Amazon's original programming plans draws speculation.

Apple prepares for iPad (HD?) reveal frenzy today while new device also could be boon for Verizon Wireless; and company receives key patent for iWallet.

Arby's uses holistic approach to social media to boost Klout score.

Bank of America is bullish on girl power.

Bentley's 'ugly' SUV the talk of the Geneva Motor Show.

Boeing forms alliance with Chinese jet maker.

Carbonite sees stock price drop after withdrawing advertising from Rush Limbaugh, as radio host sees 30+ advertisers leave, including Netflix.

Chevron faces criticism after gas-rig fire off Nigeria.

Cosmopolitan reaches 100K paid digital subscriptions.Continue reading...

PepsiCo is promoting Diet Mountain Dew with a new campaign that (above) features ESPN sportscasters Dick Vitale, Erin Andrews, and "Mike and Mike" (Mike Golic and Mike Greenberg); and below, NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., who is being sponsored by the brand for 16 races in 2012, a deal that kicked in over the weekend with the Daytona 500 race.Continue reading...

Angry Birds is heading to space.

Apple threatens to sue China's Proview over iPad trademark dispute.

Boeing competes for Asia orders worth $10 billion.

Danone and Nestle work to overcome antitrust obstacles in their bids for Pfizer infant-nutrition unit.

David Yurman and other brands see uptick in sales of men's accessories.

Fiat retunes U.S. marketing after 2011 problems while erstwhile spokeswoman Jennifer Lopez turns to lots of other brand deals.

Google launches Latitude Leaderboards, puts Foursquare on notice.Continue reading...

Big-time press conferences across the globe may need to make room for two more microphones soon. Disney is reportedly in talks to launch a 24-hour Spanish-language all-news channel later this spring with Univision, in a bid to create a cable news channel for English-speaking Latinos.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the Spanish TV giant and the Walt Disney Co., which owns ABC and a host of other cable networks including ESPN, are developing a 24-hour, all-news, English-language channel. Univision “could use the channel to reach more acculturated viewers that advertisers prefer: Latinos who predominately speak English,” the Times reports.

The move would bolster Disney's ABC News division, which has “struggled to be more competitive and has shed hundreds of staff members from its ABC News division because the network produces only a few newscasts.” It would also give a direct line to America's booming Latino population, with roughly 50 million Americans ticking the Hispanic or Latino census box in 2010, a 43% jump up from the 2000 Census. 

Disney is also looking for multicultural growth outside the U.S. Residents of India, prepare to encounter Aladdin at 3 a.m. on your TV.Continue reading...

ABC deals with sensitive issue of airing Marianne Gingrich interview before South Carolina GOP primary.

Aetna refreshes its "brand promise."

Apple is expected to unveil digital-textbook service today.

BP agrees to a $20-billion to $25-billion oil-spill deal with Department of Justice, report says.

Christian Louboutin celebrates 20 years of his red-soled shoes.

Citroen ad banned in the UK as seizure-inducing.

Mark Cuban, Ryan Seacrest, AEG and CAA partner on AXS cable network launch.Continue reading...

BMW projected to beat Mercedes-Benz for US luxury crown.

PepsiCo reportedly mulls layoffs and salary freeze to appease Wall Street.

Kodak bankruptcy report in WSJ slams stock price.

Apple hires Adobe exec to oversee iAds, threatens to sue company behind Steve Jobs doll and rises at Foxconn's expense.

Australia's Commonwealth Bank crowdsources customer ideas.

Arm & Hammer ordered to pull TV commercial criticizing cat litter competitor.

Audi's China sales outstrip Germany.

Boeing closes premier factory in Wichita.

Burberry is now the most popular luxury brand on Facebook, as YouTube, MTV and Coca-Cola lead in FB engagement.Continue reading...

Back in the day, you didn't need to hear a last name to know who "Arnie" was any more than you now need one to know who "Tiger" is.

But these days, nearly six decades after a young Pennsylvanian named Arnold Palmer stormed to his first major victory in the 1955 Canadian Open, arguably even more Americans know who he is and have some idea of his engaging, larger-than-life persona. Now, that's personal branding with longevity.

Even as the young-golfer phenom, Woods, begins to restore a brand that he badly tarnished — Palmer, at 82, remains not only relevant to consumers but about to embark on an overhaul of his brand and associated properties to make him even more relevant to today.

"We're at a crucial point in Mr. Palmer's career," Cori Britt, VP of Arnold Palmer Enterprises, told Ad Age. "We're looking forward to ensuring the Arnold Palmer brand is positioned for success 20, 30, 40, 50 years from now."Continue reading...

American Airlines parent AMR may have to shrink.

Allstate ties in with Autism Speaks organization.

BP alleges that Halliburton destroyed evidence in Gulf of Mexico spill.

Coca-Cola drinks were tampered with, Chinese government claims.

ESPN gets knocked over soaring costs by cable-TV operators.

Flipboard launches app in China.

Ford begins search to replace CEO Alan Mulally ahead of his retirement.

Green Bay Packers sell "shares" in team.Continue reading...