Every day brings more news of brands signing up celebs as the face and ambassador of their product or service. But with Fifty Cent making almost $8.8 million from a single tweet — if that estimate is to be believed — it has to be asked if the power of celebrity endorsements still holds true. The Kardashians' kollective future is riding on it!Continue reading...

Airbus says it’s ahead of rival Boeing on new-plane orders.

AOL bets on hyperlocal news with Patch.com.

BP deal with Russian oil giant Rosneft criticized on U.S. national-security grounds.

Campbell Soup targets China.

Fiat wins a crucial union vote agreeing to changes in a plant in Turin and plans product changes for Chrysler.

Hyundai ponders a second U.S. manufacturing plant despite UAW lobbying.

Johnson & Johnson looks to get its act together in drug aisle.Continue reading...

In the continuing saga of "Homeless to Hollywood" overnight sensation Ted Williams, the golden-voiced former DJ may have just made his first misstep: agreeing to appear on Dr. Phil's talkshow.

In an episode that airs Wednesday, Williams and his estranged family were brought together by the Oprah-fied self-help guru (we assume it's just matter of time before Williams appears on Winfrey's show, too).

In the course of taping an argument broke out, followed by news that Williams was "detained" by police. Apparently, a heated argument with his daughter, who was brought to Los Angeles for the Dr. Phil taping, led to a disturbance report. Some media outlets, incorrectly, used the word "arrested" in their reports of the incident.Continue reading...

Altria, R.J. Reynolds and Lorillard face tougher tobacco marketing rules in US.

Apple launches app store for Mac software.

Bank of America categorizes clients, adds fees.

Boeing loses major 747 order due to delays.

BP spill inquiry to report that disaster "likely" to recur; and hears that microbes may have mitigated methane damage in the Gulf.

CNN books Oprah as first guest for Piers Morgan's post-Larry King debut on Jan. 17; Madonna still banned as "boring."Continue reading...

Our headline isn't about the Starbucks logo flap, or implying that the brand's adrift — we're talking about the first Starbucks on water, with a new location just opened on Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas (featured in Oprah's final "Favorite Things" brandstravaganza), above.

It's a fitting launch in a week when Starbucks' nautical mascot, the siren, is top of mind. As for the hotly debated logo redesign, Starbucks SVP Terry Davenport tells Adweek the move to "liberate" the siren from the current logo's black-and-green ring design was approached "very sensitively."Continue reading...

Oprah Winfrey ended 2010 as Hollywood's highest-paid entertainer (earning $315 million last year, according to Forbes), and started 2011 by venturing on her OWN — the name of her much-ballyhooed, Discovery-backed 24/7 cable network. Critics were mostly positive, while response by viewers was predictable (fans were in awe, others couldn't be bothered).

Pundits are closely watching to see if viewers will indeed "follow me to OWN" as she urges a fan in OWN's behind-the-scenes series about her 25th season — and whether her personal brand will carry over as she prepares to step down from the syndicated daytime talk show that made her name and fame.Continue reading...

AT&T invests in 4G spectrum.

Best Buy tests sales of health and fitness products.

BMW and Daimler experiment with upscale rent-by-the-ride in Europe.

CNN’s new chief dives in as Larry King goes out on top.

DirecTV pioneers "addressable" targeted TV commercials amid privacy concerns; settles fraud complaints; and rebrands three regional sports channels to ROOT Sports.

Dish Network ventures into 3D TV.Continue reading...

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has taken the pledge. This week he joined the Who's Who of billionaires signing the Giving Pledge to donate more than half their personal wealth to charitable causes by age 65. 

Some might decry it as a no-money-down bid to add luster to corporate social responsibility efforts. Zuckerberg would beg to differ.Continue reading...