Microsoft unveils Surface tablet to take on iPad.

Walgreen is buying 45% stake in European pharmacy chain Boots for $6.7 billion.

Spotify rolls out free mobile radio for iPhone and iPad in U.S. to take on Pandora.

Caribou Coffee revels in being alternative to Starbucks.

Carrefour CEO offers turnaround plan.

Cisco expands use of WebEx brand.

Coca-Cola remains unbowed by New York Mayor Bloomberg's anti-soda campaign.Continue reading...

BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion saw its shares slump today after warning Wall Street that it's forecasting an operating loss for the first quarter. With the company hiring bankers at JPMorgan and RBC to explore a sale, investors worried and layoffs looming, the Canadian government dismissed rumors of a possible takeover.

Other brand news:

Best Buy store closures spur Walmart ads.

NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg bans sale of large sodas and sugary drinks.

GM is shifting Chevrolet ad budget from Super Bowl to sponsoring the popular Manchester United soccer team.

Disney Channel joins the TV Everywhere brigade.

Exxon Mobil shareholders approve executive pay.Continue reading...

ABC edges out NBC in the morning.

AOL pushes to grab TV-ad dollars.

Apple loses luster on its shares.

Audi set to buy Ducati, Bloomberg reports.

BlackBerry store sits as quiet marker of RIM failed strategy.

Coca-Cola profit beats estimates.

Coty says it has lined up capital for Avon bid.Continue reading...

When oil was discovered south of Beaumont, Texas, just off the Gulf of Mexico more than a century ago, a few folks with lots of money got together, including one of the Mellons from Pittsburgh, and started up the business that became Gulf Oil in 1907.

The original investors, of course, made plenty of dough: at their peak, the wells pulled more than 100,000 barrels of oil out of the earth daily.

Over time, and with various business partnerships and purchases, Gulf, now based in Massachusetts, hasn’t had such a strong presence in the Lone Star State. Since it merged with SOCAL in 1985, a lot of Gulfs have become Chevrons, and Petro-Canada bought out all the Gulfs north of the border. Continue reading...

Amazon sees its big spending hurting its profits as Barnes & Noble escalates rift by blocking titles.

Chrysler kicks off monthly auto-sales reports with huge January and posts first annual profit since emerging from bankruptcy.

Darden is sued by restaurant workers' group.

Denny's targets fast-growing Hispanic clientele.

Deutsche Borse and NYSE can't merge, European Commission rules.

Disney takes controlling interest in large media conglomerate in India.

Exxon plans to push on with gas exploration through expected lower prices.

Facebook picks Morgan Stanley to lead IPOContinue reading...

Gap, J.Crew and other retailers slash prices, as stores try to thwart price apps, and tweak websites to spur sales.

A&W is sold by Yum! Brands to A Great American Brand.

Absolut celebrates 30 years of gay ads.

Adidas pursues church for trademark infringement; church asks Derrick Rose to intercede.

Akamai purchases cloud rival.

Apple isn't expected to produce a smaller iPad, although fuel-cell MacBooks are rumored. Apple's online sales also exceed Walmart.com results.

AT&T's $1.93 billion deal for Qualcomm's airwaves approved.

Bebe expands with wedding collection.

Best Buy criticized for not fulfilling some holiday online orders.

BT's long-running family campaign in the UK ends its run.

Burberry, Forever 21 and Zara score on Facebook.Continue reading...

Adidas takes a nuanced approach to differentiate among national markets.

Air Koryo wants you to "friend" the North Korean state-run airline.

AOL is reportedly in talks with bankers to take the company private.

AT&T plans to bring back 5,000 U.S. jobs sent overseas.

Barnes & Noble gets lift from Nook reader.

BMW vows no power loss with four-cylinder sedan revival.

Boeing sets 2017 for debut of new version of 737.Continue reading...

Legacy of Apple's Steve Jobs? Persuading people to pay for content.

CNN may buy iPad app maker Zite.

Exxon wins prized contract to drill for oil in the Russian Arctic.

Facebook's "bug bounty" pays out $40,000 to hackers who found flaws.

Google turns to public in fight against scrapers.

Nearly 300 Cambodian workers pass out at H&M factory.

Analysts disagree on whether Newsweek's newsstand sales under Tina Brown are strong or weak.

Chinese Volvo owner has defective car dragged through the streets by an ox in protest.