McDonald's U.K. seems relentless in its efforts to appeal to kids and their parents.

Lately, the chain's initiatives in that direction have included a healthier revamping of its Happy Meal for the London 2012 Summer Olympics and the rolling out of a carbonated juice drink for kids. Now, McDonald's in the British Isles is experimenting with interactive gesture-recognition technology to select stores (with high traffic from families) for a Happy Meal Digital Play zone.

The interactive installation combines a Wii-like experience with digital signage. Kids trigger games featuring McDonald's characters and other beloved characters (such as Bugs Bunny and Tweety Bird) to play games and get moving.Continue reading...

Microsoft will announce Monday a plan to sell tablets under its own brand, in a challenge to Apple's iPad, while Amazon reportedly plans to launch cloud music service in July to rival iTunes.

Kirin Holdings agreed to pay $200.9 million Australian dollars (US$203.4 million) for the shares it doesn't already own in Australian boutique brewer Little World Beverages, as Japanese companies expand offshore to combat flagging domestic demand.

Dr Martens owners seeks up to £200m from potential buyers.

AirAsia plans to follow Virgin model with brand extensions.

Android relaunches user interface.Continue reading...

Facebook I.P.O. raises regulatory concerns, as regulators review Morgan Stanley's pre-Facebook IPO actions and the social network's share price drops 18% below IPO price and shareholders worry. NASDAQ is also being sued by an irate investor, while Facebook, its bankers and CEO Mark Zuckerberg are also being sued. One hot commodity: Zuckerberg's post-IPO secret wedding to Priscilla Chan sees Claire Pettibone-designed wedding dress "go viral."

Apple's iPad played a key role in the largest debt restructuring in history, with 100 iPads saving Greece $140 billion. European banks were less prepared for the Greek economic crisis.

SAP to acquire Ariba for $4.3 billion in push into cloud.

Alcatel-Lucent technology made the Internet five times faster.

Amazon's massive cloud business raises questions.

FOX's American Idol lost nearly a quarter of its still-huge audience this season.Continue reading...

Those who regularly use Twitter [like the author], it's a regular surprise just how fast information can be designated and how that information can culture, spore, and explode with momentum. Just the same, regular users know just how banal Twitter can seem. As you eat up live updates on the #Syria feed, you realize that, instead of #Syria, #Anchorman is trending. Why? Because some basic cable channel happens to be rerunning the film Anchorman and millions are tweeting about it while watching.

Now Twitter has released a list of 2011's "Hot Topics" and it's exactly what an experienced tweeter would expect: true life and gravity (Japan's earthquake, Egyptian uprising) vs. pointlessness (Charlie Sheen's #tigerblood meme). Continue reading...

Anglo American and Lafarge to form $2.8 billion UK venture.

Apple draws scrutiny from regulators over subscription rules and gets closer to a cheaper iPhone.

CBS gets heat for allegedly sitting on the Lara Logan story.

Campbell Soup lowers outlook.

Citadel Broadcasting ponders selling itself to smaller rival Cumulus.

Daimler unveils BharatBenz brand for India.

Disney head Bob Iger outlines vision for TV's future, while studio arm plots counter offensive against DVD industry woes.

Egypt's new military rulers launch Facebook page, attract 75,000 fans in 24 hours.Continue reading...

Deutsche Boerse agreed to buy NYSE Euronext for $10.2 billion in a "politically charged deal" that would create the world's largest exchange operator and put it under German control.

CBS news correspondent Lara Logan is recovering from a 'brutal' attack in Cairo.

Chevron disputes judge's Amazon ruling while Ecuadorians plan to fight for more. 

Apple unveils iPad subscription plan.

BHP Billiton to return $10 billion to shareholders.

Danone warns about looming price hikes due to rising food costs.Continue reading...

The daily protests that continue to batter Egypt have had an interesting side effect — the emergence of the English version of a television/online network that previously was seen by Western media as an anti-American propaganda machine.

Al Jazeera, the Arabic network backed by the emir of Qatar, has had an English-language operation since 2006, but its on-the-spot coverage of the Egyptian revolt has been so integral to events that there seems to be a new interest in "Al Jazeera English," as the network calls the channel. Al Jazeera maintains separate Arabic- and English-language news operations but they work in tandem and share an "editorial spirit."

Some observers, reports the New York Times, wonder whether Al Jazeera has been influencing the Egyptian uprisings by televising them; indeed, Al Jazeera has featured 24/7 coverage and has continued to broadcast despite equipment being confiscated and arrests of its staff members.Continue reading...

Super Bowl XLV goes to the Green Bay Packers over the Pittsburgh Steelers, 31-25. Game advertisers including Chrysler, Volkswagen, PepsiCo, Best Buy, CareerBuilder and Bridgestone also win, scoring well with consumers, while WSJ finds "many ads fail to score." Americana reigned supreme on the world’s biggest marketing stage, and Detroit — whose native son Eminem also staged a comeback, appearing in two ads. Meanwhile, Groupon faces questions of whether its first Super Bowl debut crossed a line and thwarted its cause-related marketing goals. And restaurant chains ponder the impact of having sat out Super Bowl advertising this year.

AOL is acquiring Huffington Post for $315 million.  

AutoNation seeks more U.S.-brand dealerships.

Disney raises eyebrows by marketing to newborns.Continue reading...