This product image provided by Philip Morris International shows the iQOS device. Marlboro HeatSticks _ short, cigarette-eqsue sticks _ are heated to more than 660 degrees Fahrenheit (350 degrees Celsius) in the device to create a tobacco-flavored nicotine vapor. (AP Photo/Philip Morris International)
Philip Morris Int'l to sell Marlboro HeatSticks
By MICHAEL FELBERBAUM
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Philip Morris International Inc. is hoping to capitalize on the growing appetite for alternatives to traditional smokes like e-cigarettes with a new Marlboro-branded product that heats tobacco rather than burning it.
The world's second-biggest tobacco company on Thursday detailed its plans to release the Marlboro HeatSticks in cities in Japan and Italy later this year, with further expansion plans in 2015.
The products represent another run at improving heating technologies that failed when originally introduced in the 1990s.
The short, cigarette-like sticks are heated to maximum of 660 degrees Fahrenheit (350 degrees Celsius) in a hollow pen-like device called iQOS (pronounced EYE-cohs) to create a tobacco-flavored nicotine vapor. Unlike popular e-cigarettes that use liquid nicotine, HeatSticks contain real tobacco, a point the company believes will make them more attractive to cigarette smokers.
It's one of several so-called "reduced-risk" products Philip Morris International plans to test as the industry diversifies beyond traditional cigarettes amid declining demand.
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