Marketing anti-bacterial soap and hand cleansers with fruity names "Tangelo Orange Twist" and "Sugar Lemon Fizz" and a promise of “spreading love, not germs” sure sound like they are sweet fun — but not if they contain an ingredient that some health and environmental groups say is bad for teenagers, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Bath & Body Works' anti-bacterial "gentle foaming hand soap" collection and related hand sanitizer line-up, a backpack sized "PocketBac" collection marketed to teens as part of a back-to-school promotion, apparently contain a chemical that is considered a dangerous (to humans, not just germs) pesticide called triclosan.

“Scientific studies have linked triclosan to hormone disruption, which could be hazardous to teenagers whose bodies are still developing,” the Times points out.

Brands including Johnson & Johnson, L’Oreal, Staples, and The Body Shop have stopped using triclosan or are in the process of eliminating it from their products, the newspaper adds.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...

Amazon, Costco and Kohls top US brand-loyalty ranking as Amazon’s Kindle expands to offer e-books from libraries.

BP includes Halliburton in round of lawsuits on one-year anniversary of Gulf disaster.

Boeing to fight order to move some 787 production.

Chesapeake Energy suffers blowout on anniversary of BP oil spill.

DirecTV plan for early viewing of new movies at home draws criticism from filmmakers.

Fiat moves to raise Chrysler ownership to near half.Continue reading...

As Japan nuclear crisis continues, Tokyo Electric Power downgraded by Moody's.

BlackBerry owner RIM locks horns with wireless carriers over mobile-payment data.

Disney reminds TV advertisers that Mom is watching too.

General Mills is in talks to buy $1.1 billion stake in Yoplait for more than 50% of brand.

GM considers expanding into dealer-inventory financing.

Honda tries to patch supply chain back together in Japan, while GM shutters Louisiana pick-up truck plant due to parts shortage from Japan.Continue reading...

Alibaba CEO resigns in the wake of fraud on his watch.  

Blockbuster receives $290 million initial takeover bid.

Carmelo Anthony is joining the New York Knicks.

Chick-fil-A gains momentum. 

Diageo gambles on acquisition in Turkey.

Dynegy sees top officers and directors depart over Icahn bid.Continue reading...

* 7-Eleven enters the bidding for smaller rival Casey’s.

* All Nippon Airways plans to launch the first low-cost air carrier in Japan.

* Anheuser-Busch InBev, L’Oreal and Unilever are among brands utilizing more online video to connect with consumers in China.

* Burberry aims to transform itself into an agile global retailer.

* CNN banks on new faces such as Piers Morgan to battle slumping ratings.

* General Motors needs to go into “attack” mode, new CEO Daniel Akerson tells employees.

* Goldman Sachs is fined $27 million by the U.K. government, but ranked #1 on Wall Street for employee satisfaction.Continue reading...

Japanese cosmetics company Shiseido is looking to reinvent its image from one of a high-end luxury brand to one of affordable quality.

Noting that the emerging middle class in China heralds a new beginning for developing countries throughout Asia, namely the beginning of a massive middle class, Shiseido is looking for ways to tap into this market while retaining it’s reputation for quality and prestige.

Dubbed “masstige,”  an amalgamation of “mass prestige” the company intends to broaden its product line, and snap up foreign companies that fit in with its new line of marketing, such as US brand Bare Escentuals, which Shiseido purchased for US$1.7 billion.Continue reading...

Before the big game on Sunday, most people associated the Dove brand with the words “soap,” “beauty” and “deodorant.” However, a day after the Saints win, these associations changed to “Super Bowl,” “ad” and “men," at least according to Zeta Interactive, who studied consumer response to Sunday’s ads.

According to Unilever research, Dove’s parent company, three quarters of men over 30 believe that advertising does not reflect their real lives. The Dove ad is a conscious effort to address these concerns, the goal being to celebrate “real men, their lives and their journey to become comfortable in their own skin.”Continue reading...