Andre Agassi expands commitment to charter schools.

Apple signs deal with Universal Music Group and other publishers for iCloud.

AT&T Wireless CEO "not happy" with US network.

Benetton refreshes visual branding.

Citigroup shuts down $400M hedge fund in wake of new regulations.

Denny's all-you-can-eat pancakes inspires teen marathon.

Disney, looking up at the cloud, relaunches Disney.com to offer TV and film titles.Continue reading...

Apple signs music labels for cloud-based service, and denies claim by Amazon that “app store” is a generic term.

BP settles with partner in Gulf spill.

Coca-Cola creates chief sustainability officer position.

Frito-Lay rewards Cheetos fans for goofing off.

Goldman Sachs executives brace for subpoenas in mortgage investigation.

Honda recalls 2012 Civic for fuel line defect.

IMF is a reportedly a chauvinist haven.

Lance Armstrong refutes new doping allegations.Continue reading...

Apple's latest iPad 2 customer: the Queen of England.

AT&T defends T-Mobile acquisition.

Cisco predicts more hardship and further job cuts.

Deutsche Borse head urges NYSE shareholders to approve merger.

Goldman Sachs reputation suffers in poll.

Hermes results quantify comeback of luxury sector.

J&J recalls HIV drug as its Cordis unit loses patent dispute to Boston Scientific.Continue reading...

What makes one brand survive a reputation crisis better than others?

While it would take a PR and branding genius to help, for instance, BP restore its tarnished image, how about less extreme examples? Consider the recent New York Times expose on General Electric that revealed how the corporate behemoth paid no taxes in 2010.

GE made $14 billion in profits in 2010, $5 billion of that in the US — but its US tax bill is negative $3.5 billion. And yet, GE's reputation has not suffered as much as BP, Toyota or Goldman Sachs, at least so far, according to YouGov BrandIndex, the consumer perception brand research service.Continue reading...

American Apparel seeks rescue financing to avert bankruptcy.

Apple revamps MobileMe, sues Samsung over Galaxy phone; Samsung vows to fight back.

McDonald's launches US hiring blitz today.

Asos could be forced to rebrand in Germany.

BMW's DesignworksUSA expands to China with Shanghai office.

Burger King settles with franchisees over Value Menu.

Dish Network will keep 600 Blockbuster locations open.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...

As Japan crisis continues and Tokyo Electric Power raises concerns, GE's $1 billion nuclear business is at risk as US ponders future of nuclear energy. The estimated hit to Japan's economy (so far): $200 billion.

AOL is repositioning to attract more women.

Chicago tests 911 cellphone pictures and video.

Daimler weighs paying higher dividends.

Facebook patents curated search.

Guinness to roll out soccer-themed game show in Africa.Continue reading...

Goldman Sachs scored the best product placement of the weekend's new movies in Take Me Home Tonight. But it's no surprise that Rango, another Johnny Depp crowd-pleaser from the team behind the Pirates of the Caribbean juggernaut, wins the weekend to claim the #1 box office title in the US.

Rango (somewhat) continues the trend of animated films for children being free of product placement. Yet the film can't help itself from making brand-name jokes.Continue reading...