But what about companies like Google, Microsoft, Apple etc? They have the same strategy as well. They use their brand to gain that initial traction and test out

But what about companies like Google, Microsoft, Apple etc? They have the same strategy as well. They use their brand to gain that initial traction and test out a new product. And I disagree with you about a discontinued product hurting their brand. No-one remembers Amazon menu, Amazon movie listings, Microsoft Courier, Google Catalogs, Wave, Google labs etc.