JCPenney hires Y&R to help with marketing turnaround.

Fiat weighs listing on New York Stock Exchange and considers IPO after it completes merger with Chrysler.

Amazon develops device to stream video to homes.

Burger King expands delivery service.

Carfax hit with antitrust suit by dealerships.

Dr Pepper Snapple finds RC Cola Ten success a pleasant surprise.

Fisker Automotive takes bludgeoning on Capitol Hill.Continue reading...

With soda volume down globally, most brands like Coke are pushing amped-up waters, juices and tea beverages in hopes to keep its increasingly health-conscious consumer in its court. Dr Pepper Snapple Group, however, is swerving heavily back in the direction of that most American of beverages: a can of soda. The company is counting on its new Ten platform—all the taste, just 10 calories—to become the vehicle for a reconnection with soft-drink fans that will stun the industry.

In rolling out 7Up Ten, A&W Ten, Sunkist Ten, Canada Dry Ten and RC Ten, in addition to its existing Dr Pepper Ten, company CEO Larry Young is insisting that Dr Pepper Snapple will not be cowed by increasingly aggressive attacks on the effects of soft-drink consumption on the American diet.

"You have to step up to the plate and take a big swing, so I think it's a necessary action," he said on a conference call recently. "We're not going to sit back and let [attacks] bring our volumes down and affect us. We're behind this." 

Meaning, of course, the company is getting behind its rollout of the Ten platform across the variety of its soft-drink platforms, which comprise a stable of iconic brands that Dr Pepper Snapple has assembled over the years. The company plans a $30 million marketing outlay this year to launch 12-ounce-serving versions of the drinks across the U.S. in 2013.Continue reading...

Consumer activists and trial lawyers have been feeling their oats in recent years as food and beverage companies have found themselves responding to several challenges by regulators. Increasingly, the public seems skeptical of the claims and motives of brands — and eager to take them on.

Two recent cases have nicked brands owned by PepsiCo and the Dr Pepper-Snapple Group — so far, with different outcomes.

PepsiCo announced last week that it would remove an emulsifier from Gatorade that also has applications as a flame retardant, prompting Sarah Kavanagh, a teenager who waged an online campaign against brominated vegetable oil (BVO), to claim victory. Meanwhile, Mott's, owned by Dr Pepper Snapple, is the subject of a recently filed class-action suit that claims "deceptive labeling" of its Mott's for Tots Immune Support Fruit Punch.Continue reading...

Airbus sees orders fall as Boeing's 787 Dreamliner is grounded in U.S., Japan, Europe and India.

GM woos Facebook to return to paid ads, remains cautious on 2013, defends Opel restructuring and eyes cheaper Chevy Volt.

Blockbuster faces U.K. closure after no buyers emerge.

American Airlines swings to profit and sees “good trajectory” for this year.

Apple rattles Wall Street with sharp stock-price drop.

AT&T looks to Europe for mergers.

Audi aims for 200,000 U.S. sales “sooner” rather than “later.”Continue reading...

To the untrained eye, the furniture above looks virtually identical — at a glance, either could pass for the iconic Eames furniture loved by mid-Century design lovers. That's the argument of the legal team for Herman Miller, who just have filed a federal lawsuit against Nuevo Americana, a Canadian firm, for “trademark infringement of its iconic Eames furniture,” according to WoodTV.com. The furniture in question is the Eames lounge chair and ottoman that were designed by Charles Eames way back in 1956 and have been owned by Herman Miller since 1982. 

Herman Miller wants the products to stop being marketed and would also like payment of court costs as well as three times the amount of profit and damages it has created due to the sale of this supposed knockoff.

Meanwhile, Dr Pepper Snapple Group has been taken to court by the food-safety advocacy group Center for Science in the Public Interest for “allegedly misleading consumers over the supposed health benefits of an antioxidant it uses in some varieties” of 7UP, according to Reuters. The aim is to make it a class-action suit.Continue reading...

P&G sees profit soar and revenue drop in latest earnings report.

Kimberly-Clark pulls back in Europe.

Twitter encourages brands to find and use their authentic voice.

Apple earnings report on Thursday will be closely watched.

AT&T sees slowing in wireless-subscriber growth.

Barbie CMO looks to Royal Caribbean cruise experience launch in new year.

Best Buy shakes up management.Continue reading...

GM has new CMO tout Chevy relationship with Manchester United, after changing the terms, as pundits make recommendations on GM's way forward.

Chick-fil-A brand perception drops in wake of LGBT controversy.

Anheuser-Busch InBev sees North American drag on results.

Apple gets knocked for new "Genius Bar" Mac TV campaign as company mulls uses for corporate cash hoard.

BP posts weak earnings.

Chobani celebrates success that led to Team USA sponsorship.

Chrysler earnings leap on U.S. gains.Continue reading...

Ancestry.com acquires Archives.com for $100 million.

Anheuser-Busch warns UFC about fighters' inappropriate comments.

Apple now gets one-fourth of its revenue from China as CEO emerges from Jobs's shadow.

Bausch & Lomb shifts focus from contact lenses.

Bottega Veneta launches personalized fashion.

Burberry passes New York Times critique of designer lines for kids.

Burger King faces higher costs after decision to go cage-free.

Chrysler quadruples first-quarter profits and slow-walks investment in China.Continue reading...