British American Tobacco Piloting New E-Cig in Japan

November 9, 2016
NACS Online
TOKYO – British American Tobacco PLC (BAT) has announced plans to begin a pilot program for glo, a new electronic cigarette, in Japan next month, Reuters reports. BAT’s glo will have a test run in Sendai, Japan, before the company rolls out the product nationwide. Glo heats tobacco into an inhalable vapor, which BAT claims is 90% less toxic than smoke. The company has poured more than $1 billion into its product development over the past five years.
This isn’t BAT’s first foray into the alternative tobacco market. Currently, BAT sells Vype e-cig, which has a nicotine liquid, in Europe. It’s also testing iFuse, another electronic cigarette that uses tobacco in a liquid form, in Romania. In addition, BAT has Voke, a nicotine inhaler that can be licensed as a medical product in the United Kingdom, but hasn’t yet made it to market.
All the major players in the tobacco market are heavily investing into alternatives to tobacco such as electronic cigarettes. Some experts predict that tobacco vapor products will become the next big thing.
Philip Morris International has had success with its iQOS “heat not burn” product, which it introduced in Japan last April. “At this moment, we are seeing far greater demand than our expectations and iQOS devices sell out as soon as they hit stores,” said a Philip Morris Japan spokeswoman.
Japan Tobacco’s Ploom Tech has also found a ready audience, with production still lagging behind demand during the testing phase.
Meanwhile, BAT is purchasing Reynolds American Inc. via a $47 billion takeover bid. If successful, the new company would be the world’s largest listed tobacco firm.