BACKGROUND: Marketing, promotions, sales and use of oral nicotine pouches has been reported from high-income countries. We searched online social media and e-commerce websites to document if any marketing, promotions and sales were present online in Malaysian social media and e-commerce websites.
METHODS: We searched ‘Velo’,’ Zyn’, ‘Onz’, ‘nicotine pouch’, and ‘oral nicotine pouch’, on Google Malaysia and social media, from September to November 2024. Two trained coders used a codebook from previous research to collect visual and textual information on brands, prices, discounts, flavors, nicotine strength, and marketing claims. Results were presented as both descriptives and free text.
RESULTS: Our search showed that ONPs are being promoted and sold mainly on e-commerce websites in Malaysia. ONP marketing was present on TikTok, two overseas stores that shipped to Malaysia, and 55 e-stores. Brands such as ‘Velo’, Zyn’, and ‘Boltbe’ offered discounts, free deliveries, and an array of flavors, with nicotine strengths of 2-50 milligrams. Age verifications and nicotine disclaimers were usually absent. All brands displayed nicotine strength (in milligrams), text, and graphic instructions. Only half the e-stores explicitly stated that the product contained 'nicotine', and a third displayed that nicotine is addictive. Half the stores had health-related marketing claims such as “tobacco-free” and “convenient of use anywhere, everywhere”, but only a third made smoking cessation claims. However, less than a third had warnings against usage by minors, smokers, and pregnant women.
CONCLUSIONS: Online marketing and sales promotions were present on e-commerce websites and some social media platforms. Various nicotine strengths and flavors, marketing claims of ‘tobacco-free’, and ‘convenience of use’, do not imply ONPs as harm reduction products. Surveillance of ONPs is needed to inform regulatory policy. Further research is needed to know the impact of online marketing on perceptions and use behaviors.