Dow surges 254 points, pulling nearly even for the year.

Forrester predicts Amazon could sell 3 to 5 million tablets in the fourth quarter of 2011.

American Airlines and others faulted for failing to respond to tweets of customers stranded by Hurricane Irene.

Patent dispute with Apple delays Samsung's Australian tablet launch.

Needing cash, Bank of America cuts investment in Chinese bank.

Facebook settles trademark suit with satiric site Lamebook.

Isis, $100 million joint venture by Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile for mobile phone payments, takes direct aim at Google.

New York's Gov. Cuomo launches "Open For Business" rebranding of the Empire State as business friendly; seeks proposals.

& Obama picks labor expert, Princeton's Alan B. Kreuger, as economics advisor.

Global stock markets rise this morning in last day of trading in wild week.

American Airlines plans to spin off its Eagle commuter unit.

Angry Birds parent Rovio seeks $1.2 billion valuation.

Anheuser-Busch InBev counts on NFL to lift Bud Light in a big way.

Apple holds sway in tablet wars.

Brinker’s increases focus on value at its restaurant brands such as Chili’s Grill & Bar.

Coca-Cola stumbles on Facebook post in Portuguese.Continue reading...

The U.K. considers social media clampdown as Prime Minister David Cameron admits police misread rioters and promises "swift justice" in House of Commons speech.

American Airlines revives plans for American Eagle spinoff.

AOL authorizes $250 million stock buyback program.

British Airways embarks on employee engagement program and digital recruitment.

Cisco sees results from John Chambers' strategic turnaround.

Coca-Cola launches "Future Flames" integrated London 2012 Olympics campaign in U.K.

Gawker's Gizmodo site won't face charges in iPhone 4 case.Continue reading...

Every plane American Airlines owns was made by Boeing, but that's all poised to change following an order for 460 “existing model and re-engined small airliners” that was just given to Boeing and rival Airbus.

"(N)o single manufacturer could provide the number and variety of aircraft we need to fulfill our vision for the future," American Airlines Chairman and CEO Gerard Arpey was quoted in a report by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer

American President Tom Horton also downplayed the rivalry. "Some characterized this as a split deal,” he said. “I would characterize it as a 'both' deal. We decided that each deal was so compelling, and the replacement economics and flexibility for both was so compelling that we wanted to do both."Continue reading...

Alfa Romeo delays full return to US.

Amazon introduces digital textbook rentals.

American Airlines splits order between Airbus and Boeing.

Apple directors ponder succession.

BMW grows cautious on developed markets.

Borders succumbs to digital era as Barnes & Noble focuses on e-books.

Campbell expands lower-sodium soup options.Continue reading...

News Corp. titans, Rupert and James Murdoch, face three-hour Parliamentary questioning today in spreading phone-hacking scandal.

Walmart reportedly eyes Rite Aid.

AMD stalls in CEO search, which might overshadow earnings improvements.

American Airlines leans toward Airbus over Boeing in fleet decision, Journal says, while Bloomberg hears that the airline may split the order.

American Family Insurance promotes “the American dream.”

Baidu reaches deal with major record labels.Continue reading...

While nothing comes for free in economy class on U.S. airlines anymore – not even the peanuts – airlines are trying to woo business- and first-class customers by upping the quality of the complimentary wine they serve en route.

The Associated Press reports that United, American and Delta are among the airlines that have sommeliers to pick out the wines that passengers in the expensive seats will sip, taking into account such factors as reduced sense of taste and smell in flight, menu pairings and the flight’s destination.

Delta is also training its flight attendants to be able to talk knowledgeably with passengers about in-flight wine options. Flying coach? No sommelier here, and be prepared to pay for your plonk.Continue reading...

How leading industry brands are performing in social media customer service comes under the microscope in a new study released by market researcher Alterian — specifically, how effectively 12 brands are using social media to resolve customers' issues and the impact on their marketing efforts.

Microsoft was the top performer in the report — titled "Social Media Report Cards: Measuring Brand Engagement" — across all industries, achieving the highest overall score for social media customer service. 

Alterian's researchers examined brand leaders in six industries: travel, banking, cable, mobile, gaming and consumer electronics, and concluded that higher scores went to brands showing “a correlation between rapid customer service response times and positive consumer sentiment on social media.”Continue reading...