Luxury is back at the forefront of fashion and lifestyle despite the still shaky worldwide economy.

Findings from the 2013 Harris Poll EquiTrend, show gains in brand equity across 155 categories from auto makers to department stores across three key criteria: Familiarity, Quality and Purchase Consideration.

"This may show that after a number of years spent tightening their belts, consumers are looking to the quality and value they feel these brands provide,” said Aron Galonsky, SVP Brand and Communication Consulting at Harris Interactive.

Mercedes-Benz took top honors in the Luxury Automotive brand category for the third consecutive year, with Acura (which takes on uber-luxury in its latest US TV commercial, below), Audi, BMW, Infiniti and Land Rover receiving their highest scores ever. Harley-Davidson got its highest score in the study's 25-year history regaining top spot as Motorcycle Brand of the Year.Continue reading...

Google doubles size of Seattle-area campus as X Lab sparks interest, Android chief steps aside and loss of Google Reader upsets loyal users.

Time Inc. spinoff rattles employees.

Volkswagen warns of a tough year ahead and focuses on China.

Apple exec attacks Google, Android and Samsung on eve of Galaxy S4 introduction.

AMC Theaters seeing stellar results.

Amazon pares price of large-screen Kindle Fire HD.

American Express, Audi and Griffin's "get" social media, execs say.Continue reading...

WSJ reports on the biggest product placement extravaganza to hit U.S. broadcast primetime TV: Fashion Star, debuting tonight on NBC. Saks, Macy's and H&M are embedding their marketing message directly into the Project Runway-like competition in a bid to reach more consumers. Watch the trailer and a sneak peek below.Continue reading...

Whether they're whistling through the graveyard or just expressing a perennial sense of holiday optimism, retailers believe Americans will shed their economic malaise and spend with some energy at their stores during the Christmas shopping season. It'll be interesting to see if they hang on to their relatively optimistic prognostications until that season begins in earnest.

For now, at least, it seems that many retailers are hoping that the American economy goes back to the future, when everyone counted on the indomitable consumer to shop a sagging economy back into prosperity. Remember soon after 9/11? The fondest express desire of political leaders was that Americans try to compose themselves — and go shopping.Continue reading...

Industries, businesses and governments up and down the Eastern seaboard are still toting up the economic damages created by Hurricane Irene, which included a deep impact on weekend movie box office numbers.

Amazon spends millions to fight Internet sales tax.

Chipotle tops limited-service restaurants among Gen Y, survey says.

Clean Energy Fuels draws investment as natural-gas automotive market heats up.

ESPN officially launches the Longhorn Network.

Kellogg targets dads in new ads for Frosted Flakes.

Kia brings back hamsters for new Soul campaign.

LivingSocial gets used to life in the fast lane.

Mentos produces app to help "improve friends."Continue reading...

AOL reports earnings, says brand has taken a "meaningful" step forward.

Budweiser tops beer advertising effectiveness ranking.

Channel 4 tests interactive advertising.

Comcast and DirecTV spat continues.

Disney theme parks concerns investors.

Facebook and Twitter users rally to clean up U.K. riots.

Fred Perry to release Amy Winehouse's final designs early.Continue reading...

Acer faces rising tablet challenge.

American Family tops insurance-satisfaction ranking.

Bing, Google and Yahoo partner on web standards.

Chevron boosts Gulf of Mexico production.

EA launches Origin, a consumer gaming platform.

Facebook testifies that Ceglia e-mails were forged.

Fiat buys rest of US government stake in Chrysler.Continue reading...

John Vanderslice is Hilton Worldwide's global head of luxury and lifestyle brands, which means the Conrad and Waldorf Astoria hotel brands.

He's also the host of The Luxury Manifesto, a new web video series that will run online and on the Facebook pages for Conrad and Waldorf Astoria to highlight Hilton's corporate commitment to the luxury sector through conversations with other luxury brand leaders.Continue reading...