US announces Japan evacuation plan as more "heroic workers" battle radiation crisis.

Acura extends cross-promotion deal with W Hotels.

Amazon pressured to pay state sales taxes from brick-and-mortar retailers including Wal-Mart and Target.

Citi tops list of banks that received federal aid.

Coca-Cola sees Diet Coke overtake Diet Pepsi for the first time.

GE, eBay and Aflac ranked among the world’s “most ethical” companies.

Groupon said to discuss IPO with valuation of up to $25 billion.Continue reading...

AOL strikes web-programming deal.

AT&T sees $2.7B charge in the fourth quarter from pension change.

Borders tries to win back publishers' trust.

FedEx takes on UPS with long-range China jets.

Ford wins coveted brand-loyalty award.

Gap to open first store for web-incubated Athleta brand.Continue reading...

Apple's iPhone threatens domestic brands Samsung and LG in South Korea.

Atkins Nutritional Holdings is sold (yet again), this time to a private-equity firm.

Boeing faces increased federal scrutiny of its 757 airliners.

Borders loss widens as sales drop.

Dean Foods pays $30 million to settle Vermont antitrust suit.

Domino’s looks overseas to drive growth in 2011.Continue reading...

Amazon invests $175 million in LivingSocial.

California Pizza Kitchen debuts brand in China.

Ford edges out GM in government fleet orders.

Gawker paid $12,000 for Brett Favre scoop.

Google vows to get tougher on web piracy, launches "Earth Engine" to map climate change.

LeBron James overcomes booing Cleveland fans as his Miami Heat down the Cavaliers.Continue reading...

Barnes & Noble introduces a color version of its Nook e-reader with Google Android OS.

Disney and Time Warner Cable will experiment with TV Everywhere (Internet TV behind a paywall for TWC subscribers) with the next installment of ESPN's Monday Night Football.

Facebook and MySpace asked by Sen. Jay Rockefeller, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, to detail how they safeguard user information.

George Foreman expands with Healthy Cooking line.

GlaxoSmithKline agrees to pay $750 million fine for bad products.

Google CEO Eric Schmidt apologizes for Street View privacy flap.Continue reading...

Apple tries to crack the code for China, as Verizon Wireless prepares to start carrying the iPad in the U.S.

BP stations in the U.S. are looking to rebrand, presenting a challenge for new CEO Robert Dudley.

Cadbury introduces "Most pampered bar in the world" campaign.

DoubleTree by Hilton rebrands globally.

Gap Inc. is focusing on international and online growth, CEO Glenn Murphy tells investors.

GE reports quarterly growth in orders after long drought.Continue reading...

In our recent look at Honda's digital marketing for the just-released 2011 CR-Z, we mentioned Honda UK's collaboration with Future Shorts to offer a grant to an up-and-coming director.

The resulting short film, by winning director Tom Haines, profiled Future Shorts founder Fabien Riggall's participation in the Brighton-to-London Eco Rally. Riggall drove Honda's new CR-Z hybrid in the event; he's also a "cultural engineer" in Honda's Dream Factory project to promote the CR-Z, which is Honda's first hybrid vehicle.

A comment posted by @creativefeed wanted to know more: "What was the point of the rally? How do people qualify to win? Is it just point A to B? Is fuel efficiency a factor in the winner? If this video is attempting to capture a niche audience (hybrid sports-car buyers), I feel like they could have made the video more about the car and performance and fuel consumption, and not just one giant montage and time-lapse rally race."

Artistic considerations aside, here's what we found out.Continue reading...

The FCC calls off network neutrality talks as Google and Verizon deny a New York Times report that they're in "secret talks" about a unified tiered approach to online bandwidth management, although the FT hears that such an agreement is indeed imminent.

GM dangles a lifetime warranty for its Opel and Vauxhall brands to European car-buyers (the continent's first such offer) — "lifetime" meaning up to 100,000 miles, that is. GM CEO Ed Whitacre, meanwhile, says he welcomes an IPO to shake "Government Motors" nickname while Ford receives a new federal loan guarantee.

Add Lebanon to the list of countries contemplating a BlackBerry blackout over security concerns, with Saudi Arabia's ban taking effect tomorrow — although 11th hour talks are under way. Bloomberg reports that U.S. and Canadian government officials are now involved in Research in Motion's talks with skittish foreign governments, with the BBC noting that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will discuss the BlackoutBerry crisis with the UAE.

BP finished pumping cement into its damaged Gulf of Mexico oil well to seal it off.

News from Chevrolet, Adobe, Pfizer and more after the jump.Continue reading...