Kia names first non-Korean as president and integrates Google Maps.

Avis to acquires Zipcar brand for $500 million.

Nivea woos investors as CEO admits Rihanna was the wrong brand ambassador and brand returns to NYC's Times Square as New Year's Eve event sponsor.

Amazon apologizes for Christmas Eve outage.

American Girl's 2013 Girl of the Year doll addresses U.S. arts education cuts.

Apple sees its store in Paris robbed.

BBC Worldwide appoints chief brands officer.Continue reading...

Apple plans limited US manufacturing as it lands back in court with Samsung and baffles Eric Schmidt.

Starbucks agrees to pay more UK tax, capitulating to criticism.

Rolls-Royce is caught in bribery probe in UK.

AmEx works on social engagement that closes the loop with consumers.

AT&T is on track for record smartphone sales.

Barclays Africa is sold to Absa in $2.1 billion transaction.

Bob Marley trademark spat settled as 'relaxation drink' comes under fire.

Deutsche Bank is probed by SEC.

Dish will start selling mobile phones at its Blockbuster movie rental stores.Continue reading...

In a blinding glimpse of the obvious, the Oprah brand is rising from the ashes as the former queen of daytime returns to what she does best: one-on-one interviews.

Oprah’s Next Chapter interview with Rihanna Sunday night scored 2.5 million viewers, OWN's second highest-rated telecast in its brief and tumultuous history. It was more than double the numbers posted from her Kardashian interview in June, which drew 1.1 million viewers. 

Thanks to female viewers, the episode, in which Oprah unabashedly (redundant) queried Rihanna on her stormy relationship with Chris Brown, ranked No. 2 in the 9 p.m. Sunday timeslot, pulling in a 2.43 rating for women 25-54 and a 2.49 rating for women 18-49 years-old. The only show on OWN with higher ratings was Oprah’s interview with Whitney Houston’s family following the superstar’s death. Continue reading...

Amazon and eBay eye same-day delivery as Amazon site traffic soars.

App.net woos digerati and raises funds for paid social network.

Apple calls final witnesses in contentious Samsung trial as brand's fans seen losing their edge.

Baidu among Barrons' top 10 Chinese brands.

Barclays chairman promises change.

Bermuda readies new branding campaign.

Costco sees deluge of cross-border Canadian shoppers.Continue reading...

Microsoft takes the stage at E3 to talk up Xbox.

Marvel starts production on Iron Man 3.

Vita Coco unveils new campaign with Rihanna (right).

Aon Hewitt finds positive shift in internal brand engagement.

Black & Decker coffee machines recalled following 1,300 complaints.

BlackBerry parent RIM shares drop below $10.

Celsius mobile phone with embedded Swiss timepiece retails for $312K.

Coca-Cola and McDonald's hit back at Mike Bloomberg's NYC big soda ban.

Corning expands on Gorilla Glass with thinner Willow Glass.

Facebook shares tumble to new low on Sanford Bernstein questions.

Ford crowdsources Focus ST commercial.

Google's Project Glass codename? Wingman.

Got Milk? and California Dairy Council partner for consumer education campaign.Continue reading...

Film: Battleship
Brands/Products Spotted: 13
Standout Placement: United States Navy
Most Memorable Placement (positive): United States Navy
Most Memorable Placement (negative): Coke Zero
Overall Product Placement Integration Grade (1-10): 4
Comments: You sank our opening weekend number one box office ranking! Indeed, The Avengers continues to play box office hero for the third weekend in a row, leaving Battleship (aka "Rihanna's Big Screen Debut") to float like so much flotsam. But the movie, based on the classic board game, made plenty of money overseas, pleasing the brands that invested in it, none more so than the United States Navy.Continue reading...

Many argue that Coca-Cola overpaid substantially for a better-for-you beverage line when it bought Glaceau, and its Vitaminwater brand, for $4 billion in 2007. Yet the share of the bottled-water market enjoyed by Vitaminwater and its siblling Smartwater brand continues to grow in a category that has flattened out.

Coke would probably settle for a similar outcome as it moves to exercise its option to acquire a majority stake in Zico, the no. 2 brand of coconut water in the United States by sales, after purchasing a minority holding in the start-up for less than $15 million in 2009. Coke won't disclose the price of the option, but it probably isn't $4 billion.

Coconut water is emerging as another important front in the "cola wars" between PepsiCo and Coke, because just as Coke is moving in on Zico, PepsiCo is rolling out nationwide distribution of the No. 3 brand, O.N.E., after taking a majority stake in the brand in 2010.

Vita Coco, the No. 1-selling U.S. coconut water brand, has attracted celebrity endorsements by Rihanna, Madonna and the New York Yankees' Alex Rodriguez. It's controlled by founder Michael Kirban and Verlinvest, a Belgian investment firm, and more than doubled its revenue last year to nearly $100 million. That figure indicates a continued acceleration in growth of coconut-water sales because near the middle of that high-growth year, for the 52 weeks ended September 3rd, sales for the entire coconut-water segment in the U.S. were about $110 million — more than double the year-earlier figure of $54 million — according to SPINS, which provides sales data on nutritional and better-for-you foods.Continue reading...

Adidas taps Katy Perry for new campaign.

AFL-CIO launches image campaign.

Airbus posts record sales.

American Airlines stops flying to India, sacks 150 workers.

AOL leads companies testing crowdsourcing.

Apple expands iTunes Match, reportedly preps interactive textbooks for the iPad, while pre-earnings valuations vary.

BASF halts its genetically modified products in Europe, including its Amflora potato.

Beats Electronics breaks up with Monster.

Beyonce accused of skin-lightening in album promotion, gives first post-baby interview.

BlackBerry-maker RIM criticized by analysts for PlayBook incompatability.

BMW recalls 89,000 Mini vehicles.

Burberry quarterly profits jump 22%.

Carnival faces heat in wake of Italy shipwreck, its worst accident in 40 years, as environmental fears mount and cruise industry is rocked.

M&M's will introduce a sixth candy character — Ms. Brown — in its Super Bowl commercial, while Kia plans 60-second commercial with Adriana Lima and Motley Crue, in keeping with trend to longer Super Bowl spots.Continue reading...