Time Warner is spinning off Time Inc., turning the 90-year-old publisher of Time, People and Sports Illustrated into a separate, publicly held company worth as much as $3.2 billion. 

"A complete spin-off of Time Inc. provides strategic clarity for Time Warner Inc., enabling us to focus entirely on our television networks and film and TV production businesses," said CEO Jeff Bewkes. "Time Inc. will also benefit from the flexibility and focus of being a stand-alone public company and will now be able to attract a more natural stockholder base."Continue reading...

Barneys NY creative director and author Simon Doonan may be a particularly crank elf this holiday season. In the wake of a management shakeup he's still in place, but rumors of tension with new CEO Mark Lee have surfaced.

Comme Des Garçons brings multi-label concept shops to Beijing.

Proposed design piracy law moves forward.

Fashion's Night Out returning for third time in 2011.

InStyle Magazine is now selling clothes online.Continue reading...

Microsoft could spend one billion dollars (say that in your best Dr. Evil voice) promoting the Windows Phone 7 and its Xbox 360 Kinect motion-sensor add-on. With Apple and Google's Droid dominating smartphones, and Sony and Nintendo eating into its gaming revenue, the new products' marketing budget will be spent thusly, according to All Things D:

* Burger King promotion

* Pepsi promotion

* Kellogg’s cereal promotion

* YouTube homepage takeover

* Ad buys on Nickelodeon, Disney sites

* Ad buys on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars and Fox’s Glee

* Ad buys on Time Inc.’s People and InStyle

* Times Square event

Sip in style! Evian Natural Spring Water unveils fouth annual limited edition bottle, designed by fashion legend Issey Miyake. It's available for $7.99 per bottle at evian.

Gucci launches a new interactive website, adding a touch of glamour to the world of social media.

The countdown to Christmas just got an upgrade, as Porsche unveils a $1 million advent calendar.

InStyle, Saks Fifth Avenue, Nars and Foursquare are collaborating on an interactive new promotion, allowing Saks shoppers to “check-in” at hot spots in the store and win prizes.

After the jump: Jimmy Choo, Ferragamo, Swarovski and more.Continue reading...

The Pew Research Center today revealed which tech brands dominate news coverage in the US — but tech brands are also king down under.

High tech is now the darling of Australian consumers, according to a new survey. That country's list of most-loved brands is dominated by technology companies, according to a  global survey conducted by Brand Asset Consulting. Google, Micosoft, Nokia, Sony, Apple and eBay are all at the top of the list.

David Evans, research director of Brand Asset Consulting, tells Australia's SmartCompany, "There really was no surprise that tech brands are the top of the leading brands, but the surprise is in the extent to which they're being admired by the majority of consumers and not just geeks."Continue reading...