- Title: Philip Morris, Altria end merger talks, Juul boss exits in vaping crisis
- Date: 25th September 2019
- Summary: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (FILE) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF JUUL AD IN FRONT OF VAPING STORE "CLOUD 99" VARIOUS OF JUUL ADS AND PRODUCTS INSIDE OF VAPING STORE STORE CLERKS VAPING OUTSIDE WOMAN VAPING MAN VAPING
- Embargoed: 9th October 2019 16:32
- Keywords: e-cigarette maker Juul Philip Morris Altria Group teen use of e-cigarettes surges iQOS vaping-related illnesses
- Location: LAUSANNE, AND NEUCHATEL, SWITZERLAND, RICHMOND, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES, TOKYO, JAPAN, JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA, UNKNOWN LOCATIONS
- City: LAUSANNE, AND NEUCHATEL, SWITZERLAND, RICHMOND, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES, TOKYO, JAPAN, JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA, UNKNOWN LOCATIONS
- Country: USA
- Topics: Company News Markets,Economic Events
- Reuters ID: LVA005AY5Q2KT
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:The chief executive of e-cigarette maker Juul stepped down on Wednesday (September 25), with his company beset by a regulatory backlash against vaping, and merger talks between its biggest investor Altria and Philip Morris collapsed.
Juul, in which tobacco giant Altria Group owns a 35% stake, is facing intense scrutiny in its home market as teen use of e-cigarettes surges. The company, which faces a U.S. ban on some products, said on Wednesday that it would suspend all advertising in the country.
Philip Morris International and Altria, announcing the end of their talks, said they would instead focus on the joint launch of tobacco-heating product iQOS in the United States.
The iQOS, which heats but does not burn tobacco, is a rival non-smoking technology to typical vaping devices such as Juul's, which vaporize liquid containing nicotine and have borne the brunt of the regulatory crackdown globally.
When the talks were announced last month, the potential for Juul and iQOS to dominate the biggest vaping markets globally was seen as central to the logic of a deal, which would have seen the tobacco companies reunite a decade after their split and created an industry heavyweight.
(Production: Aleksandra Michalska) - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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