Description Viral article / Satire
Circulating since Jan. 2014 (text) / Aug. 2007 (image)
Status FALSE (see details below)

Example
Via , Jan. 21, 2014

Phillip Morris Introduces Marlboro Marijuana Cigarettes

Phillip Morris, the world s biggest cigarette producer, announced today that they will join the marijuana legalization bandwagon and start producing marijuana cigarettes. Marketed under the brand “Marlboro M”, the cigarettes will be made available for sale through marijuana licensed outlets in the state of Colorado, and the state of Washington when it becomes commercially legal there later this year.

Serafin Norcik, Phillip Morris Sr. Vice President for Marketing said in an interview that the company has been high on the idea of marketing cannabis, and has been monitoring the market for some time. It was only when the recent legalization initiatives winning in Colorado and Washington that they finally made the decision to take a leap of faith.

Full Text

Analysis As one might expect from a site called “Abril Uno” (April First), this article is a spoof. The site’s disclaimer is unambiguous “All articles contained herein are fiction (‘fake’), untrue, and for entertainment only.”

The image used in the article, also a spoof, dates from 2007 and originally appeared as an entry in a photo editing contest amusingly titled “If Hippies Ruled.”

Notwithstanding the recent passage of laws legalizing the sale and use of small amounts of pot in a few states and much speculation about the commercial future of cannabis, as of this writing no major tobacco companies, including Phillip Morris, have announced plans to begin producing marijuana cigarettes.

Sources and further reading

Phillip Morris Introduces Marlboro Marijuana Cigarettes
Abril Uno (satire website), 21 January 2014

Marlboro Greens
, 14 August 2007

Will Big Tobacco Jump on the Marijuana Movement?
Associated Press, 19 December 2012

Last updated 01/25/14

Marlboro (cigarette) – wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Coupons for basic brand cigarettes

Marlboro cigarettes 13 and snus 13 come in the following varieties of flavor and packaging

USA cigarette varieties edit

  • Marlboro box, 25’s box, and soft pack
  • Marlboro 100’s box and soft pack
  • Marlboro Eighty Threes box
  • Marlboro 72’s box
  • Marlboro Red Label box and soft pack
  • Marlboro Red Label 100’s box and soft pack
  • Marlboro Gold Pack box, 25’s box, and soft pack
  • Marlboro Gold Pack 100’s box and soft pack
  • Marlboro Gold Pack 72’s box
  • Marlboro Silver Pack box
  • Marlboro Silver Pack 100’s box
  • Marlboro Silver Pack 72’s box
  • Marlboro Blend No. 27 box and soft pack
  • Marlboro Blend No. 27 100’s box
  • Marlboro Virginia Blend box
  • Marlboro Virginia Blend 100’s box
  • Marlboro Southern Cut box
  • Marlboro Black box
  • Marlboro Black 100’s box
  • Marlboro Special Blend Red box
  • Marlboro Special Blend Red 100’s box
  • Marlboro Special Blend Gold box
  • Marlboro Special Blend Gold 100’s box
  • Marlboro Menthol box and soft pack
  • Marlboro Menthol 100’s box
  • Marlboro Menthol Green Pack 72’s box
  • Marlboro Menthol Blue Pack box
  • Marlboro Menthol Blue Pack 100’s box
  • Marlboro Menthol Blue Pack 72’s box
  • Marlboro Menthol Gold Pack box and soft pack
  • Marlboro Menthol Gold Pack 100’s box and soft pack
  • Marlboro Menthol Silver Pack box
  • Marlboro Menthol Silver Pack 100’s box
  • Marlboro Menthol Blend No. 54 box
  • Marlboro Menthol Blend No. 54 100’s box
  • Marlboro Menthol Smooth box
  • Marlboro Menthol Smooth 100’s box
  • Marlboro Menthol Skyline box
  • Marlboro Menthol Skyline 100’s box
  • Marlboro Menthol Black box
  • Marlboro Menthol Black 100’s box
  • Marlboro NXT box
  • Marlboro Edge box

UK varieties edit

  • Marlboro Red
  • Marlboro Gold Original
  • Marlboro Gold Original 100’s (Superkings)
  • Marlboro Gold Touch
  • Marlboro Silver
  • Marlboro Bright Leaf
  • Marlboro Bright Leaf Platinum
  • Marlboro White Menthol
  • Marlboro Ice Blast

International cigarette varieties edit

  • Marlboro Gold Touch
  • Marlboro Flavor Code
  • Marlboro Premium Black

USA snus varieties edit

  • Marlboro Snus Original (discontinued in California, New York, Texas, Utah, Nevada, Massachusetts, Illinois, New Jersey, New Mexico, and Kentucky)
  • Marlboro Snus Mint

Marlboro in Canada edit

Philip Morris sold the Canadian rights to the “Marlboro” name to Imperial Tobacco Canada in 1932. After the brand’s successful American relaunch in the 1950s which later became well known to Canadians through exposure to the brand’s international sponsorships and advertising Philip Morris tried several legal manoeuvres in attempting to reacquire the Canadian rights, to no avail. Imperial Tobacco continues to sell a line of cigarettes under the Marlboro name in Canada, albeit with very different packaging from that of the Philip Morris product. Philip Morris retains the rights to the “rooftop” trade dress and other elements of Marlboro’s branding which were developed after the 1932 sale, and has historically used that trade dress in Canada in combination with the names “Matador” or occasionally “Maverick” for a line of Virginia blend cigarettes. 14 15

In 2006, Philip Morris International’s Canadian affiliate Rothmans, Benson & Hedges introduced a new product with the “rooftop” trade dress, and marked as being the “World Famous Imported Blend”, but not bearing any actual brand name. This led to a legal challenge from Imperial, contending that the new packaging created customer confusion by merely suggesting the Marlboro brand, thereby infringing on Imperial’s Canadian trademark rights. Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal ruled in favour of Imperial in June 2012. The judgment noted that Canadian regulations which (in most cases) prohibit the public display of tobacco products at retail locations i.e., customers must ask for a brand by name exacerbated the situation, as there were now two products that customers might be referring to when asking for “Marlboro”. 14 Though PMI is expected to appeal, shortly after the ruling it began using the brand name “Rooftop” on packaging for the previously unbranded cigarettes. 15

See also edit

  • Marlboro Friday

References edit