Apple becomes most valuable company in history

Apple has reached a world record valuation of $623 billion today, making it the most valuable company in history.

This beats Microsoft’s 1999 record of $620.58 billion, though the figures are not adjusted for inflation.

With the iPhone 5, a smaller, cheaper iPad possibly due for launch, and the Apple TV in the pipeline, the company that brought computing to the people has a strong product lineup.

Even so, Apple faces many challenges.

Though the app store is far and away the perferred choice of developers for mobile distribution, Apple has never made its reputation on software, and a strong U.S. dollar means its hardware products are vastly more expensive as economic crises shake the world economy.

Despite this, iOS development is a huge boon for the company, and the thirty percent cut of all sales on the App Store is a large part of the success of Apple in the 21st century.

Stocks rose by $17 to close at $665.15 a share, and current projections place prices at $721 in a year.