BACKGROUND: Tobacco companies have sought to place cigarettes in popular media for decades because it increased their social acceptability. Research regarding e-cigarette product placements in media has primarily focused on appearances in music videos. We explored the product placement activities of e-cigarette company Ploom and its successors, Pax Labs and Juul Labs, to examine their motivations for product placements, activities to obtain inclusion in media productions, and resulting appearances.
METHODS: We conducted a case study using internal company documents housed at the UCSF Truth Tobacco Industry Documents Library that were released in litigation. Relevant documents were cataloged in Excel, summarized, and placed in chronological order to create a timeline of strategic thinking, efforts, and outcomes.
RESULTS: We found that Ploom sought product placements to expand its audience and enhance credibility. Ploom, which later split into Pax Labs and Juul Labs, pursued free product placements by establishing relationships with prop masters in the entertainment industry and loaning out devices to media productions using a placement agency. Pax devices secured placements in music videos, film, and television, while Juul appeared to secure minimal placements by comparison.
CONCLUSIONS: Ploom and its successor companies secured placements in music videos, films, and television. The companies obtained most placements for free. Tactics the e-cigarette companies used to secure placements reflected past efforts by the tobacco industry. Pax devices may have had greater success in obtaining placements compared to Juul because of its association with cannabis. Given that the promotion of tobacco products in popular media increases demand and is known to lead to youth initiation, stronger regulation of e-cigarette product placement practices may be warranted.