2012 Nissan Rogue on 2040-cars

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Apple iTunes Radio picks Nissan as first automotive launch partner

With the launch of iOS 7 last week, those who carry around a certain fruit-branded cellphone got access to a new technology called iTunes Radio. Apple's delayed entry into a market currently dominated by service such as Spotify and Pandora, iTunes Radio allows users to create their own stations or to choose from a number of featured stations. From there, listeners can fine tune their results to deliver more popular songs or newer, deeper tracks. Each song is linked back to the iTunes store, allowing users to easily buy songs they fall in love with.
Now, Nissan has teamed with Apple as the exclusive launch partner for iTunes Radio. This partnership means you'll be seeing some Nissan-specific content when you're surfing through iTunes Radio, with some subtler stuff in the form of material and some not-so-subtle approaches, like Nissan's use of iAd, a system that allows developers to directly insert advertisements into apps. The focus at first will be on the upcoming Rogue, the redesigned Versa Note and the Leaf EV.
Nissan's vice president of marketing in North America, Jon Brancheau, explained the team up, saying, "We see iTunes Radio as an integral part of our new vehicle launches and 'big moments,' riding the wave of interest and usage of this exciting new service to maximize exposure of Nissan's new models." Take a look below for the rundown from Nissan.

Mitsubishi and Renault-Nissan expand partnership, US will get new sedan

Mitsubishi and Renault-Nissan have just inked an alliance that might, hopefully, reverse the ailing fortunes of the Mitsubishi brand in the US market. The big chunk of news is that Mitsubishi will produce two Renualt-based models for sale in the US market, and that they'll be built at the Renault-Samsung factory in Busan, South Korea.
The plans call for a D-segment sedan to be followed by a C-segment offering. Based on the cars built at the Busan factory, that means Mitsubishi will be getting the SM5 and the SM3, a pair of handsome sedans that are based on Renault-Nissan's D and C platforms, respectively. These same platforms underpin a number of US market Nissans (not to mention a number of cars from Renault), namely the Pathfinder, Maxima, Quest and Murano for the D platform and the last-generation Rogue and Sentra for the C platform.
Besides the sedan production, Nissan and Mitsubishi will be expanding their joint-venture company, NMKV, which produces Kei cars for the Japanese market. A new, all-electric offering will be born from the partnership, likely based on a Kei car platform. The partnership between the three brands will also lead to increased sharing of technology, particularly relating to electric cars.

Auto industry insider previews tell-all book, What Did Jesus Drive?

"It's about some of the biggest crises in history. It's about who did it right and who did it wrong." - Jason Vines
Jason Vines, the former head of public relations at Chrysler, Ford and Nissan, has seen a lot during his more than 30-year career, and now he's offering a behind-the-scenes look at the auto industry in his tell-all book What Did Jesus Drive? that went on sale this month.