Headline Roundup: If At First You Don't Succeed, Brand, Brand Again Edition

Obama attempts to rebrand health care reform proposals. [WSJ]

Switzerland ousts US as the world's most competitive economy in the annual World Economic Forum global survey of business leaders. [AP]

Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom to combine their struggling T-Mobile and Orange UK operations, creating the country's largest wireless provider. [NYT]

Google defends its Books Registry plans to digitize copyrighted but out-of-print books at a European Commission hearing. [NYT]

Kraft fights to take over Cadbury. [FT]

Unilever's China plans target growth rather than profits. [WSJ]

Jaeger chief Tillman's purchase of Aquascutum from Japanese giant Renown restores British ownership of the 158-year-old fashion brand. [Guardian]

Oof! In China, two Wal-Mart employees are fired after beating a suspected shoplifter to death. [AP]

(More headlines: Pret A Manger, Pearson, Harvard University.)

With UK profits flat, Pret A Manger plans US expansion, aiming at the Washington DC market, despite sales hurt by the recession. [FT]

British publisher Pearson enters the English as a Second Language testing market, competing with two nonprofits. [NYT]

Smithfield Foods' growing losses signal weakness in the US pork market, worsened by swine-flu fears. [CNN]

US schools crack down on "liquid candy" soft drinks like Dr. Pepper. [FT]

Apple is planning something big for tomorrow, but what? [CNN] (Marco Arment is willing to speculate.)

Harvard's deal to license its brand for an upscale clothing line undermines its attempts to mitigate its elitist image. [NYT]

It's an old story that bears repeating: brand extensions can damage your core brand. [Ad Age]