The reengineered Apple TV is hitting the market today to mostly effusive reviews but they are more like those accorded a promising young actor in a fading drama. It's all about the potential.

In a potential deal that may be as much about taxation as it is about brand synergies, Pfizer is said to be talking to Dublin-based Allergan about a merger. It would not only create the biggest company in Big Pharma but also be the biggest deal yet in a year of frenzied activity in the sector.

Walgreens Boots Alliance, the international pharmacy chain still based in Deerfield, Ill., agreed yesterday to shell out about $17.2 billion to acquire Rite Aid, America's third-largest drugstore retailer based in Camp Hill, Pa. Both companies have a large presence in states such as California, Michigan and New York and analysts expect regulators at the Federal Trade Commission to force some divestitures in those states.

A drone won't be dropping a "Chosen by Kids" Fisher-Price Bright Beats Dance & Move Beatbo down your chimney with a ho-ho-ho this holiday season but Wal-Mart is preparing flight plans for the use of small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the future.

As of this morning, Microsoft is officially on the avenue - 677 Fifth Avenue at 53rd St., to be precise - in a big way: a five-floor, 22,270-square-foot flagship operation with a glass facade that's just a five-minute stroll from the popular Apple cube a few block uptown.

McDonald's said yesterday that quarterly same-store sales in the U.S. were up for the first time in two years, confirming not only the wisdom of frying Egg McMuffins in butter rather than margarine - as nature intended - but also that keeping the menu simpler speeds service. And the results don't even reflect the fact that the company instituted all-day breakfasts earlier this month.

Western Digital's $19 billion deal to acquire SanDisk yesterday is further evidence that although memory may not be what it used to be, it's still worth an awful lot even as consolidation in the industry has reached a record $89 billion this year, including Dell's acquisition of EMC last week.

Fret not, you fashionistas who missed the 1940s' football- and 1970s' "Love Story"-themed runway show of the Fall 2015 Hilfiger Collection in person at the Park Avenue Armory in Manhattan last February. You now can immerse yourself in the futuristic 3D virtual reality of the brand - featuring the likes of varsity-inspired V-neck sweaters and lace-up football boots - by donning a Samsung GearVR device in a special area of the Tommy Hilfiger store on 5th Ave. in NYC.

The new version of Apple TV will go on sale on Monday, Apple CEO Tim Cook said yesterday while suggesting that it's only the start of something that will get much bigger. "The first thing that has to be done when you buy a house is lay the foundation," he said.

After two years of planning, American Airlines finally subsumed US Airways' reservations system over the weekend and the latter has gone the way of Pan Am, Braniff and Continental in the psyches of world travelers. There were a few hitches but nothing major.