BlackBerry shows new signs of life as co-founder sells stake.

Apple challenges iPhone trademark loss in Brazil.

Carnival tries to cruise away from brand disaster as passengers mull legal options.

ABC, NFL and Call of Duty get top marks for consumer engagement.

Airbus drops lithium-ion batteries from latest jet.

Applebee's expands test of Express Lunch service.

Best Western focuses on its people, not perks, in new campaign.Continue reading...

When Activision's Call of Duty: Black Ops video game went on sale back in November 2010, more than 5.6 million units had been sold. The United States was responsible for 4.2 million of those sales, which passed $1 billion after only six weeks.

And now, hold onto your joysticks and step to the side, here comes Black Ops II. Set to be released on Nov. 13, the next installment is on track to be another blockbuster. The trailer above has received more than three million views since it was released on Oct. 16.

To mark the occasion and generate even more interest in the gamer world (as if it needed any), Activision and JJ Abrams' BadRobot Interactive collaborated to develop a new update to the Action Movie FX app, which allows gamers to get some of their weapons for the game earlier than its release.Continue reading...

Are you a tennis fan? Then we don't have to tell you to watch the French Open. Are you a hardcore tennis fan? Then you might consider not only watching the French Open but getting behind the wheel of a French Open special edition Peugeot.

The tie-up between the venerable French brands to create the time-limited Peugeot 207 CC and 308 CC Roland Garros editions makes sense, and celebrates one of the most important tennis tournaments in the sport of tennis. Luxury (and less luxurious) lifestyle brands have a longstanding relationship with automakers, with varying degrees of success (and excess).Continue reading...

Jeep may be hot with gamers right now after the simultaneous release of the new Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 special edition of its Wrangler (tagline: "The toughest vehicle in the world. Any world.") with the actual new Call of Duty game, which went on sale at midnight last night.

But its Call of Duty tie-in is far from the only thing that the brand has going for it these days. Not only has Jeep led a recent climb in quality rankings for Chrysler Group but its vehicle line-up also is plowing the way for the company in its strong 2011 sales comeback.

When Fiat took over Chrysler in 2009, the new team recognized the inherent value in the Jeep brand — an iconic marque whose origins go all the way back to the military jeeps of World War II and whose history includes introduction of the Jeep model that would launch the modern American sport-utility vehicle market about 20 years ago, the Grand Cherokee.Continue reading...

Proof that video game trailers are as big a deal as a new movie opening? The trailer above, promoting EA's Need for Speed game (in stores Nov. 15), is seen "through the eyes of Michael Bay." EA tapped the Hollywood action director's special way with SFX to amp up the buzz for the new game, and — from the sound effects, to the cinematography to the close-ups to the visual effects — Bay delivers everything an action fan, movie or gaming, would want in a movie trailer.

But even bigger is the video game launching at midnight tonight, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, which brings out some other entertainment big guns: Avatar star Sam Worthington, comedy actor Jonah Hill, and even the Orlando Magic's Dwight Howard. The trailer, which you can watch below, features Jonah and Sam in a live action version of the game.Continue reading...

For the return of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Mountain Dew this week broke the new commercial, above. Directed by McG of Charlie's Angels big screen fame, it was created by BBDO NY with Activision and the former military advisors who consult on Call of Duty, with sound design by Music and Strategy. (Watch behind-the-scenes footage here).

Below, watch another audiocentric spot — HTC's new spot for Rezound, its smartphone with Beats Audio by Dr. Dre — and more.Continue reading...

Warrior, opening this weekend, may look like a simple mixed-martial arts family drama action movie secretly sponsored by UFC to market its events. Far less obvious is how the film is a marketing tool secretly sponsored by the US military.

Indeed, the Marine Corps vetted the film's script as a condition of cooperation; Warrior features on duty uniformed soldiers as extras as well as a plot about a former Marine Iraq veteran.

The Nick Nolte-starring Warrior is just the latest film to function not only as entertainment, but also as PR. In fact, "Hollywood" is maybe the most successful, long-term viral branding camapign in history.Continue reading...

Activision Blizzard tests subscription for Call of Duty videogame.

AmEx custom publishing writes success story.

Apple to reveal iCloud and iOS5 on June 6th.

AT&T faces growing opposition to T-Mobile acquisition.

Budweiser, Miller High Life appeal to Americans' patriotic spirit.

Colombia coffee growers create logo to woo Chinese from tea to lattes.

Comcast buys Blackstone's stake in Universal's Orlando parks.Continue reading...