Acer sees stock tumble after questionable financial audit.

Amazon rolls out Groupon rival, Amazon Local.

American Airlines and Orbitz forced to play nice.

Android assails Nokia in Europe.

Anthony Weiner's Twitter scandal continues.

Asos bottom line dinged by warehouse move.

Audi sued for allegedly using Eminem's Chrysler ad music.

Borders sees bidder emerge also with Michigan roots.Continue reading...

Our most-read blog posts of the past week range from Justin Bieber's Perfume to Lady Gaga's marketing blitz for Born This Way, her new album:

#1 Justin Bieber's New Perfume Gives Back While Taking From Marc Jacobs

#2 U.S. Navy Finally Applies To Trademark "Seals"

#3 Yes, Nike Knows It Just Released The 'Air Croc'

#4 Zombies Ate My Marketing Plan: CDC Stunt Runs Amok

#5 Pepsi's Green Cups Square Off With Coca-Cola's PlantBottles

#6 Ashton Kutcher Gets an A+ for Personal Branding

#7 Brands do the Time Warp (Again)

#8 Thanks to "The King's Speech" Director, Captain Morgan is Now a Gritty Badass

#9 USAA Gets Top Marks for Customer Experience

#10 It's Lady Gaga's World (We Just Live In It)

Walk into a Target store any time through June 10 and you might think you got caught in the spin cycle of a time machine. That's because you'll find the venerable Procter & Gamble brands Tide, Bounce and Downy available on Target's shelves in limited edition retro packaging. 

"Surprising guests with vintage packaging speaks to Target's goal of keeping the weekly shopping trip fun and fresh," says Amy Cantu, a spokesperson for Target.Continue reading...

PepsiCo has fired another green shot over the bow in the ongoing cola wars with competitor Coca-Cola. The company is releasing five varieties of recyclable and compostable cups in the US, following up on its March announcement of the world's first plant-based bottle.

Coca-Cola, meanwhile, is promoting its PlantBottle eco-friendly packaging, while its recent introduction of recyclable display racks.Continue reading...

Pepsi India's 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup campaign, Change the Game, has inspired the brand to continue the theme with a new spot — one executed by a new agency, with JWT hired to expand on the original ICC concept by Taproot, according to afaqs!

Amazon's Android tablets reportedly codenamed Coyote and Hollywood.

Arnold Schwarzenegger's personal brand rocked by confession he fathered a child with household staffer.

Birds Eye plans new sales push in Russia.

BP Russian pact with Rosneft collapses.

California pushes for tighter security controls on social networks.

Conde Nast expands iPad magazine editions.

Disney may make power play for Olympics sponsorship; and fined $3M for violating kids' privacy.

Facebook meets with bankers to discuss IPO.Continue reading...

The trailer for Jennifer Aniston's latest vehicle — Horrible Bosses — features a Prius, which, of course, means it has a Prius joke!

In our latest annual Product Placement Awards, we recognized Prius' accomplishments as a supporting character, especially a comic foil. From Little Fockers to The Other Guys to The Town to Horrible Bosses, Prius has become the go-to product placement for a quick laugh.

After the jump, the week's product placement updates and a look at this weekend's new releases, including why Will Ferrell's new movie is the perfect vehicle for product placement.Continue reading...

On the list of unsympathetic figures in the entertainment business, Simon Cowell certainly has to rank in the top ten – maybe jostling for #1 or #2 with Donald Trump. Such status is ensured by a decade of absorption of his often-biting persona on American Idol and his opportunistic exit from the show after last season, when presumably Cowell saw it as a sinking franchise.

But if you’re ever going to feel sorry for the glowering, acerbic, v-neck-clad Brit, now might be the time to do it. Not only is Idol arguably better in the post-Cowell era, and with renascent ratings, but there also is an unexpected competitor to the music impresario’s plan to launch an Idol fighter this fall in a U.S. version of his UK hit talent show, The X Factor.Continue reading...