Apple earnings nearly double on record iPhone sales in latest quarterly earnings report, as security experts say iPhone and 3G iPad devices secretly track users.

Chevrolet unveils eco-version of the Malibu at the New York auto show.

Comcast strikes at Disney's ESPN in nearly $2 billion, 10-year NHL deal for NBCUniversal channels.

Donald Trump candidacy for the White House is "gaining ground," reports the Wall Street Journal.

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg moderates town hall with President Obama.Continue reading...

BMW and Mercedes outpace rivals in China, as Shanghai auto show opens and a new report shows the most popular brands in China are predominately foreign. Ford's China JV execs mull own brand, while Volkswagen reveals the new Beetle at events in Shanghai, New York and Berlin today. The Volkswagen Group also saw record first quarter sales as China deliveries boom.

VH1 woos female viewers with new programming, while siblings BET, CMT, Comedy Central, MTV, Nick, and Spike remain holdouts on Time Warner Cable's iPad app due to Viacom lawsuit, although Cablevision's iPad app gets only grumbles.

Toyota resumes production at all Japan plants for first time since tsunami, as its Lexus brand slips behind rivals in the US. TEPCO also laid out a plan for shutting down nuclear reactor.Continue reading...

Apple poaches Microsoft exec to head up data project, as iPhone 5 seen as crucial test with Verizon. And a lucky class of Maine kindergartners receive iPad 2 tablets.

Bank of America appoints new CFO as earnings disappoint.

BP seeks to resume drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. 

Cisco's Flip camera eulogized by NYT's David Pogue.

Donald Trump mulls political announcement on The Apprentice.

Francis Ford Coppola acquires Inglenook trademark, rebranding his Rubicon Estate to the historic name.Continue reading...

ABC's Desperate Housewives renew contracts with eight-figure salaries. 

Amazon launches $25 cheaper ad-supported Kindle.

NFL players, owners ordered to start federal mediation.

Donald Trump goes on the warpath against New York media.

BP gives Florida $30 million for advertising.

Costco undercuts cheapest gas prices but stocks $1M diamond ring.

David Beckham says he will collaborate on a kids clothing line with pal Snoop Dogg.

Experian says 30% of searches came from Bing last month.Continue reading...

What's bugging Donald Trump these days? The Geico Question Guy, who he feels is doing a cheap Humphrey Bogart impersonation.

Maybe Trump should post a question to confirm if he's really channeling Bogart — or merely an overly serious, hardboiled, never-give-a-straight-answer character not worthy of a potential presidential candidate's time.

Amazon sued over instant search patent.

American Express powers Foursquare specials at SXSW, where Apple opens pop-up store for iPad 2 sales.

Angry Birds raises $42 million. 

AOL readies post-Huffington Post deal layoffs of 20% workforce reduction.

Bluefly tries social gaming.

Caesars plans Asia hotels, without gambling for now. 

Chrysler’s Twitter account accidentally drops the F-bomb, fires social media agency tweeter.Continue reading...

The Sundance Film Festival kicked off last week with news that Morgan Spurlock's new documentary — The Greatest Movie Ever Sold — had sold.

In fact, it sold itself many times over: first and foremost to POM Wonderful for title sponsorship; to Sony, which will distribute it; and to the other brands who agreed to underwrite Spurlock's film in return for being featured placing their products as part of the film.

It all means that Sony will distribute the documentary in April under its new title — POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold. The bigger question, as Spurlock seeks to sell out much in the way he intended to blimp out with his McDonald's-skewering Super Size Me documentary in 2004: who got bought and who got sold? And can such a cynical exercise really show how branding and product placement work?Continue reading...

Every day brings more news of brands signing up celebs as the face and ambassador of their product or service. But with Fifty Cent making almost $8.8 million from a single tweet — if that estimate is to be believed — it has to be asked if the power of celebrity endorsements still holds true. The Kardashians' kollective future is riding on it!Continue reading...