Heated tobacco: internal document reveals Philip Morris' offensive in Japan

An analysis of several internal documents from Philip Morris Japan (PMJ) by the watchdog STOP[1] reveals a broad marketing plan for the IQOS heated tobacco device that appears to be aimed at attracting a broader customer base than current smokers. Japan is a key market for PMI, as it is the launch market for IQOS and has the highest consumption of heated tobacco products in the world.

“Today Japan, Tomorrow the World: Philip Morris Japan’s Leaked Marketing Blueprint for IQOS” analyzes an April 2019 internal marketing strategy document from Philip Morris’ Japanese subsidiary and details how PMJ planned a multi-pronged strategy to influence policymakers at the local, regional, national, and even international levels. The STOP report also cites evidence that PMI may be deploying similar tactics in other countries.

Attracting a clientele beyond current smokers

While PMI claims that IQOS is only intended for adult smokers, the document suggests that PMJ was looking to reach a much wider audience for its new product to help “accelerate the acquisition” of new IQOS users. PMJ lobbied for IQOS to be allowed in places where smoking is prohibited and for its product to be taxed at a favourable rate to ensure its accessibility. Targets of its support included politicians, medical groups, Japan’s Fire and Disaster Management Agency, and hospitality groups in an apparent attempt to gain broad acceptance of IQOS in Japanese society. The documents also show that the manufacturer wanted to secure a presence at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics to associate its product with sport and wellness.

A global propaganda strategy

STOP’s analysis cites press reports suggesting that PMI may be trying to cultivate similar influence in other countries, through contacts with government ministers and local councils in the UK, a national lobbying network in the US, plans to sell the heated tobacco device IQOS in pubs, bars and clubs in Australia, targeting the tourism and hospitality industry in Greece, the Czech Republic and the Canary Islands, and attempts to recruit dentists as IQOS advocates in Germany.

In France, Philip Morris has massively invested in tobacconists to promote its heated tobacco and uses the Confédération des buralistes as a mouthpiece to push for amendments in favor of heated tobacco. The cigarette manufacturer has several websites indirectly promoting this product, which it presents as "less harmful," despite the absence of scientific evidence on the long-term impact of the product on health. The cigarette manufacturer also tries to participate in events sponsored by ministries such as the Salon Produrable or the Dialogues de l'inclusion et de la RSE to discuss its business prospects and promote its "combustion-free products." However, following the warnings given by the National Committee against Smoking (CNCT) and the mobilization of civil society in France and internationally, the manufacturer's participation in the Dialogues on Inclusion and CSR was finally cancelled and following the steps taken with the Ministry of Ecological Transition by the CNCT, Philip Morris' participation in the Pro Durable trade fair was cancelled in 2023.

A massive investment in the scientific and medical world

Researchers from the Tobacco Control Research Group at the University of Bath[2] analyzed other PMJ documents that show that the manufacturer secretly funded, through a third party (CCIM - Japan's largest contract research organization that provides support for the development of pharmaceutical products), a study on smoking cessation in Japan conducted by academics who have since "neglected" to declare their relationship with PMJ in a subsequent publication.

PMJ was particularly keen to gain access to and support from the Japanese dental community because in 2019, PMI was conducting a clinical trial in Japan to study the effects of IQOS on oral health and the treatment of periodontitis.

To carry out its strategy, PMJ also hired a Japanese life sciences consulting firm (FTI-I) for ¥3,000,000 (approximately €17,500) per month between 2014 and 2019 to facilitate access to key opinion leaders and events that allowed it to promote the rhetoric of “harm reduction”. FTI-I provided PMJ with a list of universities that allowed the tobacco industry to participate in their conferences. FTI-I also advised and supported PMJ’s scientific research, including “practical support for the medical-economic model”, “advice on trial protocol, ethics and conflicts of interest”, “support for discussions with foreign researchers”. In addition to the medical community, particularly dentists, FTI-I sought to establish relationships with other sectors, such as insurance and pharmaceutical industries.

AE