Industry marketing of tobacco products on social media: case study of Philip Morris International's IQOS

Authors

Lorien C. Abroms, Department of Prevention and Community Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA lorien@gwu.edu.
Christina N. Wysota, Department of Prevention and Community Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA.
Sararat Tosakoon, Department of Prevention and Community Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA.
Amal Khayat, Braun School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Hadassah, Jerusalem, Israel.
Zongshuan Duan, Department of Prevention and Community Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA.
Yael Bar-Zeev, Braun School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Hadassah, Jerusalem, Israel.
Carla J. Berg, Department of Prevention and Community Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA.
Hagai Levine, Braun School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Hadassah, Jerusalem, Israel.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

3-16-2023

Journal

Tobacco control

DOI

10.1136/tc-2022-057833

Keywords

Advertising and Promotion; Electronic nicotine delivery devices; Harm Reduction; Packaging and Labelling; Tobacco industry

Abstract

SIGNIFICANCE: Newer tobacco products might be particularly likely to use social media as they emerge in the global market. Little is known about the official use of social media in marketing heated tobacco products (HTPs). This study examined Philip Morris International's (PMI) social media marketing globally of its leading HTP, IQOS. METHODS: PMI IQOS country-specific official websites were accessed (N=59) in May to September 2022 and social media accounts listed were recorded. Accounts were then coded for their number of posts in the past month and year and for their number of subscribers. Posts on online accounts with at least one past-month post were categorised to describe the post's function: instructional, general advertising, price promotions or event promotions. RESULTS: Of the 59 country websites, 45 (76.3%) listed at least one social media account; of these, an average of 2.5 accounts (SD=0.8) were listed. Across websites, 111 accounts were identified: 42 Facebook, 23 YouTube, 21 Twitter, 19 Instagram, 2 Telegram, 1 LinkedIn, 1 KakaoTalk, 1 VK and 1 LINE. Across YouTube, Twitter and Instagram, accounts made 2550 past-year posts and had ~490 961 subscribers. Of the 165 past-month posts, 101 (60.1%) functioned as general advertising, 30 (17.9%) instructional, 29 (17.3%) event promotions and 8 (4.8%) price promotions. CONCLUSION: Social media posts were used to engage consumers with advertising, event promotions, product use instructions and price promotions. The study provides evidence of the company-sponsored official marketing of an HTP via social media globally, underscoring the need for monitoring and tobacco control regulatory efforts in the digital arena.

APA Citation

Abroms, Lorien C.; Wysota, Christina N.; Tosakoon, Sararat; Khayat, Amal; Duan, Zongshuan; Bar-Zeev, Yael; Berg, Carla J.; and Levine, Hagai, "Industry marketing of tobacco products on social media: case study of Philip Morris International's IQOS" (2023). GW Authored Works. Paper 2580.
https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/gwhpubs/2580

Department

Prevention and Community Health