Forget Volt versus Leaf, or Lexus versus Mercedes-Benz: The big auto marketing battle in the coming year is the virtual gunfight between Ford’s Sync system and General Motors’ evolving OnStar brand.

Hands-free connectivity has become the true sine qua non for Millennials who purchase automobiles. Sure, young consumers want a sweet ride and all that – but only if they can take their mobile lifeline with them and remain seamlessly plugged into their networks.Continue reading...

* HP sued former CEO Mark Hurd after Oracle hired him. GigaOm's Mathew Ingram notes why: non-competes are unenforceable in California, but protection of trade secrets is allowed.

* AOL hopes new partnership with Ellen DeGeneres will drive traffic across its network of sites.

* Google TV will launch this year, confirms CEO Eric Schmidt, while today's discombobulated logo baffles Web searchers.

* GM's OnStar is offering free services to combat Ford's Sync system.

* Amazon is pushing manufacturers to make their packages easier to open, hoping to reduce consumer "wrap rage."

* BP pins hopes on "Future BP" positioning.Continue reading...

Apple and J&J considered "most trustworthy" in a U.S. consumer survey.

Bratz dolls owner MGA Entertainment won back the rights to the brand from Mattel.

Caterpillar's healthy second-quarter earnings bodes well for the global industrial economy.

Channel Five in the U.K. has a handshake deal to be acquired by media tycoon Richard Desmond.

Comic-Con is underway in San Diego, where comic-book and movie superheroes take center stage.

Fiat pushes work ethic at Italian plant.

Ford posted its highest quarterly gains in six years, thanks to higher priced models and upgrades to SYNC.Continue reading...

BP is giving Florida $25 million to salvage tourism ahead of Memorial Day and released new footage (above) of clean up efforts in the Gulf. US Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, facing Congress today over the spill, said weaknesses at his agency contributed to the disaster.

Grocery manufacturers and packaged goods firms are taking a wait-and-see approach to FDA's new concern over BPA in cans.

Microsoft's new social smartphone, the Kin, targets hipsters with secret concerts while Intel's CMO pursues millennials with Vice partnership.

Facebook will simplify privacy options (as third party apps aim to appease rattled users) and launches new mobile site with no data fees.

Yahoo is buying news aggregator Associated Content for (reportedly) "slightly more" than $100 million.

Google will unveil WebM, a video platform, and an OnStar app with Chevy at its I/O developers conference in SF.Continue reading...

Bumper Stickler: Comcast founder Ralph Roberts wants bumper stickers on its trucks that say "I love cable." His son, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, told the US cable show in Los Angeles this week he'd worry about the trucks being vandalized, adding "We need to learn from the content industry how to market." Roberts also demonstrated (above) the first iPad TV-remote-control application at the conference today, while an "international airline" will introduce the iPad for inflight entertainment in July.

Top Hat Curtails? BP prepares new cap for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, releases first photo and reveals site's "not satisfactory" pre-disaster test.

AndroidStar: GM is in talks to link OnStar with Google phones.

Welcome Home: Haim Saban bought back $5 billion Power Rangers franchise from Disney.Continue reading...

The branding and entertainment worlds were abuzz over the product-placement grand slam scored by Apple when its iPad was featured in an episode of ABC’s hit comedy, Modern Family, just before the iPad debuted a few weeks ago. Forget "featured"—the show was practically a half-hour infomercial for the iPad.

Less noticed but just as effective for its brand has been OnStar’s product-placement arrangement with Human Target, an action series that just wrapped its first, chase-filled season on FOX last week.

General Motors’ satellite-powered “telematics” brand was featured prominently in the bodyguard drama starring Mark Valley. “It became a great opportunity for us to showcase some things,” Andrew Young, OnStar’s marketing director, told Brandchannel.Continue reading...

In one of the biggest successes in “ingredient” branding since “Intel on the inside,” Sync – Ford’s voice-controlled communications and infotainment system – has been installed on a two-millionth vehicle less than a year after hitting the one million milestone.

That’s a remarkable achievement, putting Sync on a far stronger trajectory than the electronics brand that most recently put a huge stamp on the inside of vehicles: General Motors’ OnStar safety, security, and navigation system. Arguably, Sync’s popularity has been just as important a driver in Ford’s recent success as its stable of attractive new vehicles and its decision to stay away from government bailout money last year while GM and Chrysler lunged at it.

“The success of Sync proves that customers want to be connected,” said Ken Czubay, Ford vice president of US marketing, sales, and service. “It is a true differentiator for us, adding real value for the customer."Continue reading...

For the past several years, automotive brands have focused on going "green," but now they are distinguishing themselves with “connectivity.”

The more auto brands can make your car feel like a rolling information and entertainment center -- a 3,000-pound extension of your iPhone, Droid, and Garmin -- the more they figure you’ll want to own one.

Several auto brands recently underscored the growing importance of connectivity at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. Audi announced advancements in its navigation system and web integration, and General Motors said it will advance its OnStar “telematics” brand with some innovations in the upcoming Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid.Continue reading...