Gap has unveiled its global marketing campaign for its fall/winter collection, featuring musicians and dancers you may not have heard much about – until now.

The campaign brings its clothing to life as they wear Gap's signature pieces while performing, with the theme of "Icons Redefined" in a nod to the retailer's black and white icons campaigns shot by Annie Leibovitz featuring bigger names. This new collection continues its (summer) commitment to bright colors with a slightly more muted palette and the tagline, "Show Your Colors." (Or rolling it all up, “The icons of tomorrow Shine at GAP this fall.”)

The retailer tapped up and coming musicians — the Avett Brothers, Karmin, Lia Ices, Kaki King, Nicki Bluhm (above) — and dancers Lil’ Buck, whose freestyle "jookin" is described as "urban ballet" by some and "gangster walking by others, plus classical dancer Yuan Yuan Tan of the San Francisco Ballet. (Check out the TV commercials below.) The collection can now be viewed on its Facebook page, with commercials starting to hit TV screens.Continue reading...

We've noted how McDonald's, as one of the TOP sponsors of the London 2012 Olympics, is promoting its new lower-calorie menu and Team USA contest in the US, and encouraging kids (and adults) in the UK to get active and check out its revamped Happy Meal, among other local marketing efforts ahead of the games.

The company brought its top executives to London for the Games opening last week, where the big message was "McDonald's Takes Olympic Stage to Announce Advances in Children's Well-Being, Menu Innovation and Access to Nutrition Information."

Now the Summer Games have started, the fast-food giant is rolling out digital and social content that aims to "match the fun, competitive spirit of the Olympics," according to a spokesperson.Continue reading...

There's no question that the London 2012 Summer Olympics will be the most social Olympic Games in history. Just how social is starting to come into focus. The attention (and money) being spent on the social aspects of the Olympics continues to escalate as billions of dollars change hands for marketing rights, and sponsors scramble for proof positive that those dollars are converting into online video views and shares.

Unruly Media, producers of the video buzz tracking Viral Video Chart, has released a dynamic interactive ranking of the social clout of every Olympic-themed commercial across the web for 25 Olympic sponsors. The breakaway winner?Continue reading...

Nokia is going all out to cross-promote the July 20th Batman reboot — Christopher Nolan's highly anticipated The Dark Knight Rises. It launched a Limited Edition Nokia Lumia 900 in the UK on June 1st that's subtly branded with the Batman logo on the back, and is offering a free app for the Windows Phone-powered Nokia smartphones that ties into the movie's release with exclusive content. Next up: the first 3D mapping of the franchise's iconic Gotham City, powered by Nokia Maps.Continue reading...

The ‘Nokia Gift Machine’ is open for business at the Nokia store in Dubai's Mall of the Emirates.  How it works: Check-in on Foursquare to find its location and see what the machine offers, with instant prizes so far including movie tickets, chocolates, accessories and Nokia devices, which drop out of the bottom of the machine.Continue reading...

PepsiCo wins fight with Coca-Cola in German court over bottle design.

Foxconn sees arrests after unrest at Apple plant in China.

Samsung names new CEO.

Alibaba foresees strong growth.

ASKY pan-African airline faces tough take-off.

Baker & Taylor signs e-books distribution deal with Harry Potter-based Pottermore site.

Bob Evans looks to restaraunt remodels and value pricing for sales traction.

Facebook faces scrutiny as it goes for younger kids as NASDAQ chief apologizes for stock exchange's role in IPO debacle.

Fanatics.com sports-apparel site valued at $1.5 billion.Continue reading...

Starbucks acquires San Francisco's La Boulange Bakery for $100M to improve food menu and build out national premium brand.

Amazon acquires Avalon Books.

Bank of America execs explain how they hid Merrill Lynch losses. 

China embraces robot labor.

FedEx retires jets to cut costs.

Foursquare teases new app.

Google appears poised to buy Meebo as social agency M&A continues.

Marriott looks to expand through acquisitions.

Microsoft unveils Xbox Music as replacement for Zune.Continue reading...

American Express continues to innovate in the social media space, working with Twitter, Foursquare and Facebook, and now adds a major gaming play to its virtual and real portfolio. Today, AmEx and Zynga launched a co-branded, prepaid Serve Card, called Zynga Serve Rewards, linking everyday spending to virtual rewards for millions of online gamers.

Tied to AmEx's Serve next generation open payments platform and digital wallet, this latest move is a first in the prepaid card market by offering in-game incentives for daily expenditures. The reloadable Serve pre-paid debit card will reward users in Farmville cash.

“We're excited to partner with American Express to invent new ways for people to experience Zynga play in more parts of their day,” stated Mark Pincus CEO and Founder of Zynga. “Together we can add surprise and delight to every day shopping.”Continue reading...