Elon Musk is trying to pull off a neat bit of complicated brand re-architecture these days: further elevating his Tesla line of electric vehicles above the general U.S. auto industry while at the same time essentially attempting to mainstream his pricey battery-powered machines with other luxury cars.

It appears that Tesla is shaking off both the deep skepticism of general-market American consumers about EVs and the brand's own recent brawl with the New York Times over the paper's review of Tesla's staple Model S. This week, Musk—the billionaire who got rich from founding PayPal and who also owns SpaceX—made a few moves that seem to bring Tesla closer to achieving both aims.

First, the company announced that it expects to turn its first profit during the first quarter on higher-than-expected sales of Model S. It's a milestone for the company, given the general backdrop for EV sales. Tesla was able to sell at laeset 250 more of the Tesla S (whose most popular version starts at a sticker price of $69,900) than the 4,500 sales it had forecast in February.Continue reading...

Google Nexus NYC tablet launch delayed by Hurricane Sandy, sells out online.

Pearson and Bertelsmann strike deal to combine Penguin and Random House publishing houses, thwarting News Corp.

Honda cuts full-year outlook over anti-Japan sentiment in China.

Audi repeats goal to match 2011 operating profit in 2012.

British Airways launches customer recognition program.

Burger King third-quarter net income falls, still beats estimates.

Burt's Bees "deflakes" with billboard and video campaign.

Cadillac raises prices in bid for luxury credibility.Continue reading...

Activision goes bigger with Skylanders line extension and marketing effort.

AIG pays $1.7 billion for ING Malaysia.

ANA conference poised to set attendance record.

Android robot is a hit with 3-D printers.

Audi and BMW starting to leave behind Mercedes-Benz in global premium-auto race.

BAE in play for U.S. buyers as report says EADS merger failed because of discord among participating European governments.

BP moves closer to overall settlement of Gulf spill as Louisiana blames company for perma-sheen.Continue reading...

Yum! Brands third quarter earnings report is being closely watched.

Barclays to buy ING online assets.

Yahoo's Marissa Mayer urged to repurchase stock, profiled in New York magazine.

AT&T shares network with IBM to lure more customers to the cloud.

Amazon veers more into advertising.

American Airlines loses traffic over operational issues.

Apple asked by Taiwan to blur satellite image as Samsung spat dings brand perception.Continue reading...

Avon's Jung to leave board early, shifting focus to new CEO.

Mondelez creates Oreo and Cadbury Dairy Milk hybrid chocolate bar, acquires Italian biscuit maker from Danone.

Foxconn faces more unrest at iPhone factory as new battle brews between Apple and Samsung.

BAE deal with EADS is questioned by major shareholder.

Baxter looks to its medical-product pipeline to sustain growth.

Budweiser donates to military families via tie-in with Major League Baseball.

BuzzFeed bets on online sharing of sponsored content.

Coca-Cola India signs Bollywood star Salman Khan as brand ambassador.Continue reading...

P&G sees results boosted by sale of snacks division as its Tide brand turns to Betty White for advertising help.

Sony attributes weak financials to PlayStation sales slump.

Chick-fil-A braces for GLAAD's Friday "kiss-in" protest.

ABC and Good Morning America finally overtake NBC and The Today Show in key demographic.

ADM profits slide on higher corn costs.

Amtrak losses examined by Congress.

Apple requests sanction for Samsung as court battle heats up.

AT&T to acquire NextWave Wireless.

Beyonce plans to direct and star in film about her life.Continue reading...

It may be soon that “musk” may not just signify male perfume. Instead, American consumers may immediately associate it with space travel or, more likely, with gobs of cash.

Like Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos, and Paul Allen, Elon Musk is a wealthy man who can now fund his boyish billionaire enthusiasm for space travel, and has now taken a major step toward making those kinds of trips more accessible to the common man.

The founder of SpaceX was obviously thrilled that his rocket made it off the launch pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Tuesday following an aborted attempt. Its next challenge will be to hook up with the International Space Station on Friday to drop off a few things with the folks stationed there.Continue reading...

Alibaba regains control of future with purchase of Yahoo stake.

Audi will bundle SiriusXM traffic subscriptions in select 2013 models.

Best Buy tops profit estimates on smartphone sales.

Comcast leads U.S. cable operators to create nationwide CableWiFi network of hot spots, and launches integrated local ad sales.

Crocs taps bloggers to promote new styles.

DC Comics intends to bring a major character out of the closet.

Facebook's 11 percent drop on Monday sees fingers pointed at Morgan Stanley, raises more questions about its mobile strategy and creates schadenfreude moment for News Corp.'s ill-fated MySpace acquisition.

General Mills announces layoffs.

Google seals acquisition of Motorola Mobility.Continue reading...