"General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner does not look like the most-embattled CEO in the auto industry," writes Sharon Silke Carty. He personally "exudes confidence" and says his company is "crouched and ready to pounce." Among the positive changes Wagoner sees on the horizon is a clearer identity for GM's brands. "Clearly, one of the things we're needing to do is focus in our product portfolio," he says. "People think we haven't been able to put as much marketing resources behind each product as we need. That's changing." But GM still faces a gap between the quality of its …

"Breathtaking," a 27-page document that allegedly represents the "preposterous and extreme" thinking, in the words of one admirer, behind Arnell Group's recent revamping of Pepsi-Cola's logo, has hit the Web and "adland has been abuzz," Rupal Parekh reports. "At its most extreme, the presentation compares the reimagined Pepsi globe logo to the Earth's magnetic fields and the sun's radiation," Parekh writes. The document observes, among other ruminations, that "emotive forces shape the gestalt of the brand identity." Some observers suggest that the document is a hoax, or even a viral-marketing campaign set loose …

Coca-Cola says fourth-quarter profit fell after its largest distributor, Coca-Cola Enterprises, wrote down the value of its North American business. Its net income dropped to $995 million, or 43 cents a share, from $1.21 billion, or 52 cents, a year earlier. But excluding the write down, it earned 64 cents a share, beating analysts' estimates. CEO Muhtar Kent is spearheading a cost-cutting initiative that aims to save the company as much as $500 million a year by the end of 2011, but CMO Joe Tripodi said Jan. 21 that the company will raise marketing spending across all of its …

Pioneer, which launched the world's first plasma TV in 1997 and for a short while carved out a valuable niche in high-end models, is pulling the plug on its loss-making flat TV business, a move that could signal a further shakeout in the battered sector.

Democrat Al Gemma introduced a bill that would generate revenues by using the sides of school buses as advertising space, Todd Wasserman reports. Gemma has no specific advertiser in mind. "I don't expect Playboy centerfold ads," he says. "I mean discreet ads for philanthropists; stuff that's appropriate for school buses."

Brussels-based Delhaize SA, which operates the Food Lion chain and other grocery stores in the U.S., has removed about 300 Unilever products from the shelves in its Belgian stores. The banished products include everything from Dove soap and Axe deodorant to a jam brand called Effi. Delhaize normally stocks as many as 500 Unilever products in its 775 stores in Belgium. Delhaize says its conflict with Unilever is rooted in the supplier's effort to push a broad range of goods into its stores, including some that the grocer says it would prefer not to stock because they are …

Bob Lachky, 55, who for two decades has helped craft trademark campaigns from "Whassup?" to "I love you, man" to the Budweiser frogs to "Real men of genius," is leaving the company at the end of February in what he calls a "generational change." He says that A-B's sale to InBev of Belgium has nothing to do with the decision. "I just felt this was the perfect time for me to reevaluate," he says. Lachky, who played a key role in helping A-B become a dominant advertiser on the Super Bowl, joked that he was "fired more times than …

General Motors is unveiling five concept vehicles at the Chicago Auto Show today that will star in the upcoming summer sequel "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen." Marketing experts say the movie is an efficient way for GM to attempt to improve its image after its disastrous run in Washington, Tim Higgins reports. Opinions of the Chevrolet brand jumped 72% after consumers saw the first "Transformers" movie two summers ago according to statistics compiled by GM. More importantly, consideration for the brand increased 14%. "When you are looking to change your image, then the best way ... is with what …