Atari files for bankruptcy protection in the U.S.

RIM could license BlackBerry 10 software.

Sony plans to introduce tablet challenging Apple and Samsung.

AIG learns from "Thank You, America" misfire.

Alfa Romeo plans brand return to U.S. late this year.

Boeing sees safety investigators dismiss one potential cause of Dreamliner fires.Continue reading...

Oprah Winfrey made a major faux pas during Sunday's Grammy Award broadcast on Sunday night by tweeting: “Every 1 who can please turn to OWN especially if u have a Neilsen box,” as OWN debuted the latest episode of Winfrey's flagship series, Oprah’s Next Chapter.

Not only did Oprah violate Nielsen rules, (and misspell its name as "Neilsen"), she surprised and offended many. In fact, social media experts like Ian Schafer, CEO of Deep Focus, Gary Vaynerchuk and New York Times media reporter Brian Stelter all questioned if the tweet really came from Oprah.

Indeed it did. She also defended the action after a Twitter follower called the request "desperate" by responding: "'desperate' not ever part of my vocab." Is this what Brand Oprah has come to?Continue reading...

Despite Discovery Communication’s recent infusion of an additional $12 million into its joint venture with Oprah Winfrey, OWN, the high-profile cable network that launched on January 1st is still losing money.

Recent ratings from Nielsen Media’s OWN coverage ratings report viewership growth, with Oprah’s Lifeclass debut in October, anchoring primetime at 8 p.m., up across key demos. Oprah’s Lifeclass live webcasts, including interaction with viewers, posted 3.5 million plus video views to date on Oprah.com and OWN’s and Oprah’s Facebook pages.Continue reading...

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is suing 17 US and European banks and more than 130 individuals on charges of selling bonds backed by mortgages that should have never been packaged into securities. Institutions named including Bank of America, its Merrill Lynch unit, Barclays, Citigroup and Nomura.

Halliburton is suing BP for defamation and misrepresentation, while a key court ruling in the Gulf of Mexico litigation could encourage more lawsuits. Oil and gas production is curtailed in the Gulf, meanwhile, as New Orleans declares state of emergency ahead of storm.

Facebook tests comment translation button.

GM rehires Bob Lutz as an adviser.

Google acquires Zave Networks, a digital coupons platform, as it expands local deals offering.

Hugo Boss releases campaign featuring Orlando Bloom and Sienna Miller in support of African schools.Continue reading...

The long road to launch for the 2012 Volkswagen Beetle continues with the company’s announcement today of an online pre-ordering program for the car using Amazon’s e-commerce platform. The move is just one more step in an effectively extended tease of new-Beetle enthusiasts that began with the unveiling of the product’s exterior outlines on an Oprah show in November and continued with a nifty TV spot during the Super Bowl telecast in February.

There’s nothing more iconic in the automotive world than the Bug, and Volkswagen is bringing 21st-century marketing savvy to bear to ensure a stratospheric launch of the vehicle that will join the Jetta and the new Passat this fall as the staples of a U.S. lineup that is expected to achieve big sales gains for the ambitious German automaker.

Through the 2012 Beetle pre-order program, customers pay a $495 reservation fee that goes toward the final purchase of a Black Turbo launch edition model, which is outfitted with a turbocharged engine putting out 200 horsepower – quite a kick for a little vehicle like the Beetle.Continue reading...

Oprah is counting down to her show's last week, which starts May 23rd, with a look back at how Brand Oprah has inflitrated pop culture over the years. 25 years, to be exact.

Below, watch how Citi is sponsoring the show that airs today.Continue reading...

Apple is #1 on Fast Company's list of 50 most innovative companies.

Apple's new iPad subscription policy begins signing up magazine titles, with Elle, Nylon and Popular Science agreeing to terms.

Archie Comics go digital with Graphic.ly.

CBS revenue is up, while CBS College Sports channel to be renamed CBS Sports Network.

Cisco will help city of Barcelona with '2020 Vision' for sustainable urban and economic growth.Continue reading...

New research showing that eating your vegetables (and fruit) also makes you more attractive should come as good news to PETA, which once again got barred from the Super Bowl for its latest frisky "veggie love" campaign — and, to a lesser extent, to the First Lady, whose kid-centric Let's Move campaign turned one yesterday, and Oprah, who recently put her staff on a weeklong vegan diet.