In years past, the Consumer Analysts Group of New York conference saw a bevy of ambitious launches and re-branded lines, as well as a cornucopia of marketer-sponsored meals and a mountain of giveaways. This year's meeting is mainly about line extensions or re-branding, reports Emily Bryson York, and the freebies are decidedly less indulgent. Campbell is featuring its reduced-sodium soups; General Mills is offering new versions of its most popular brands, such as Banana Nut Cheerios; Kellogg is launching cracker products tied to Special K. Supermarket expert Phil Lempert says it's typical for companies to introduce fewer products …

I was looking for a distinguished food critic's review of the new Via instant coffee from Starbuck's after CEO Howard Schultz' press conference in New York on Tuesday but could not find one. Still can't. But Ad Age, which broke the story of the new instant coffee on Friday, put three "cynical ... newsroom coffee junkies" on the case yesterday and taped a four-minute video. The result, in the words of coffee-klatch host Matt Kinsey, is that the new brew is "virtually indistinguishable" from cups of java bought at a local outlet. In their comments, all three …

Hewlett-Packard, the world's largest computer maker, reports that sales of its printers, ink, personal computers and servers declined for the first quarter of 2009 as business customers and individual consumers either put off purchases or opted for cheaper HP products. It has lowered its forecast for the year, predicting a 2 to 5% decline from last year's revenue of $118.4 billion. Sales of desktop computers fell 25%, and laptop sales declined 13%. But CEO Mark Hurd says the company slightly improved its market share. Printer shipments were down 33%, and sales of replacement ink cartridges -- traditionally a major …

When PepsiCo employees returned to work at company headquarters in Purchase, N.Y., following their Christmas break, 20-foot-tall billboards met them with greetings like "Howdy," "Hope," "Tango" and "Yo," reports Kenneth Hein. Pepsi's new circular logo stood in place of every "o" in the words. An enormous blue flag -- a giant refresh symbol -- flew from the roof. The effort was part of what Bill Wyman, senior marketing manager for brand Pepsi, calls "Invertising" -- targeting employees with a branding campaign before it goes public. A week before the company's new campaign and logo hit the masses, hall posters, floor …

When you're walking happy Don't the bloomin' world seem fine I've never forgotten the lyrics and jaunty tune to the title song of a rather lame Broadway musical I saw more than 40 years ago. It's human nature to want to smile in the face of adversity. Call it mind over matter, whistling past the graveyard of the recession or just plain reverse psychology, but Kraft is joining Coke and Pepsi in walking happy, Emily Bryson York reports. Through a "co-creation process" with consumers, employees, and ad agencies Nitro and Promise, Kraft has developed a new logo that contains …

Brand-name manufacturers such as General Mills and Kraft are trying to boost sales and defend their market shares in part by working with retailers to create special displays that allow name brands and store brands to share the promotional spotlight, Julie Jargon and Ann Zimmerman report. General Mills recently did a "taco night" display at Food Lion featuring its Old El Paso brand taco shells, taco seasoning mix and refried beans, as well as Pace salsa and Food Lion rice and ground beef, for example. Kraft's efforts include in-store meal and sandwich displays at Publix Super Markets and Meijer …

The road to an auto bailout is going to a hair-raising ride for workers, dealers, investors and taxpayers, writes Steven Mufson, who reports that General Motors and Chrysler "beseeched" Washington Tuesday for "massive new infusions of financial aid in an effort to avert bankruptcy, which they say would depress sales even more than they have been depressed by the slumping economy." "I don't know what you're going to call it, but they're going to go through bankruptcy, whether outside the bankruptcy system or with the benefit of the courts," says analyst Maryann Keller. "At the end of …