ABC sells out ads for Oscars.

AOL is constantly innovating but toward what end remains unclear.

American Airlines and U.S. Airways move closer to merger as U.S. Airways rises to top of customer-loyalty survey. 

Banana Republic hooks up with Match.com for Valentine's mixers.

Boeing prepares redesign of troubled Dreamliner batteries.

Campbell Soup enlists celebrity chef in heart-health campaign.

Chipotle plans mid-year price increase.Continue reading...

AOL plans to distribute Discovery channels as its Huffington Post flip flops on Goldman Sachs.

Animal Planet finds room for Geico and other advertisers in annual Super Bowl "Puppy Bowl."

Ann Taylor brings back actress Kate Hudson as ambassador and designer.

Apple plans to offer broader guidance on earnings as it must fight to maintain dominance of iPhone.

Audi releases Super Bowl commercial with alternate endings for YouTube voting.

Boeing faces of extended inquiry by authorities into Dreamliner fires.

Bristol settles Hepatitis C claims.

Burger King drops firm that supplied horse meat in UK.Continue reading...

Apple and Android dominate mobile-platform impressions while Apple reports strong sales of iPhone 5 in China and talks with Foursquare about data-sharing deal.

GE plans to buy Avio Italian aerospace group as CEO perceives an "investment pause" in some industries over economy.

Walmart takedown by New York Times continues with searing update on Mexican bribery scandal.

Freedom Group, parent of Bushmaster rifle used to kill Connecticut kids, will be sold by owner Cerberus.

AOL gives all employees $1,000 year-end bonus.

Billabong gets another takeover bid.

BlackBerry 10 now in tests at 120 companies.

Brazil burger chain offers edible packaging.Continue reading...

Delta buys 49% of Virgin Atlantic, as Virgin's Aer Lingus hookup mocked by Ryanair and Branson bets on future of the brand. American Airlines, meanwhile, says decision on pursuing US Airways merger is coming soon.

HSBC to pay record U.S. penalty on money laundering.

Diageo terminates talks on "future" of Jose Cuervo.

AIG shares yield $7.6 billion to U.S. government, boosting taxpayers' overall profit to nearly $23 billion.

AOL postpones premiere of hip-hop-inspired TV ad.

Boeing faces revived concerns about 787.

Burberry launches Christmas events and global review.

Burger King expands digital marketing.Continue reading...

Disney and Netflix sign landmark agreement for the web streaming service.

GlaxoSmithKline begins assembling new global branding effort on its impact around the world.

Tesco bails out of Fresh & Easy venture in U.S.

AOL's Advertising.com group acquires Buysight.

Apple upgrades iTunes, secures USPTO patent for "retina."

Beer tax dispute heats up in Europe.

Blu Dot tests Twitter game of musical chairs.

BMW has US luxury auto sales crown in its sights.

Campbell Soup Company donates $500K to Salvation Army.

Citigroup announces 11,000 job cuts and $1B charge.Continue reading...

AOL Inc. calls itself the "brand company, committed to continuously innovating, growing, and investing in brands and experiences that inform, entertain, and connect the world." Now the brand company is without a branding head.

Jolie Hunt, AOL's chief marketing officer and communications head since July, is leaving the company less than five months after being hired away from head marketer at Thomson Reuters. According to the Wall Street Journal, the travel-loving Hunt's departure comes one week before AOL unveils a $10 million branding campaign and marks the fourth top AOL marketing and communications executive to leave this year. The company announced back in February its intention to launch a branding campaign to get consumers to care about AOL again.

Hunt — who was responsible for "AOL’s global communications strategy, including internal and external communications; social media; corporate social responsibility and cause related initiatives; corporate events (and) AOL’s global brand development, partnerships and consumer marketing initiatives" — had previously served as SVP and global head of brand for Thomson Reuters.

In June, Maureen Sullivan, the SVP of brand, marketing and communications, was reassigned to GM of women's content and lifestyle brands. Instead of of filling the CMO role, AOL is now looking for a new chief communications officer, as AOL CEO Tim Armstrong told Ad Age today. Hunt's departure and the restructuring have yet to be announced, meanwhile; the only exec announcement was a new business development head for three of its tech properties.Continue reading...

The Huffington Post Media Group and OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network) have launched HuffPost OWN, a vertical focused on motivation, inspiration and fulfillment.

Selections will include this year’s crowd- and brand-pleaser, Oprah’s Favorite Things, a franchise that was a gift-tastic Super Bowl for Oprah's fans when she had her daytime talk show. The tradition returns with a holiday gift guide featured in the December issue of O magazine, along with Favorite Things trivia, a video montage of the best Favorite Things moments from “The Oprah Winfrey Show” and an inside look at Oprah’s celebrity gifts short list.Continue reading...

Daily Beast triumphs as Newsweek announces end of print magazine.

Apple loses tablet copyright appeal against Samsung, makes 14 pt. UK apology, reportedly eyes Color Labs, will never resume US manufacturing.

Amazon pushes Kindle to US kindergarten classes.

AOL aims to make email more social with Alto.

Centrum rises on landmark medical study.

China slowdown appears to bottom out.

Facebook rallies on mobile advertising outlook.

In-N-Out Burger opens London pop-up.Continue reading...