Brands and marketers are heading to Las Vegas for the International CES show this week, which is expected to be an "evolutionary" showcase for "phablets," smart cars, mobile entertainment, celebrity-gawking and trend-watching. So what's in store for this year's edition of "the mother of all trade shows"?

A lot of noise from the many brands looking to make some noise in Vegas, including:

• Audi and Toyota will unveil self-driving cars among other auto brand moves.
• Corning will unveil tougher Gorilla Glass for smartphones and tablets.
• Google TV news is being closely watched, along with YouTube integration, while execs speak on "Brand Matters" lunch panel.
• Huawei is bringing the Ascend D2 among other "competitive" new devices.Continue reading...

GM exits advertising on Facebook, raising questions about FB's revenue projections as site boosts number of shares available ahead of Friday IPO.

Samsung loses $10 billion market value on Apple chip loss.

Intel launches employee-curated digital magazine.

American Airlines sees unions reject contract offer.

Amylin attracts interest from pharma rivals.

Apple moves toward larger iPhone screens.

BBC bumps Blue Peter in children's programming shuffle.

Berkshire Hathaway takes stakes in GM and Viacom.Continue reading...

Best Buy, JPMorgan, Yahoo CEO stumbles put ethics and mismanagement in the spotlight. JPMorgan closes ranks around embattled CEO Jamie Dimon as mega-loss is probed; and Yahoo's interim CEO Ross Levinsohn reportedly close to getting role permanently.

Amazon reportedly prepping front-lit Kindle for July.

Facebook eyes historic $12 billion to $15 billion IPO windfall and up to $104 billion valuation.

Activision Blizzard goes back to the future for new games.

Apple plans iCloud upgrade, and thinner laptops with Intel chips.

Baidu enters China's crowded low-cost smartphone market.

BMW touts "ultimate service" in new campaign.

Budweiser strikes deal with Jay-Z for annual concert.Continue reading...

American Airlines wins court order barring Sabre from hiding flight and fare information.

Barneys rumors pan out, as creative director Simon Doonan steps down to become 'ambassador.'

Campbell's soup returns to UK after two-year break.

CNN simplifies on-air look.

Facebook rolls out new profile design to all users.

Groupon raises record-breaking $950 million in venture capital.Continue reading...

"Smart technology — really?" Jane Lynch, LG spokeswoman, quipped in a video that the brand brought to last week's Consumer Electronics Show tech confab in Las Vegas. "Just exactly what do you mean by smart technology? Smart like Einstein? Smart like LG products can read my mind? Are you telling me my refrigerator will know things, like what I'm craving right now?"

Yes, Sue — brands and tech just got a whole lot smarter and connected, as was amply in evidence on the show floor at CES 2011.Continue reading...