Australia will become the world’s first country
to sell cigarettes in plain packaging cases on the 1st of December
2012.
Cigarettes will now be sold in plain olive packs
with graphic health warnings such as pictures of cancer-riddled mouths, blinded
eyeballs, and other smoking-related illnesses. This news comes after a legal battle between the Australian
government and Tobacco giants (Japan Tobacco Inc., British American Tobacco
Plc, Philip Morris International Inc. and Imperial Tobacco), lost the right to
print logos or trademarks on cigarette packaging.
British American Tobacco released a statement saying
that not only were they very disappointed with the court ruling, but they believe
that packaging would only “exacerbate an already significant illicit tobacco trafficking problem.” In
addition, the company believes that this would have other adverse consequences
including reduction of cigarette prices which would lead to increased smoking
and reduced government tax revenue. According to Japan Tobacco and Imperial
Tobacco, Australia’s government loses about $1.1
billion in annual revenue because of the cigarette black
market, which is equivalent to 13.4 percent of the legal industry. Tobacco
moguls also claim that the “Australian ruling unlawfully extinguishes the value
of their trademarks without providing compensation.”
Health Minister and Attorney General Nicola
Roxan, who has headed this international test case in Australia, has stated,
“Gone are the days that cigarettes are glamorous, gone are the days where gold
embossing can imply that they are luxury or pale green can imply that they are
light and safe.” The federal government believes that this move will not only
deter consumers from purchasing cigarettes, but also save many lives.
It will be interesting to see not only how
tobacco marketers will differentiate their products in the Australian market
under the new laws, but also if the case will create the chance for change down
under.
Lyanne
Ryan – Marketing Advisor
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