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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/21430
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/21430
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Company and brand names are not set off in italics, period. It's irrelevant whether the name is real or fictional.

The kinds of names/titles which do take italics:

- Publications (newspapers, magazines)
- Books
- Albums
- TV shows
- Movies
- Court cases

May or may not take italics depending on house style:

- Newsletters
- Blogs
- Podcasts
- Videogames

But there's no reason to italicize the name of a brand (Apple, Pepsi), social network (Twitter, Facebook), or restaurant (Le Bec Fin, McCloskey's). These are names of products, services, or establishments. You are establishing what the named item is in context, and by the capital letter(s). For example:

> We picked up an apple at the store.
> 
> We picked up a Mac at the store.
> 
> We picked up a mackintosh at the store.

The first is a piece of fruit, the second a computer, and the third a raincoat. It takes very little to make that clear, and italics aren't necessary. Calling attention to the fictional nature of your product or service will only be a distraction and make your reader wonder why you're calling it out.

Italics in fiction can be used to indicate [thoughts](https://writers.stackexchange.com/questions/8077/punctuating-dialogue-with-oneself) (internal dialogue, or telepathy if your story has it) and [foreign languages.](https://writers.stackexchange.com/questions/1742/whats-the-best-way-to-show-a-foreign-language-in-a-manuscript/)

Original score: 7