Deborah Platt Majoras--who as chairman of the Federal Trade Commission has received high marks from industry representatives and consumer advocates for her knowledge of the issues and willingness to listen to all sides--will join Procter & Gamble in June as vice president and general counsel. Majoras, 44, will have primary responsibility for P&G's global antitrust and litigation practice. During Majoras's four-year tenure at the FTC, companies such as DirecTV and Ameriquest Mortgage paid millions in fines to settle charges of illegal telemarketing. The FTC also brought cases against several pharmaceutical companies, alleging that they paid off generic-drug makers …

Comedienne Ellen DeGeneres, who has taken an estimated 15% stake in Halo Purely for Pets pet food, will be the new pitchwoman for its high-end dog and cat products and will look for ways to work them into her widely watched daytime talk show. To start, her face will be featured in 33 million newspaper and marketing circulars for the Petco chain and a series of in-store advertising displays promoting Halo this weekend. The deal is an example of the unorthodox marketing agreements that celebrities are increasingly inking with companies. Rather than a straight annual endorsement fee, some …

Claiming that Anheuser-Busch's Bud Extra and Tilt, and Miller's Sparks, contain stimulants that are not officially approved for use in alcohol drinks, the Center for Science in the Public Interest says it will seek a judge's order prohibiting the companies from combining stimulants with alcohol. The activist group also accused the companies of falsely suggesting those stimulants help to combat alcohol's effects. The center will ask that the companies' profits from the drinks be diverted into a charitable fund. Federal regulators have approved the formulations and labeling for Sparks, and Miller has marketed the beverages responsibly, company spokesman …

An overhaul of senior management at Unilever expands the roles of two key Indian executives--and the odds one will eventually succeed Patrick Cescau, 59, as CEO. Vindi Banga, 53, now president-Foods, will also oversee Home and Personal Care. Harish Manwani, 54, now president-Asia/Africa, adds Central and Eastern Europe to his duties, putting most developing markets under his leadership. Doug Baillie, 52, born in Zimbabwe, will move from CEO of Hindustan Lever to become president of Western Europe, which will now operate as a separate unit from the rest of Europe. The moves complete a near-total overhaul of senior …

LG Electronics, Motorola, Nokia and other mobile device manufacturers are in a fierce battle to please finicky customers as new entrants like Apple--with its popular iPhone--seek to upend the traditional mobile phone business. It has become more important than ever to understand the psyche of consumers and why they pick one phone over another, say company executives and analysts. Like fashion or entertainment, the cell phone industry is increasingly hit-driven, and new models that do not fly off the shelves within weeks of their debut are considered duds. Teenagers, one of the fastest-growing markets, are especially quick to …

After years of being squeezed by hidden fees and surcharges that drive up the cost of everything from phone service to concert tickets, customers are fighting back. Just calling to complain satisfies many people. Others use Internet sites such as Complaints.com, Planet Feedback.com, Callforaction.org and ConsumerXchange.com to help settle disputes. If those channels fail, they turn to the courts. Class-action lawsuits, with numerous plaintiffs, are the preferred choice because individual cases over small amounts of money aren't worth the legal costs and aren't profitable enough for lawyers to pursue. A federal law that limited securities class actions by shareholders …