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The prevalence of strong brands such as Coca-Cola, McDonald's, Budweiser, and Marlboro in "vice" categories has important implications for regulators and consumers. While researchers in multiple disciplines have studied the effectiveness of antitobacco countermarketing strategies, little attention has been given to how brand strength may moderate the efficacy of tactics such as excise taxes, usage restrictions, and educational advertising campaigns. In this research, the authors use a multiple discrete-continuous model to study the impact of antismoking techniques on smokers' choices of brands and quantities. The results suggest that although cigarette excise taxes decrease smoking rates, these taxes also result in a shift in market share toward stronger brands. Market leaders may be less affected by tax policies because their market power allows strong brands such as Marlboro to absorb rather than pass through increased taxes. In contrast, smoke-free restrictions cause a shift away from stronger brands. In terms of antismoking advertising, the authors find minimal effects on brand choice and consumption. The findings highlight the importance of considering brand asymmetries when designing a policy portfolio on cigarette tax hikes, smoke-free restrictions, and antismoking advertising campaigns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In two experiments, the authors test rival theses regarding the effects of smoking in feature films on youths and the ability of antismoking advertising to nullify those effects. Eight hundred ninth graders watched either original movie footage with smoking or control footage with the smoking edited out. Emotional reactions were recorded during viewing, and smoking-related thoughts, beliefs, and intent were assessed afterward. The findings support the Forbidden Fruit thesis, in that smoking (versus nonsmoking) scenes positively aroused the young viewers, enhanced their perceptions of smokers' social stature, and increased their intent to smoke. However, youths' opinions were malleable, and showing them an antismoking advertisement before the film effectively repositioned the smoking from forbidden to tainted, thereby nullifying the aforementioned effects. No support was obtained for the Excitation Transfer theory, which predicts that the positive arousal evoked by movie scenes would transfer to smokers who were depicted in those scenes. The authors discuss policy implications for film content and antismoking advertising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors test the hypotheses that parameters of advertising sensitivity for adolescents are significant and perhaps larger than those for adults. Cigarette brand shares of advertising voice are found to be significantly related to realized market shares, with advertising sensitivity being about three times larger among teenagers than among adults. This result is robust to various analytic assumptions and converges with strategic analysis, consumer behavior theory and research, econometric metanalyses, historical research, and corporate documents. The authors argue that cigarette competition between firms is predominated by the battle of brands for market share among the young, and assertions to the contrary, without supporting evidence, should be treated with scholarly skepticism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reviews and tests the effect of cartoon trade characters on product recognition and attitude on a sample of children three to six years of age. High levels of product and trade character recognition were found, including that of Joe Camel and the Marlboro Man with cigarettes. The recognition of select trade characters tended to increase with the age of the child. The level of recognition and favorable attitude toward the product were positively associated with age except for cigarettes. The attitude for cigarettes and matches were negatively associated with age. Because the possibility of demand artifacts cannot be ruled out, these findings must be interpreted with caution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A sample of 561 persons judged the age and attractiveness of the models in 50 cigarette ads. Seventeen percent of the models were perceived, on average, to be significantly younger than 25 years of age, an apparent violation of the tobacco industry's voluntary advertising code. Cigarette ads with young persons were found to appear more often in magazines with younger audiences and for menthol brands. Regardless of viewer age, younger models were judged as more attractive than older models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of advertising on primary demand for cigarettes is investigated. By employing annual, bimonthly, and monthly observations, the consequences of temporal aggregation can be studied. Independent of the level of temporal aggregation, advertising was found to have a statistically significant impact on industry sales, although the influence diminished over time. This contradicts the findings of a well-known study by Lambin (1976), which lends support to the assumption of reciprocal cancellation of brand advertising in saturated markets. With respect to the problem of temporal aggregation, the results confirm the empirical and theoretical findings of Clarke (1976), and Bass and Leone (1983). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antismoking forces hailed the ban on cigarette advertising in the broadcast media as a major victory in their campaign against the tobacco industry. Expectations were that this legislation would reduce the percentage of smokers in the population and the number of young adults adopting the smoking habit. But the percentage of adult smokers actually rose slightly following the ban. In light of this fact, a natural question is, "What exactly has been the effect of the ban?" This paper attempts to provide information relevant to this question by examining trends in cigarette advertising expenditures and cigarette consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Why does the cigarette smoker continue to smoke in face of torrents of data indicating the potential dangers of this habit? Conversely, why did the mere whisper of danger cause cranberry sales to plummet? The magic defenses consumers employ to insulate their favorite vices from unwanted fearful data are examined in this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alternative econometric models of advertising-sales relationships for cigarettes were evaluated by 5 methods of estimation and 4 ways of specifying dependent variables. The criteria were the adjusted square of the multiple correlation coefficient and mean absolute percentage error. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article demonstrates the application of simultaneous equation regression methods in analyzing limited time series data for sales and advertising. In testing a model with sales and advertising relationships for filter and nonfilter cigarette brands, we could not reject a model in which the advertising elasticity for filter brands is substantially greater than that for nonfilter brands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information on legal developments in marketing relative to the regulation of unfair competition. In regard to advertising, the article discusses Federal Trade Commission v. Donald P. Carter et al. and the court's enforcement of U.S. Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) subpoenas for information from cigarette manufacturers and their advertising agencies as they relate to cigarette advertising and promotion. The court did not enforce subpoenas against two research firms. Regarding nonadvertising promotional methods, the article discusses U.S. FTC action against Fedders Corp. for a recall against defective products that "caused economic injury to consumers." This is the first FTC case dealing with economic injury, and the first to provide restitution for this reason.

The article presents information on legal developments in marketing relative to the regulation of unfair competition. In regards to advertising, the author cites the case of J. B. Williams Co. Inc. and Parkson Advertising Agency Inc. v. United States Federal Trade Commission (F.T.C.), in which the issue of proprietary drug advertising is discussed. Also discussed is an F.T.C. report on cigarette advertising. The F.T.C. believes that the warning labels on packages of cigarettes do not succeed in overcoming the favorable attitude toward smoking at the time of publication.

Cigarette advertising for youth brands delivered sufficient impressions to reach youths at high reach and frequency levels during the 1993-2002 period. However, a precipitous drop in such advertising is also found at the end of the period. The authors reconcile the findings with those of previous studies and examine the efficacy of guidelines that have been used to evaluate cigarette advertising in publications with high youth readership. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2002 trial that assessed the constitutionality of Canada's Tobacco Act involved new evidence of industry tactics in the 1990s, including the use of lifestyle advertising of sponsorships and the marketing of a new product that was falsely claimed to be "less irritating." The author provides highlights from the legislative background, the document production, the trial testimony, and the judge's decision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors examine whether attitude toward the ad (A[sub ad]) and attitude toward the brand (A[sub b]) mediate the effects of visual, image-oriented content in advertisements on perceptions of the desirability of beer and cigarettes, as well as of soft drinks. Adolescents (n = 384) rated either image advertisements with visuals for cigarettes, beer, and soft drinks or comparable tombstone advertisements that had no photographs or drawings. Advertisements with image-oriented visuals were found to directly produce more positive A[sub ad], A[sub b], and attitude toward the product category (A[sub pc]) evaluations than did the tombstone versions. The authors then used structural equation modeling to examine the relationship among A[sub ad], A[sub b], and A[sub pc]. The results were generally supportive of the proposed mediating model. Also, little support was found for the assumption of some advocacy groups and policymakers that to be well received by adolescents, cigarette advertisements require human models. The authors discuss implications of findings for advertising research and public policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Joe Camel advertising campaigns had little or no effect on smoking by youths or adults beyond shifting brand shares among younger smokers. The advertisements appear to have wielded substantial influence on the larger political and legal environment, however. This influence was transmitted first through the lens of pronouncements by the public health community, including the Food and Drug Administration, which helped shape public opinion toward the view that cigarette advertising causes smoking. This, in turn, provided essential support for the unprecedented wave of litigation that engulfed the industry and has relied primarily on nonpublic industry documents rather than market data. The extent of Joe Camel's indirect influence has not been quantified but appears to have been substantial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is based on the 1998 testimony the author provided for In the Matter of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company as an expert witness for the Federal Trade Commission. After providing an overview of the Joe Camel campaign and the Federal Trade Commission's investigation of it, the author considers consumer protection issues that provide a perspective for assessing Reynolds's acts and practices. He then focuses on an analysis of Reynolds' s competitive position in the cigarette marketplace and why that was likely to influence subsequent marketing strategy and the development of the Joe Camel campaign. The author next discusses, the campaign at some length before returning to an explicit assessment of the campaign and the types of criteria that might be adopted for this purpose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines proposed advertising regulations of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) restricting advertising of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco to determine if the four-prong constitutional test is met, as of September 1996. The proposed regulation restricting the format of advertising to minors should withstand a constitutional challenge. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has numerous studies to demonstrate the link between smoking and health risks. The smoking rate started to decline after cigarette advertisements were banned from the electronic media. The proposed restrictions on outdoor advertising and the proposed ban of promotional items also are expected to withstand constitutional scrutiny. Legislative history supports this view. The proposed rule forbidding brand sponsorship also appears to meet the constitutional requirement by not overreaching. An argument might be offered that far less restrictive and more precise means are available to serve the asserted interest of the government. The Report of the U.S. Surgeon General finds several effective methods of reducing smoking by minors. These methods include preventing access by banning vending machines and showing identification to purchase cigarettes, increasing the real price of tobacco products--young people have less money and are price sensitive and establishing antismoking campaigns and educational programs. Sufficient evidence supports the effort of the FDA to restrict cigarette advertising to minors, and the restrictions are narrowly focused to reach the underage population.

Using a disguised, structured technique, the authors collected consumer judgments regarding an editorial advertisement entitled "Of cigarettes and science" sponsored by R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. Respondents were shown an actual newspaper section that contained different types of editorials and advertisements, including the "Of cigarettes and science" item. After the respondents indirectly classified each item as either an editorial or advertisement, they were asked to list at least two characteristics about the appearance or wording of the "Of cigarettes and science" item that caused them to classify it as they did. The majority of respondents thought the item was an advertisement because it looked different from editorial items, was sponsored by R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, and seemed to have a persuasive or promotional content. Over one-fourth of the respondents, however, identified the communication as an editorial because of its lack of direct sales information and its extensive wording. The authors contend that legal and regulatory bodies should consider the effects of both source and intent of the message when arguing consumer impact. INSET: `Of cigarettes and science'.. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports that the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is considering the recommendation of its staff to sue R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. for enticing minors to smoke with its "Joe Camel" promotional campaign. Controversy over the legal issue of whether it is unfair to promote cigarettes to children too young to legally buy them; Description of the potential legal issues related to the advertising community; Need for the FTC to issue its complaint and hold trial to determine the factual question of whether the Joe Camel campaign actually targets minors.

This study provides a descriptive account of how the visually oriented content of cigarette ads changed over three health and smoking event eras: 1954-1970, the pre-broadcast ban era; 1971-1983, the post-broadcast ban era; and 1984-1986, the "anti-smoking ideology" era. In genera, support was found for the hypothesized changes in visual imagery of cigarette ads published during the post-ban and "anti-smoking ideology" eras. While model activity portrayals varied somewhat by magazine audience orientation, models engaged in individualistic and recreational activities were rather universally employed. Erotic/romantic portrayals were no more likely in women's publications than in other magazines. No relationship between the median age of the audience and the frequency of cigarette ads per issue was found. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study summarizes econometric findings from time-series research on the relationships between cigarette consumption and advertising, price, and income using a meta-analysis methodology. The study also investigates the trends in these relationships over time, controlling for possible confounding effects of design variables in the studies analyzed. The results show that the advertising and income elasticities are positive and significant on average across studies, and the average price elasticity is significantly negative. The elasticities vary across countries and design factors and have become smaller over time. Implications for public policy and future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cigarette advertising has often used health appeals, but has rarely been informative about health effects. Many historical examples and Canadian data suggest that the Ringold and Calfee [1989] data on ‘health information’ must be very cautiously interpreted. To be carefully considered are their conservative definition of ‘health,’ liberal definition of ‘information,’ exclusive focus on words, disregard of claim emphasis or repetition in an ad, and coding procedures. The deregulation their conclusion suggests holds little promise for producing (partite advertising with greater informativeness and consumers with better information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public policy toward cigarette health claims should not be based on a ‘market effects’ premise that health claim competition will reinforce consumer fears. Many have been influenced to smoke a succession of heavily advertised hitter filtration, lower yield cigarettes, relying in part on the implication these were safer. None of these have been shown to reduce risks of smoking-related heart disease and other pulmonary disorders, and they are clearly no substitute for quitting. The Ringold and Calfee content analysis of cigarette advertising is criticized for its limited focus on direct verbal assertions. This approach led them to code what was said rather than what was likely to be understood. For example, claims regarding unique properties of filters were viewed as cigarette construction claims. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A content analysis of 568 cigarette ads during 1926–86 found that most explicit claims (i.e., statements) are about health, construction, and taste. Consistent with theoretical predictions, and contrary to popular belief, health claims emphasized the negative health aspects of smoking, except when prevented by regulation. Moreover, emphasis in health claims corresponded to the dominant smoking-and-health fears of the time. Health-related claims came in two major waves, first in the late 1920s Although the early 1950s, reaching a peak during the cancer scare of the early 1950s, and then again after 1966, when the FTC first allowed tar and nicotine claims, and later required tar and nicotine information and health warnings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the role of the Federal Trade Commission in regulating cigarette advertising in the U.S. The problem which has plagued the effort of the government to regulate cigarette advertising has been the proper definition of public interest. Most of the regulations promoted by the Commission were aimed to eliminate deceptive advertising practices and improvement of information to the public. FTC established voluntary advertising guidelines for the industry in 1955 which prohibited cigarette companies from making any substantiated health claims about tobacco products. In 1960, FTC decided to apply these guidelines to advertisements about tar and nicotine content. After the Surgeon General's report in 1964, the FTC proposed a trade regulation which required a health warning on cigarette packages and advertising, leading to the 1965 Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act which mandated these health warnings.

The article presents legal developments in marketing with particular focus on the regulation of unfair competition. One of the developments describes the case of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission v. Donald P. Carter., et al., in which the court found that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) had the right to investigate the advertising and promotion practices of the tobacco industry. Another development discusses a complaint by Encyclopedia Britanica Inc. that an FTC order detailing the way in which its sales representatives must identify themselves to consumers placed the company at a competitive disadvantage with other companies in that product market.

A number of abstracts are presented for articles pertaining to the field of advertising. They include "Variations In Unit Ad Costs For Cars Shown," by Al Stephanides, "Cigaret Makers' Ad Costs Vary Widely," by Robert Murray and "The Lasker Story...As He Told It."

The article discusses trends in advertising for the year 1941. The author notes that advertising has declined for durable goods, in particular automobiles. Also noted is the fact that advertising has remained the same or increased for goods that have not experience shortages or government curtailments, including cosmetics cigarettes, food and drugs. The author also discusses rates of advertising for specific types of media, including for magazines, newspapers and farm papers. Also presented is information comparing advertising figures with those of department store sales, national income and payroll figures.

The article focuses on the creation of a variable to establish the simultaneous-equation regression model for two-stage least squares computation. The variable reflects the restriction on the values of the advertising parameters for filter and nonfilter cigarette advertising. According to the author, lagged values of advertising expenditures can be introduced into the demand equations to overcome the problem of identifiability and to estimate the model. An increase in filter cigarette advertising has a depressing effect on filter sales.

Several abstracts for health care marketing journals are presented, including "Do You Want to Keep Your Customers Forever?" by B. Joseph Pine, Don Petters, and Martha Rogers from the March-April 1995 issue of "Harvard Business Review;" "What Attributes Determine Quality and Satisfaction with Health Care Delivery," by Michael R. Bowers, John E. Swan and William F. Koehler, from the Fall 1994 issue of "Healthcare Management Review;" and "Targeting Tactics in Selling Smoke: Youthful Aspects of 20th Century Cigarette Advertising," by Richard W. Pollay, from the Winter 1995 issue of the "Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice."