extra texture :: marketing news + trends

The eagerly awaited new album by Prince is being launched as a free CD with a national Sunday newspaper in a move that has drawn widespread criticism from music retailers. (more)

Apple’s success not always so sweet. (more)

Some consumers may have been awaiting the U.S. debut of Apple Inc.’s iPhone, but that didn’t stop many others from lining the pockets of Research in Motion Ltd. by snapping up BlackBerry devices in ever-increasing numbers. (more)

Steve Jobs, Apple’s chief executive, has sweetened the launch of iPhone for employees of his company by promising each a free device. (more)

Proud owners of Apple’s new uber-device the iPhone can peruse a variety of cheesecake content, courtesy of Playboy, which is calling the new service iPlayboy. (more)

Motorola has admitted that it is worried about the effect of Apple’s iPhone. (more)

Motorola Inc. is betting on wide acceptance of its recently announced Good Mobile Messaging 5. (more)

Sprint is wiping Nextel from its slogan. (more)

Self-taught chef David Ashley stokes America’s appetite for hot sauce. (more)

A Maine school bus driver won $200,000 in a NASA-sponsored contest to design a new glove for astronauts. (more)

Visiting the UK? Then welcome to planet Tesco. (more)

For 21-year-old Tyler Welsh and his four-legged friend, Scruffy, taking just a few hours to film a 20-second commercial on how shopping at H-E-B saves them money on dog food was worth every minute of the project. (more)

Sales and marketing execs from Yahoo’s Canadian and US offices pitch “four-pillar marketing” to media and advertising strategists. (more)

Billionaire Briton Richard Branson, chairman of Virgin Atlantic Airways, is about to dip his toe into the tantalizing but murky waters of the private jet charter business. (more)

Long before Sean Connery quaffed his first screen vodka martini, there was the Moscow Mule, the drink that made Smirnoff. (more)

The beer business in emerging markets is booming — with Russians, Chinese, Indians among those thirsty for western-style brands. (more)

Under the old German Purity Law of 1516, beer could be made only of water, barley, hops and yeast. Those old Germans must be rolling in their graves. (more)

Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn says his company is working hard to develop the next generation of smaller, lighter auto batteries — a technology that holds promise for electric cars as well as for hybrids. (more)

Global-warming warnings have not dissuaded Americans from driving to work alone. In fact, their numbers have been rising. (more)

Tree-climbing branches out as a youthful vocation becomes adult recreation. (more)

Samsung telecommunications America said that according to a recent study commissioned by it, Single Mobile Females (SMFs), young single women who have cell phones, are using their phones as much more than a communication device. (more)

Slugging it out in the boxing ring is the perfect way to get fit and find confidence, according to women who have embraced the sport. (more)

The top 35 women under 35 are a true force to be reckoned with. (more)

Carol Barge was looking for a special undergarment. She couldn’t find one. So she designed it herself. (more)

A Dubai dairy is pushing its product as a healthful choice which even lactose-intolerant people can enjoy. (more)

When Estee Lauder’s Aramis brand introduced a Mustang fragrance for men a few weeks ago at Sears, it was such a runaway hit that it will be rolled out at Wal-Mart, Kohl’s and other mass-market chains, Ford has decided. (more)

Canadian troops serving in Afghanistan won’t be pining for a cold Canadian beer this Canada Day. (more)

Online auction site eBay has made public the details of a months-long campaign to curb online fraud arising in Romania—an effort that has resulted in several hundred arrests. (more)

Those who venture to Starbucks this summer to chill out with a frappuccino or an iced latte also will find a new in-store addition to keep cool: “Arctic Tale,” a movie documentary that focuses on the issue of global warming. (more)

Is the Toyota Prius about to get a big brother? (more)