Apple CEO Tim Cook was in Washington, D.C. Tuesday to go before the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigation, which is accusing the huge corporation of avoiding paying US taxes.

Sure, Apple paid about $6 billion in taxes to the US government last year and, according to iMore.com, “already pays $1 out of every 40 tax dollars the U.S. collects,” but according to the committee, Apple has been stashing billions in offshore accounts in Ireland, where the company had reportedly negotiated a tax rate below 2 percent. One of the Irish subsidiaries is known as Apple Operations International, which has no employees but posted $30 billion in income from 2009 to 2012, the Committee reports. 

"We are proud to be an American company, and we are equally proud of our contributions to the U.S. economy," Cook told the panel. While the company was lauded for its technilogical and economic contributions to the US, Sen. Carl Levin told the panel that "Apple executives want the public to focus on the U.S. taxes the company has paid, but the real issue is the billions in taxes it has not paid, thanks to offshore tax strategies whose purpose is tax avoidance, pure and simple," the L.A. Times reports.Continue reading...

It’s been more than 1,500 years since Saint Patrick was laid to rest and could no longer use the shamrock to explain to Christians the idea of the Holy Trinity. Thanks to St. Patrick's Day every March 17th, his legacy inspires millions the world over to consume massive amounts of alcohol and shout “Top of the morning to ya!” to anyone who passes. With such a jovial reputation, you can bet that brands, alcoholic or not, take advantage of the built-in marketing ploy—and not just those participating in Pantone's color of the year for 2013.Continue reading...

Get Your Sam in a Can

The Boston Beer Company has announced that starting this summer, Sam Adams beers will be available in cans. The move allows Sam fans to take their favorite craft brew to locations where glass bottles are prohibited, such as the beach, concert venues and sporting events. The transfer to cans will also save the brewing company a ton of money in shipping, as cans weigh less and are more compact than glass bottles. 

Scientists Checking Out Watered-Down Bud Claim

Consumers have filed several class-action suits this week against the world’s largest brewer, AB InBev, claiming that the company had knowingly watered down some of its products and lowered the stated alcohol content of those products. NPR took a team of scientists to the task of figuring out if the claim was true, according to The Consumerist. In the final analysis, the scientists found that the stated alcohol content on the cans came pretty dang close (and often spot-on) to what was actually in the can. The plaintiffs’ lawyer, of course, “dismissed the results and said as soon as he has AB InBev’s internal testing results, the case will be good to go.” 

AC/DC Releases Rock 'n Roll Brew

Legendary rock band AC/DC has launched its own beer, now on shelves in Germany. The brew—AC/DC Premium Lager Beer—has a 5 percent alcohol content. The canned beverage, with the tagline "German Beer, Australian Hard Rock" will soon be available in Romania, Russia and Brazil. The launch follows the release of the band's own wine label last year. 

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Facebook may feel it has addressed privacy time and time again during its brief history, including recently addressing concerns about app privacy with the launch of Timeline.

But on the eve of its historic $96 billion (up to $104 billion) initial public offering, when it is expected to sell shares on NASDAQ starting Friday, Chief Privacy Officer for Policy Erin Egan hosted a live event today concerning the latest changes to its privacy policy in response to an audit by the Irish government.Continue reading...

Like pretty much everybody else in the world, France is having some financial troubles these days. So to help replenish the national coffers, the country is considering putting a tax on sugary beverages.

That tax, however, seems to be increasing the heart rate of execs at the Sugary Beverage World Leader, Coca-Cola. The company said earlier this month that “it has suspended plans for a euro17 million ($24 million) investment in France to protest” the tax, according to ABC News.

The decision on whether to make the investment or not will wait until parliament debates the issue. The company claims the tax would be “unfair,” ABC reports, because it is focused on beverages that are “not harmful to health.”Continue reading...

Television viewers in Ireland could always find certain products placed in American TV shows and those made elsewhere. But it has long been against the rules to do that on a show produced in Ireland.

All that changed a few months ago. The Irish Times reports that September will mark the first month that product placement appears in a television show produced in Ireland.

The product? Coffee. Mugs of Kenco Coffee, an instant produced by Kraft Food, will somehow find their way into the hands of hosts and guests on TV3’s Morning Show and Midday Continue reading...

What way to engage customers works more than a giant billboard? A giant interactive billboard offering food, no less!

This isn't a human version of the GranataPet dogfood-dispensing billboard in Germany. This one's courtesy of McDonald's in Sweden, which has been engaging customers Stockholm with a game of classic Pong via a mobile app.Continue reading...

If you haven’t noticed the staying power of flash mobs, many organized by brands looking to generate some viral buzz — well, lucky you. They're everywhere.

Earlier today we noted some up and coming Disney stars promoting themselves with an Apple Store mini-flash mob. T-Mobile in the UK has been particularly fond of them — but can Glee also be blamed for this?

The FOX hit series' recent extended episode featured a flash mob breaking out in the middle of the mall, dancing to the song Barbra Streisand by Duck Sauce. As is typical with flash mobs, it starts with just a few characters, and builds up until the floor of the mall is covered in dancers and the whole thing ends up on YouTube, Facebook, Tumblr and Twitter.Continue reading...