Coca-Cola announces Global Fund donation at Clinton Global Initiative meeting, teams up with Segway creator on clean water project and launches corporate blog.

GE's Jeff Immelt joins the few brave CEOs on Twitter.

IBM targets Amazon in the cloud.

AirAsia creates child-free quiet zones on flights.

Arby's sees gains under new owners.

Barnes & Noble plans to launch Nook video service.

Chase Bank tops customer-satisfaction study.Continue reading...

Jamie Lee Curtis is back for Activia, and this time she's catching you while you're still rubbing the sleep from your eyes.

That's right, the long-lasting spokeswoman for Dannon's probiotic Activia yogurt stars in a new TV ad for the product, this one touting Dannon's new Breakfast Blend. The product boasts a container 50 percent bigger container than regular size, the inclusion of breakast-type ingredients such as fruits and grains, and even four breakfast-sounding flavors such as apple-cinnamon.

"It's a great way to start the day," a perky Curtis says in the ad about eating Activia Breakfast Blend, after waking up and sharing other parts of her morning routine with us, such as exercising and dressing "cute." Continue reading...

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From the Dept. of It's All in the Headline: "Japanese scientists develop human-shaped phone that feels like real skin" Continue reading...

Dannon USA’s brandmeisters are maintaining a stiff upper lip in the wake of the $21-million settlement with the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general over health claims for Activia and DanActive.

But this reversal — added to a class-action settlement last year in which Dannon agreed to stop making immunity-system claims for the product — may become an existential threat to the brand.

Indeed, the combined impact of these stunning legal settlements threatens the very foundation of probiotic-based brands that have become remarkably successful in just a few years.

“Millions of people firmly believe in, benefit from and enjoy these products, and Dannon will continue to research, educate and communicate about the benefits of probiotics on the digestive and immune systems,” Dannon USA said in a prepared statement. “The essence of Dannon’s advertising remains unchanged and will continue to be truthful and in compliance will all laws and regulations.”Continue reading...

When Jamie Lee Curtis says "It works or it's free" and urges viewers to take the Activia Challenge, she may be promising for too much. At least, that's what the FTC thinks.

Ads such as this for Activia give consumers the impression that the yogurt, the leading US brand with probiotic ingredients, can remedy constipation in two weeks. Ads such as the one above and this for DanActive, a yogurt drink, indicate it may reduce the likelihood of getting a cold or flu.

Not so fast. FTC Jon Leibowitz chides Dannon for these claims which, he says, "are enough to give consumers indigestion. Companies like Dannon shouldn't exaggerate the strength of scientific support for their products."

In response to the FTC's concerns, Dannon has agreed to pay $21 million in a settlement that involves 39 U.S. states.Continue reading...

Activia-maker Dannon forced to drop yogurt hype.

AOL acquires content marketing platform Pictela.

Apple grapples with "made in China" iPhones.

Baidu sees growth rate slowing in 2011.

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BYD brings electric car fleet to Los Angeles.

Coors Light launches first Super Bowl XLV digital marketing.Continue reading...

Having made a global success of its probiotic dairy products including Activia yogurt in the U.S., where actress Jaime Lee Curtis is the face of the brand, Groupe Danone is hoping to replicate the feat with fruit juices and other fruit-based products around the world.

The Paris-based yogurt giant is acquiring a 51% stake in Probi AB of Sweden and has signed a 10-year agreement to give it exclusive rights to use Probi’s probiotic technology in fruit drinks outside of North America.

Is Danone ready to strengthen more guts worldwide?Continue reading...

Groupe Danone – which owns the Dannon brand popular in the US – seems to be leading the worldwide food industry in figuring out how to make its brands grow amidst a global recession. It also has consumers everywhere being more careful in how they spend their grocery dollars.

Danone’s strategy involves cutting some prices, providing more volume for the same price, and coming up with innovative extensions on successful brands.

“Everyone was saying that ‘brands are dead’ and the hard discounters are gaining share,” Franck Riboud, Danone’s CEO, said in announcing the company’s 2009 financial results earlier this week, according to Warc. “Brands are gaining market share.”Continue reading...