JPMorgan Chase reaches nearly $6 billion in losses on "whale trades" but posts multi-billion-dollar quarterly profit.

Digg, a social-media pioneer, sells for pittance and gains new CEO.

Richard Branson takes on Stephen Fry in new Virgin UK campaign.

Axe replaces bikini-clad women with Kiefer Sutherland in new spot.

Coca-Cola launches Hispanic campaign for Olympics and reintroduces controversial drink colors in Freestyle dispensing machines at UK Burger Kings.

Olive Garden owner Darden to buy Yard House for $585 million.

Facebook starts automating home-page ad buying and monitoring chats for criminal activity.Continue reading...

PepsiCo expands into yogurt sales in the U.S. under Muller brand.

Marks & Spencer CEO's lack of fashion cred criticized as retailer overtaken by rival Next.

Valentino luxury brand in talks to be sold.

AT&T cuts ad spending.

Amazon sparks fears with "robo-pricing."

Billabong hits choppy waters.

Boeing expands new-orders lead over Airbus.Continue reading...

Our most-read blog posts of the week includes Coca-Cola Pulling their White Can to Old Spice's MANta Claus and more:

#1 Bad News, Bears: Coke Pulls Back on White Cans in Holiday Campaign to Save Polar Bear [Updated]

#2 "Halal Whisky" Brand ArKay Launches

#3 Old Spice Man Isaiah Mustafa is Back as MANta Claus

#4 Starbucks Expands Alcohol-Serving Locations

#5 New NYC Apple Store at Grand Central Terminal Raises Eyebrows

#6 Apple Loses iPad Trademark in China

#7 At the Movies: The Greatest Reverse Product Placements Of All Time

#8 Google Beats Facebook in User Engagement ... on Facebook

#9 Valentino Opens 3D Virtual Museum

#10 The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo Throws the Book at Apple and Uses a Sony Vaio

This week in New York, Italian fashion icon Valentino Garavani unveiled a first-of-its-kind virtual museum at the Museum of Modern Art. An ode to the designer's iconic fashion design, it's the world's first virtual fashion museum.

The launch event was live-streamed on YouTube and featured a maniacally enthusiastic Anne Hathaway as host. Presenters included Valentino, his business partner Giancarlo Giammetti, Google Art Project’s creator Amit Sood, and Italian Vogue editor-in-chief, Franca Sozzani. A sleepy-looking Hugh Jackman jumped on stage for the virtual “ribbon cutting.”

Giancarlo explained that the 3D museum was originally conceived as “an idea space." Google Art Projects, which had been working on virtual museums for the National Gallery, MoMA, Uffizi, Tate Britain, and France's Palace of Versailles, became involved after Valentino reached out with his initial ideas.Continue reading...

Hope springs eternal – even in luxury retail. Gucci is going green.

Delivering on the brand's promise last November to reduce paper use and its carbon footprint, Gucci says its signature luxury packaging now conforms to FSC Certified paper standards and is 100% recyclable.

It's the latest luxury brand to make good on a Rainforest Action Network-backed pledge to reduce paper in packaging, a commitment that has already signed up Valentino, Versace and Prada.

Gucci Group now joins those ranks, with a commitment that also extends to its Yves Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen, Stella McCartney and Balenciaga brands.

It’s a major change for Gucci. Bags, boxes, and tissue paper will no longer contain plastic laminate; ribbon and garment bags will change from polyester to cotton; and bags will be labeled: "This shopping bag is FSC certified and made of 100% recyclable material."Continue reading...

YouTube, which just turned 5, is now serving 2 billion views. Daily. It's celebrating its first five years with a user-generated tribute channel and launches 3D features in July.

Christian Louboutin launched a website, stopfakelouboutin.com, in a bid to stop counterfeiters.

OSI Pharmaceuticals is being acquired by Japan's Astellas Pharma for $4 billion in cash.

Facebook, says Fortune, is "growing like mad."

Google and Intel partner to bring the Web to Sony TVs.

Marks & Spencer seeks to be more chic, less High Street.

NBC Universal steps up branded entertainment opportunities for marketers.Continue reading...

The Oscars are fast approaching, and on Sunday the world's most famous celebrities will wear the latest and greatest luxury brands on the red carpet – from Valentino, Armani, and Versace to Jimmy Choo, Christian Dior, and Gucci. Which luxury brands will leverage the opportunity to both glam up movie stars and make an impression on millions of people? 

Find out by following brandchannel’s real-time coverage of the red carpet via Twitter. Follow us on the brandchannelhub! 

Gucci Group CEO Robert Polet says that the show will go on. At an annual results presentation in Paris last week that opened with a video tribute to late designer Lee Alexander McQueen, Polet reinforced his faith in the future of the brand that Gucci Group owns a 51 percent stake in. Moving forward with the business would be the best testimony to his talent, he said, although adding that Lee is irreplaceable.
 
Reviving a brand after the death of a flamboyant founder has been a tough task to follow. Versace has yet to garner the same praise as it did with Gianni at helm and Valentino is on their second creative director since Mr. Valentino retired in 2008. His immediate successor, creative director Alessandra Facchinetti, famously learned of her firing through the press after Mr. Valentino had allegedly complained about Facchinetti's alleged lack of respect for his brand.Continue reading...