The 2008 Summer Olympics was one of the most marketing and branding-dense spectacles the world has ever seen. Not only did brands from all over the world and from many different segments strut their stuff in Beijing, but the world also witnessed a large scale branding effort on the part of an entire country - China.

So now that the torch has been passed onto London for 2012, and we've had a few weeks to digest our victories (go USA!), we can really look back and see which brands struck gold and, well, those that did not.

Apparently this summer, America has been put up for sale (mostly good deals), privacy has become a hot button issue and that huge French cycling thing got started again.

Big headlines about the airline industry have graced the front pages of newspapers, magazines and websites recently. After two years or so of profitability and the looming threat of a US recession and rising oil prices, airlines are struggling once again. Rather than raise ticket prices, airlines have been creating new fees and will soon be asking passengers to pay for a second checked bag.  The key to surviving trying times is keeping your eye on your brand, and it seems as though only a few airlines are keeping that in mind.

IBM initiating a major stock buyback.

Citing robust growth in Europe and a greater diversification of their business, IBM is showing their viability even in times of economic hardship ... HA! Take that, US Recession! (Too soon?)

Ever since selling off their personal computer division to Lenovo, IBM has been a model in rebranding as they've gone on to redefine their brand as an expert in enterprise-wide information technology and (apparently) they're doing pretty well. Feeling good enough about themselves to buy back a lot of stock and push their earnings up.

Getty Images bought by private equity firm.
The proliferation of user-generated content combined with a changing media environment, sent media stalwart Getty Images seeking out new opportunities for strategic growth, so they put themselves on the block ... The result? A $2.1 billion offer from private equity firm Hellman & Friedman.

Getty was already exploring other areas for business growth (and quite successfully), but as a private company they have greater latitude and more opportunities.

The online search engine and advertising category has been slowly simmering beneath the surface, and it finally came to a boil with Microsoft initializing a hostile takeover of Yahoo! last week. Upon hearing all the rumbling in their backyard, Google looked out their back window, saw the two search engines fighting, and decided: "Awww heck, might as well try to break this up."

Here's a timeline of events leading up to this week (and it just keeps getting juicier and juicier).

Famous athletes have long been part of the marketing world, whether they're endorsing their "favorite" brand--sure Derek Jeter drives a Chevy--or they're starting their own (i.e., Michael Jordan). Today the brand + athlete pairing is as creative as ever, so let's take a look at how some of today's top athletes have worked with their brand teammates and how it has affected their respective brand's performance.

We are keeping track of what's going on in the world, and we're looking at the implications those events or actions may have on the brands and their respective bottom lines. Then, we're plotting them on our handy-dandy uber-scientific graph that takes a look at the relationship between brands and profit.

The Business of Music
Almost a decade ago, the music industry found itself in the midst of the mp3/p2p music-sharing fiasco. Today, as the dust clears, we've seen evidence (iTunes) of a new way of looking at the music industry, and lately there's been a new wave of change truly challenging the business model, as detailed here in this great NY Times article that asks "if it's retail, is it still rock?"