* The rumor mill is running rampant ahead of Apple's music-themed press event tomorrow. Bloomberg's take: it will unveil a new set-top box that will deliver video (including from Netflix) to the TV. Amazon, meanwhile, is said to be working on a subscription-based streaming video service to deliver TV and movie programming, sources tell the Wall Street Journal.

* AOL's global brand marketing head decamps to Yahoo.

* Chrysler sets Fiat sales strategy in the US.

* Conde Nast is reviving the Gourmet brand for special newsstand-only issues.

* Danone is reportedly eyeing Dean Foods.

* Digg's Kevin Rose announces that former Amazon exec Matt Williams is taking over as CEO.

* Genzyme CEO is open to selling the company at a "fair value."

* Hugo Boss is taking a page from H&M and Zara; also expanding in China.

* Macy's is partnering with golfer Greg Norman for an exclusive collection.

* Yahoo and Google are expanding video offerings in Japan.

* Swiss study indicates that some diesels may be greener than electric cars.

Have you heard that publishing is dead? Condé Nast, home to such iconic titles as Vogue, GQ, Vanity Fair, Wired, The New Yorker and, um, Golf Digest, certainly has seen better days. In 2009 alone, the publishing house closed three major titles (Cookie, Modern Bride and Elegant Bride) and cut its overall budget by a quarter.

So how is the publishing giant going to make up for lost revenue? The iPad? Until that takes off... brand licensing! Specifically, it will start putting some of its media brands on restaurants. Assuming they won't mimic the fabled Frank Gehry-designed eatery at Condé Nast's Times Square HQ, what will they serve?Continue reading...

Magazine publishers are trying to get up to speed on the iPad — but so far, it’s proving tougher than expected to win over consumers.

Gourmet, for instance, is transitioning to digital apps from the edible apps the magazine covered until it folded late last year.

Conde Nast recently announced it's relaunching Gourmet as a pure digital entity called Gourmet Live, which will exist as an iPad app—blending its rich archives with social and interactive elements—starting in October.

Conde Nast is bullish on Gourmet as an iPad play as a result of Wired's iPad app, which aims to breathe life into the brand’s distinctive storytelling with eye-catching graphics. Hopefully it will learn from that experience, as Wired hasn't exactly been a home run with iPad users so far.Continue reading...

Conde Nast came under a great deal of fire in the past year for shuttering some of its beloved magazine titles, including the Ruth Reichl-edited Gourmet, plus Cookie, Domino and some bridal titles.

At least two of those titles are now coming back to life, eschewing print altogether as pure digital brands.

Conde Nast yesterday announced that Gourmet is coming back as a free iPad app, though without Reichl's involvement.

Dubbed Gourmet Live, it's now offering a sneak peek and will launch this fall as way to re-engage Gourmet's brand enthusiasts (and new fans) and, of course, rescue its deep archives from the freezer section.

“It’s not a magazine and it’s not a digital version of a magazine. It’s a whole new way to engage with consumers,” explained Conde Nast CEO Chuck Townsend to the New York Times. “We closed the magazine last fall but we did not close the brand,” added Robert Sauerberg, president, consumer marketing.

Reichl tweeted her reaction to the news: "they're reviving the brand, not the magazine. Pity."Continue reading...

Apple promotes developers behind apps for Disney, Pandora, games and other content on its just-released iPhone iOS 4 and still-hot iPad (3 million sold in 80 days) devices.

With Conde Nast today announcing that its shuttered Gourmet magazine is being revived as a digital-only brand, Gourmet Live, optimized for the iPad, will other old-school media brands skip the Web to head straight to the iPad?

YouTube, which just turned 5, is now serving 2 billion views. Daily. It's celebrating its first five years with a user-generated tribute channel and launches 3D features in July.

Christian Louboutin launched a website, stopfakelouboutin.com, in a bid to stop counterfeiters.

OSI Pharmaceuticals is being acquired by Japan's Astellas Pharma for $4 billion in cash.

Facebook, says Fortune, is "growing like mad."

Google and Intel partner to bring the Web to Sony TVs.

Marks & Spencer seeks to be more chic, less High Street.

NBC Universal steps up branded entertainment opportunities for marketers.Continue reading...

It’s official, Newsweek is for sale—and not just at the newsstand, but the whole operation.

The current affairs weekly magazine has been struggling for some time, and in the past year it has tried to reduce costs through employee buyouts, and boost readership through a redesign and a new editorial focus, along with a reduction in its rate base, all to no avail.

Its ad sales were down 20% in the first quarter and 26% overall last year. Its owner of almost 50 years, The Washington Post, today announced that the ailing title no longer fits within its holdings, which also includes Kaplan tests and a cable operator.

"Despite heroic efforts on the part of Newsweek's management and staff, we expect it to still lose money in 2010. We are exploring all options to fix that problem. Newsweek is a lively, important magazine and website, and in the current climate, it might be a better fit elsewhere," chairman Donald Graham said in a statement published on the Newsweek.com home page.

The sale of the venerable brand is a harbinger of the generally besieged print media industry, as readers continue to jump ship to the web and mobile, and ad sales remain lethargic.

Newsweek also faces a branding dilemma: are the words "news" and "week" an anachronism in this age of always-on, streaming news on the Web?Continue reading...

In seeking out fresh revenue streams, Condé Nast may boldly explore a frontier where no Condé magazine has ventured before: the realm of licensing.

Apparently, licensing has long been considered at Condé Nast. The New York Observer reports rumors surrounding this issue have been circulating throughout the ranks of Condé Nast executives -- David Carey and Robert Sauerberg, in particular.

However, the idea was never seriously considered because Si Newhouse, CEO of Advance Publications, which owns Condé Nast, felt the move would cheapen the brand.

"Si has never bought into it," said a Condé source.Continue reading...