American Idol viewers crowned a new winner: Scotty McCreery.

AT&T expands 4G network.

Ashton Kutcher invests in Airbnb, his biggest social investment to date.

Carven, the French fashion brand, mulls possible IPO.

China widens lead in renewable energy ranking.

Diageo reorganizes business units.

DoubleTree by Hilton launches year-long global rebranding.

Facebook's Zuckerberg says movies, TV and music are next social frontiers as site announces music service with Spotify.Continue reading...

AIG raises $8.7 billion.

Amazon launches $164 Kindle 3G with ads, as B&N unveils $139 touchscreen Nook.

Apple passes 500,000 unique app offerings in its U.S. store.

Bharti Walmart expands wholesale stores.

Bob Dylan turns 70.

Boeing weighs options for new planes.

British Airways develops Windows 7 mobile boarding app.

California Pizza Kitchen agrees to buyout offer.Continue reading...

On the list of unsympathetic figures in the entertainment business, Simon Cowell certainly has to rank in the top ten – maybe jostling for #1 or #2 with Donald Trump. Such status is ensured by a decade of absorption of his often-biting persona on American Idol and his opportunistic exit from the show after last season, when presumably Cowell saw it as a sinking franchise.

But if you’re ever going to feel sorry for the glowering, acerbic, v-neck-clad Brit, now might be the time to do it. Not only is Idol arguably better in the post-Cowell era, and with renascent ratings, but there also is an unexpected competitor to the music impresario’s plan to launch an Idol fighter this fall in a U.S. version of his UK hit talent show, The X Factor.Continue reading...

Trending today on YouTube: What do you get when you combine Afghanistan, Marines, Britney Spears, and YouTube? Give up? A lip sync version of Britney Spears' song Hold It Against Me by the US marines.

Posted to YouTube (following a teaser) on April 18th, and now boasting more than 2 million views, this video shows that even marines in Afghanistan can have a little fun in their free time.

The video features Marines in different areas of their camp, from their posts to combat vehicles, lip syncing the entire tune in a video edited in the style of a music video.

Below: Earth Day meets Friday and more.Continue reading...

Amazon, Costco and Kohls top US brand-loyalty ranking as Amazon’s Kindle expands to offer e-books from libraries.

BP includes Halliburton in round of lawsuits on one-year anniversary of Gulf disaster.

Boeing to fight order to move some 787 production.

Chesapeake Energy suffers blowout on anniversary of BP oil spill.

DirecTV plan for early viewing of new movies at home draws criticism from filmmakers.

Fiat moves to raise Chrysler ownership to near half.Continue reading...

Last night in New York, Christie's hosted a star-studded eco-auction and green fashion show, A Bid to Save the Earth. How star-studded? Try a surprise performance by Nicki Minaj, for starters.

In partnership with charitybuzz.com, Christie's event drew celebrities, non-profits, and philanthropists eyeing a host of tempting items for a good cause.Continue reading...

American Idol, which started its tenth year in January, has long been the king of reality television shows. But even Idol can get old — so its producers have come up with a way to add a little fun to the brand. Starting tomorrow, the ten finalists on the show will be used in a unique way on Facebook. Each of them will be filmed by Cameo Stars, a company that embeds video of celebrities into a Facebook profile page so it appears the celebrities are speaking directly to the Facebook user.

Cameo Stars, which launched last August, has worked with celebrities as Lindsay Lohan, Carmen Electra and Kim Kardashian (above) to offer up video holiday greetings. During the January football playoff season, New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton and quarterback Drew Brees, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, and other professional football players appeared, either free or for Facebook credits, to pump up their fan base.

Now Facebook users will be able to have American Idol contestants deliver a birthday greeting from one Facebook user to another at a cost of $1 each.Continue reading...

PepsiCo just saw its Pepsi-Cola flagship brand slip into the No. 3 position in the U.S. soft-drink market for the first time in two decades, a slip that its executives aren't wasting any time trying to rectify.

Barely days after the bitter news about 2010 sales results, the company is starting to firm up its plans to revive Pepsi.Continue reading...