The University of Southern California's Annenberg Innovation Lab has conducted a groundbreaking social sentiment analysis of the 2012 Academy Awards race. The project, in collaboration with IBM and the Los Angeles Times, illustrates how organizations and brands — from media & entertainment, retailing, sports, and politics — can apply advanced analytics tools in order to learn and report on new trends.

AT&T risks customer defections with higher data pricing.

Baskin-Robbins utilizes coquettish voice of Mad Men's Christina Hendricks.

David Beckham, happily back with LA Galaxy, mulls becoming Major League Soccer franchise owner.

Carnival suspends some cruise marketing in wake of Italian shipwreck.

Chevrolet launches Game Time App for "immersive" Super Bowl marketing experience.

Fox makes American Idol available by VOD as first-week ratings dip.

GM claims 2011 global sales crown (incl. record for Chevrolet) but sparks dust-up over tally.Continue reading...

Apple suspends iPhone 4S sales in China after riot breaks out at Beijing launch.

Delta eyes bid for American Airlines, AFP says, and so do others.

MetLife cuts 4,300 jobs as company exits mortgage business.

BMW and Daimler plan to raise U.S. output.

Bank of America ponders retreat from some regions of U.S.

Best Buy sees fallout from holiday delivery foul-up.

CBS talks with David Letterman about a new contract.

CVS Caremark settles deceptive-pricing charges.

Chipotle plans to open second ShopHouse Asian restaurant.

Coca-Cola expands social marketing to Tumblr.Continue reading...

Apple reportedly plans in-store branded boutiques at Target, while the iPhone's new Siri feature is said to double mobile data usage.

Porsche and Volkswagen compensation claims increase, while VW closes market cap gap with Toyota and looks to expand in China and India.

Dunkin' Donuts gears up to double number of U.S. locations.

Alcoa is scaling back.

Audi is adding models to win more U.S. market share.

Baskin-Robbins to expand to Vietnam.Continue reading...

Google TV adds LG to the fold with Samsung, Sony and Vizio ahead of CES, and 2012 global rollout.

Louis Vuitton finally expands brand into perfume.

Apple pays $5M to settle patent lawsuit.

Barnes & Noble eyes Nook spin-off with eye to global markets.

BMW brings MINI to India.

Deloitte finds 9M U.S. cable homes have cut the cord.

Discovery urges investors to be patient with Oprah Winfrey's network.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...

US auto sales for 2011 face boost by year-end holiday advertising, as global auto sales rise on Chinese demand.

Apple TV rumors generate biggest buzz heading into CES.

Bakon Vodka goes mobile.

Ben & Jerry's slated as first Facebook sponsored stories ad in users' newsfeed.

Benetton takes edgy Unhate campaign to Tripoli.

Bentley sells more cars in China than UK.

Better Business Bureau tops its own scams of the year list.

BlackBerry-maker RIM reportedly identifies replacement for co-chairmen as analysts fear the worst.Continue reading...

IBM’s “5 in 5” predictions are out and making waves, forecasting five innovations “which will alter the tech landscape in the coming five years,” according to Bernie Meyerson, VP of innovation at IBM. A recap:

1. People power will come to life: Created energy, generated by anything that moves or produces heat, will be captured, stored in batteries, and used to power things from phones and cars to homes and offices and cities. “You’ll see new ecosystems of generation and capture,” Meyerson said. “You generate 60 to 65 watts while walking. You could easily use that to power a phone forever.”

2. You will never need a password again: Machines will automatically know you are who you say you are…or not. Each person’s unique biological identity is biometric data, a.k.a., multi-factor biometrics, such as retina scans, voice files and facial definition, which will be harnessed and used to create an online password.Continue reading...