• Toyota Considering New Structure To Groom The Next Leaders
    Toyota Motor Corp. is considering a management structure that groups businesses according to the product type rather than geography, which has been the structure for years. The shift will also prepare future leaders. Toyota will have "in-house companies" for passenger vehicles, compact cars, commercial vehicles and Lexus, per reports.
  • Farewell, AOL?
    Less than a year after Verizon purchased AOL, the brand may change its name because it is trying to be a player in tech and media, but people still associate its legacy image with email addresses and dial-up Internet. Allie Kline, AOL's chief marketing officer, said in an interview with "Business Insider" that her company has an image problem, saying that people don't know that it owns popular publications, like Huffington Post and TechCrunch, or operates ad-tech platforms.
  • Would Hyundai Pay $1B For Naming Rights To New NFL L.A. Stadium?
    When the NFL last week gave its approval for the St. Louis Rams to return to L.A. and begin a second life as the Los Angeles Rams, and let the San Diego Chargers move in, it put into motion a play for naming rights to their home, an 80,000-seat stadium and 298-acre entertainment complex scheduled to open for the 2019 season. That will be the biggest such deal in naming rights history. Among the potential Los Angeles-based companies: Hyundai, Farmers Insurance, Live Nation, DirecTV and even the Walt Disney Co.
  • Coke Closes 'Happiness'; Now Going With 'Taste The Feeling'
    A new global campaign called "Taste the Feeling" will put the product at the center of every ad as Coke seeks to win over more drinkers in the struggling soda category. And in a major strategic shift, Coke will adopt a "one-brand" approach that will unite multiple varieties like Diet Coke and Coke Zero in a single campaign, rather than running disparate spots.
  • Brands Honor MLK In Tweets
    Starbucks, AT&T and Lyft are just a few of the brands that have taken to Twitter to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day. With video clips, images and some of his most memorable quotes, brands are honoring King using the hashtag '#MLKDay.' Starbucks quoted him in a tweet: "Hatred darkens life; love illuminates it." Lyft showed a GIF of King. Delta (saluting him as a "hometown hero"), Ben & Jerry's, Skype, Pandora, YouTube, Unilever, and Google were among others.
  • Silver Lining For KFC In China
    Since the third quarter of 2014, KFC sales in China had fallen 14% due to a tainted meat scare. But earlier this week, the fast-food chicken chain could report that same-store sales in China grew 6% in the latest quarter. They fell 8% at sister chain Pizza Hut there, but overall the results were still positive enough to boost parent company Yum Brand's China division by 2%. In October, Yum announced plans to spin off its China division as a separate publicly traded company.
  • Big Tobacco Loses Legal Joist With FDA On Menthol Cigs
    A federal appeals court has put a roadblock in front of the tobacco industry's attempts to challenge a Food and Drug Administration advisory panel report on the safety of menthol cigarettes. In 2009, Congress passed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, part of which directs the FDA to create an advisory panel to look into the safety of menthol cigarettes. Then, in early 2011, the panel released its findings, recommending a ban because minty cigarettes appeal to young people. But R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings, Inc. says the panel was unfairly biased.
  • Adidas, VIrgin Galactic See The Shape Of Things To Come
    Y-3, a collaboration between Adidas and Japanese designer Yohji Yamamoto, formed more than 10 years ago, has been signed by Virgin Galactic. Their task: to "take on the challenge of jointly designing and then producing the complete range of garments required for our commercial spaceflight operations." Virgin Galactic, under the auspices of Sir Richard Branson, has stated as its mission, "To become the spaceline for Earth; democratizing access to space for the benefit of life on Earth."
  • Porn Sells For Diesel
    Fashion brand Diesel is becoming the first mainstream clothing retailer to advertise on one of the world's biggest porn websites. In a bid to reclaim its edgy image, the Italian denim giant has announced plans to advertise on Pornhub as well as dating apps Tinder and Grindr. Diesel's current campaign stars the clean-cut American pop star Joe Jonas, but his image will not appear next to pornographic videos. Instead, the brand will focus on its logo-heavy underwear range.
  • FCA Responds To Dealer Suit
    After two dealers filed a suit against Fiat Chrysler saying the automaker offered them $20,000 to inflate sales reports, making it appear the automaker was performing better than it actually was, Chrysler is coming back with its riposte: FCA dismisses the charges, saying it will vigorously defend itself against allegations from "two disgruntled dealers." "Notwithstanding numerous requests to provide evidence of this alleged activity, the plaintiffs have refused to substantiate their claims," said FCA in a statement.
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