PMI to launch iQOS into US

Philip Morris International plans to start selling its iQOS and HeatSticks vapor system in the US next year, according to a story on dailycaller.com.

The iQOS and HeatSticks comprise a non-combustible, tobacco-containing system, sometimes referred to as a heat-not burn system. The iQOS device, which holds the HeatSticks, will apparently sell for about $100, while a pack of Marlboro-brand HeatSticks, which resemble short cigarettes, will sell for about the same price as a pack of combustible cigarettes.

The company is said to want to introduce the iQOS and HeatSticks to the US following the success that the system has enjoyed in Japan.

PMI will begin US sales pending approval from the Food and Drug Administration, though it will not wait for possible FDA approval to allow the system to be sold as a safer alternative to smoking, a process that could take a considerable amount of time.

PMI is said to have already invested $3 billion into producing smoking alternatives and hopes revenue from these systems will reach $1.2 billion by 2020.

The company aims to produce about 32 million iQOS devices next year for distribution.