By Timothy S. Donahue

Top Takeaways:

• Major penalty: Italian regulators fined Philip Morris Italia €7 million over marketing of smoke-free products
• Misleading claims: Authorities said terms such as “smoke-free” and “smoke-free future” could mislead consumers about health risks
• Appeal planned: Philip Morris said it will challenge what it called an “erroneous and flawed” decision

Italy’s competition authority has fined Philip Morris Italia €7 million ($8.1 million) after finding that the company’s marketing of heated tobacco and other non-combustion products misled consumers about potential health risks.

The decision follows what the authority described as a “complex investigation” launched in October 2025 following a complaint by Italy’s Ministry of Health. According to the regulator, Philip Morris used phrases such as “smoke-free,” “smoke-free products,” and “building,” “planning,” or “accelerating a smoke-free future” as part of a broader marketing strategy for its portfolio of non-combustion tobacco products.

The authority concluded that those messages could lead consumers, including minors, to believe the products are harmless or less harmful than conventional tobacco products.

“Expressions and claims such as ‘smoke-free’, ‘smoke-free products’ and ‘building/planning/accelerating a smoke-free future’ mislead consumers — including minors — into believing that the products are harmless to health and/or less harmful than other tobacco products, particularly traditional cigarettes,” the authority said.

The authority said evidence gathered during the investigation did not support those interpretations. “The evidence gathered actually indicates that current scientific and clinical knowledge does not support the claim that these products are less harmful or harmless, not least because of the presence of nicotine,” the authority said.

The case focused not on whether the products produce smoke in the traditional sense, but on how consumers are likely to interpret the marketing language describing them.

The ruling is one of the most significant recent regulatory challenges to reduced-risk product messaging in Europe. Philip Morris Italia sharply disagreed with the decision and said it plans to appeal., according to media reports. The company said the terms challenged by regulators are accurate and “fully compliant” with Italian law and the applicable European Union Tobacco Products Directive.

Philip Morris also argued that European legislation distinguishes between combustible and non-combustible products. The company accused the authority of “contributing to confusion about tobacco and nicotine products with a decision suggesting there is no difference between smokeable and smokeless products.”

The dispute highlights a growing debate among regulators, public health authorities, and manufacturers about how reduced-risk and smoke-free products can be marketed to consumers.

Philip Morris has invested billions of dollars in its smoke-free product portfolio and has repeatedly stated its goal of moving away from cigarettes. The company markets heated tobacco products in numerous countries as alternatives for adult smokers who would otherwise continue smoking.

In addition to the financial penalty, Italian regulators ordered Philip Morris to notify the authority within 60 days of the measures it has implemented to end the challenged marketing practices.