The NFL is big on CBS, which in September will air eight games on Thursday night. CBS, counting on driving audience for advertisers, is advertising itself with a TV spot featuring CBS stars. Major sponsors include Lowe's, Verizon, Lexus and Mazda, who will pay a reported half a million dollars for 30 seconds. Meanwhile, Dannon has jumped into American stadia and living rooms by signing on as the NFL's first official yogurt sponsor. At the jump, some of the new brand ads supporting NFL this season.

Cam Newton, entering his fourth season in the NFL, has signed a deal to become the face for Drakkar Essence from L'Oreal USA. Newton will appear in multi-media marketing, make personal appearances and be involved in other activations. The Drakkar campaign, "Show Your Power," is being anchored by TV, print, Internet and social media, including Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Greenpeace USA has launched a digital video campaign via its YouTube channel to put pressure on digital companies such as Amazon and Twitter to use renewable energy to power their data operations. The 30-second video stars U.S. singer-songwriter-comedian Reggie Watts, who sings: "There's nothing clean about your internet stream, until you switch to green energy." On-screen copy tells viewers: "We all benefit from a green-powered internet." The film directs users to a site to sign a petition.

Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.'s Circle K is launching a new retail prototype, Circle K/Mobil. The store, in San Jacinto, Calif., mixes a convenience store with fresh food, a Mobil station and car wash. It is the first phase of an Esplanade Commons.

McDonald's has named Julia Vander Ploeg as its first VP of digital in the U.S. She will report to the quick-feeder's chief digital officer, Atif Rafiq, who joined the company in October. She will, per a spokesperson, lead "digital strategy efforts on several fronts -- such as enhancing our customers' restaurant experience, more relevant ways to share our story and how customers engage with our brand."

The NFL, always looking to save money around issues like head injury, may start charging artists to play the Super Bowl Halftime Show. League representatives, having narrowed the playlist for next year to Coldplay, Katy Perry, and Rihanna , are asking whether they might want to throw some post-Bowl tour money at the event. The artists' reps aren't too cool for that.

Peter Delorenzo takes off on how beneath the pebbles in Monterey is a morass of price gougers, bottom feeders, and misguided manufacturers. The latter, he says, "Inundate prime display space in and around the Pebble Beach golf facility in order to court dealers, high-rolling customers and the odd independent souls who have managed to garner the right credentials." He argues that it's a waste of money and time.

Lowe's reported a rise in second-quarter profit and revenue Wednesday, but lowered its earnings guidance for the year. The company said it earned $1.04 billion in the second quarter, or $1.04 a share. Wall Street analysts were expecting earnings of $1.02 a share and $16.6 billion, according to FactSet. The company's CEO, Robert A. Niblock said the company had actually expected better numbers for the second half and is therefore lowering second half sales outlook.

Restaurant chains' same-store sales rose 3% industrywide in July, and same store sales were up 0.7%, according to the latest Nation's Restaurant News-MillerPulse report. The increases are weighted toward larger chains. Larry Miller, founder and chief executive of the monthly MillerPulse report, said the sales gains were most likely the result of McDonald's shedding market share.

Fiat Chrysler Automobile CEO Sergio Marchionne is serious about Alfa Romeo's entrance into the brutal U.S. auto market. He has appointed Reid Bigland, former head of Ram Trucks to be president. He will also continue on as head of U.S. Sales and president and CEO of Chrysler Canada and the Fiat Chrysler Group Executive Council. Robert Hegbloom replaces Bigland at Ram Trucks, and will become a member of the NAFTA Leadership Team.