Apple grapples with Foxconn labor audit.

BP says Gulf oil spill was smaller than claimed.

Best Buy reboots big-box format.

BlackBerry owner RIM sees former co-CEO depart amid $125 million loss, trims exec staff, and explores strategic options including sale of Canada's troubled smartphone-maker.

Burger King sells 278 restaurants to biggest franchisee; tests new menu items; cedes U.S. crown to Wendy's; and brings lamb burgers to the U.K.

CBS and Turner boost digital ad sales through March Madness.

Chrysler unveils new spots to follow Super Bowl's "Halftime in America" commercial with Clint Eastwood.

Daimler and BYD announce Denza, a new EV auto brand for China.Continue reading...

Pinterest, the virtual pin board at the crossroads of social and style, covered here in December when the buzz was reaching fever pitch, has burgeoned into a marketplace for consumer brands, offering a visual and demonstrable platform for engagement.

A wide range of major brands are using Pinterest to engage fans through social curation and as an online focus group to see what clicks with consumers, including:Continue reading...

Brand marketers should be paying attention to Pinterest, a virtual bulletin board with a social layer that lets users 'pin up' their interests, inspirations and what inspires them. It's a community network model emerging from the digital ooze that begets innovation as it's bubbling up from a grassroots embrace.

Tech Crunch wrote, "Pinterest Joins Twitter And Facebook As The Newest Self-Expression Engine," while ReadWriteWeb’s take, "User experience, a clean retro visual design, content curation, social collaboration and subscription: those are the things that Pinterest is leveraging to gain a lot of traction and buzz."

Traffic for the beta invite-only community, which launched in March 2010, reached 421 million page views in October, usurping the territory of that craft sites like Etsy established, and publishers and marketers are taking note. Brands on board include Etsy, Nordstrom, Lands' End and Time Inc.Continue reading...

Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose named NBA MVP.

Pac-10 signs $3 billion, 12-year deal with FOX and ESPN, the richest ever for a college conference, and plans its own TV network under looming Pac-12 name.

Pfizer weighs break-up.

Apple revamps iMac line.

BlackBerry and Microsoft team up to battle Google search.

BP to pay $85 million for 2006 Alaska oil spill.

CBS picks 60 Minutes reporter Scott Pelley as Katie Couric replacement.Continue reading...