Heated tobacco products: another tobacco industry global strategy to slow progress in tobacco control

Abstract

There has been a global decline in tobacco consumption that, if continued, will negatively impact the tobacco industry’s profits. This decline led the industry to invent and market new products, including heated tobacco products (HTP). HTP are an extension of the industry’s strategies to undermine government’s tobacco regulatory efforts as they are being promoted as part of the solution for the tobacco epidemic. Under the moniker of ‘harm reduction’, the tobacco companies are attempting to rehabilitate their reputation so they can more effectively influence governments to roll back existing tobacco control policies or create exemptions for their HTP. Rolling back tobacco control policies will make it easier for the companies to renormalise tobacco use to increase social acceptability for all their products. When regulations are absent or when loopholes exist in classifying HTP as a tobacco product (thus subject to all tobacco control regulations), the industry’s marketing of HTP is making these products more visible to the public and more accessible. Governments need to ensure that HTP are regulated as tobacco products or drugs and reject partnerships with the tobacco companies to promote ‘harm reduction’. The tobacco companies remain the vector of the tobacco-caused epidemic and cannot be part of the global tobacco control solution.

Analysis of Presumed IQOS Influencer Marketing on Instagram in the Czech Republic in 2018–2019

“…It would be interesting to explore other social media, such as YouTube and Tik Tok, which targets a younger audience. Our results are mostly consistent with the findings of other research by international scholars (Auer, Concha-Lozano, Jacot-Sadowski, Cornuz, & Berthet, 2017;Bialous & Glantz, 2018;Jenssen et al, 2018;McKelvey, Popova, Kim, Lempert, et al, 2018). They describe other HTP campaigns for products that are marketed internationally as a new technology with health benefits and advantages for achieving an aspirational modern lifestyle.…”

“…Tobacco companies have been struggling with a decline in their consumer base and decreasing social acceptability of smoking. For that reason, they are trying to develop new products, such as heated tobacco products (HTPs), and new marketing strategies that will help them to preserve their positions on the market, find new customers, and legitimise their core business of marketing tobacco (Bialous & Glantz, 2018;Auer et al, 2017). According to the World Health Organisation, tobacco companies are using marketing strategies that rely on non-traditional marketing and product distribution, including "social marketing techniques involving the development of community activators and brand ambassadors, who promote HTPs through various channels" (WHO, 2018, p. 18).…”

Philip Morris International’s use of Facebook to undermine Australian tobacco control laws

“…Despite claims that it is being 'disruptive', this strategy is near identical to previous efforts to weaken health regulations and gain a seat at the policy table. 5…”

“…PMI has used IQOS to engage with government officials and attempt to position themselves as partners in tobacco control. 5 Australia currently prohibits the sale of both nicotine-containing electronic e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products. However, the PMI strategy is consistent with the tobacco industry's long history of interference in health policy making.…”

The long-term supply of tobacco and nicotine: some goals, principles and policy implications

“…Resolve conflicts between strategies to minimise use and supply, and the legal obligations of corporations to maximise shareholder profits, in favour of the public good 1 39. Policies can use national and international approaches, including controlling or reducing tobacco and nicotine industry profits,40 41 and the United Nations’ initiatives to develop an international, legally binding, instrument on ‘Transnational Corporations and Other Business Enterprises’ 42 43…”