it would discontinue their catalog. I nevertheless wonder why. We as well visited K-Mart quite frequently when I was a kid. At that time Walmart came and offered so much more and K-Mart kept on doing the same old thing. I stopped in my local K-Mart the other day, for nostalgic reasons. Why it was as if I stepped back in the course of time 35 years. Everything was such as it was thirty years ago. It made a great museum nevertheless a lousy retail store. So in desperate decline these two Titanic passengers, Sears and K-Mart, joined hands. Now they wait at the same time for the inevitable. I find it or rather sad. These were the pillars of successful businesss. Sears had catalogs in nearly every home in the country at one time. Yet like people, they must in the end die. I just wished they would have died by nature and not from self inflicted wounds. I saw it coming years and years ago for these two. Sears, discontinued their catalog? I’m everything considered stunned. Oh then.