BBC sees editor step aside amid Jimmy Savile sex scandal as director goes before government inquiry.

McDonald's teams up with Rovio for Angry Birds promotion in China.

Google defends trademark challenge to its AdWords service.

Adobe campaign uses blunt language.

Apple tests ability to stay ahead of the curve with new iPad reveal today.

Brand India is promoted with China trade show.

Denny's launches menu inspired by The Hobbit.

DuPont cuts outlook and plans to cut 1,500 jobs.

Facebook surges in fan engagement with restaurants.Continue reading...

Nissan's brand marketing in the United States is making an abrupt turn these days — and probably a right turn. As it promotes the new version of its Altima mid-size sedan this spring, Nissan sets out on a refreshing new direction that emphasizes the gee-whiz advanced technology in the Altima -- and it has nothing to do with an electric power train.

Arguably, Nissan has spent a couple of years treading water as a brand in the U.S. market. The automaker poured a lot of resources into promoting the Leaf EV, the innovative engineering behind the car, and the very notion of vehicle electrification; and you can argue how much all of that accomplished, because Leaf sales remain paltry. In the meantime, Nissan's supply lines got sacked last year by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. And while its 15-percent sales advance in the U.S. last year bested the performances of Toyota and Honda, appreciation in Nissan's brand just hasn't kept pace.Continue reading...

Is it the brand or the products that sell automobiles? Nissan isn't taking any chances.

The Japanese automaker plans to introduce five new models to replace the mainstays of its vehicle lineup over the next 15 months, so Nissan has got the product angle covered. But Nissan USA also is about to launch a new marketing campaign that brings renewed attention to the brand over the vehicles, at least for now.

The new campaign, breaking April 5th (but teased on the Nissan USA YouTube channel) to align with the New York Auto Show, reinforces Nissan's long-time "Innovation" brand persona while at the same time teasing the 2013 Nissan Altima, Pathfinder, Sentra, Versa, and Rogue ahead of their Big Apple premieres.

Ads will use the imagery, common to auto-product introductions, of a sheet covering the new models. While the new Altima, which goes on sale this summer, is revealed, the other vehicles stay under wraps. In that way, Nissan both reminds consumers about its important new launches as well as allows a continuing focus on its brand.Continue reading...

Call it the stop heard ‘round the world.

The Detroit News is reporting that federal regulators were pushing Toyota to take more decisive actions to deal with the affected vehicles.

The venerable brand's subsequent decision to suspend sales of several recalled models until it figures out its accelerator-pedal problem – including its best-selling Camry and Corolla sedans – sends a shocking signal about just how serious the situation is and how badly the company’s top management has bungled it.

But Toyota’s halt of sales and production of eight models also comprises perhaps the biggest brand risk ever undertaken by the world’s leading automaker. Ultimately, the company decided that this move comprised less risk than simply continuing its behind-the-scenes efforts to corral the problem.

Consider that no automotive brand in recent history has ever just stopped producing and selling its most popular models for an interim because it couldn’t figure out how to make them safe. Ford ordered dealers to stop selling a handful of Ford Ranger pickups in 2002 because of an axle problem, and Nissan told dealers to stop selling its 2006 Altima for a while because of excessive consumption of oil. But the stoppages – and the stakes – were puny in those moves compared with what Toyota has done.Continue reading...