History
Philip Morris, a London-based cigarette manufacturer, created a New York subsidiary in 1902 to sell several of its cigarette brands, including Marlboro. By 1924 they were advertising Marlboro as a woman's cigarette based on the slogan "Mild As May".The brand was sold in this capacity until World War II when the brand faltered and was temporarily removed from the market. At the end of the war, three brands emerged that would establish firm holds on the cigarette market: Camel, Lucky Strike, and Chesterfield. These brands were supplied to US soldiers during the war, creating an instant market upon their return.
During the 1950s Reader's Digest magazine published a series of articles that linked smoking with lung and other cancers. Philip Morris, and the other cigarette companies took notice and each began to market filtered cigarettes.[citation needed] The new Marlboro with a filtered end was launched in 1955. In the early 1960s Philip Morris invented "Marlboro Country" and distilled their manly imagery into the rugged cowboys known as the "Marlboro Men". The famous slogan used on radio and television during the mid-'60s was, "Come to where the flavor is...come to MARLBORO COUNTRY", backed by Elmer Bernstein's theme from The Magnificent Seven.
In the USA, in order to comply with new regulations prescribed by the Food and Drug Administration, Marlboro had until June 22, 2010 to rebrand tobacco products marketed as "Lights", "Ultra-Lights", "Medium", "Mild", or any similar designation that yields an impression that some tobacco products are comparatively safe. Similar restrictions were applied in the European Union some years ago.
Motorsport sponsorship
[edit] Formula One
For 1974 Marlboro dissolved its sponsorship of both teams and became famously associated with the McLaren team, which brought it its first constructors' championship and its drivers title for Emerson Fittipaldi. The team was successful through to 1978, with another world champion in James Hunt in 1976. Following that the partnership went through a dry patch until Ron Dennis's Project Four Organisation took over the team in 1981. Marlboro-sponsored McLarens dominated F1 for much of the 1980s and early 1990s, with Niki Lauda, Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna between them winning the drivers' championship all but one year from 1984 to 1991. After the departure of Ayrton Senna in 1993, Marlboro McLaren did not win a race for three years. Marlboro ended their sponsorship of the team in 1996, which ended the famous red and white McLaren livery.
Marlboro also sponsored Scuderia Ferrari as secondary sponsor from the mid 1980s as a result of company president Enzo Ferrari, who refused to allow "outside" sponsor brands to appear on his team cars. After his death in 1988, Marlboro began to take over as the primary sponsor, which they would be later officially branded as Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro.
In September 2005, Ferrari signed an extension of their sponsorship arrangement with Marlboro until 2011. This comes at a time when tobacco sponsorship has become wholly illegal in the European Union (including F1 races) and other major teams have withdrawn from relationships with tobacco companies, for example McLaren ended their eight year relationship with West, Renault broke with JT and BAT withdrew in 2006. In reporting the deal, F1 Racing magazine judged it to be a "black day" for the sport, putting non-tobacco funded teams at a disadvantage and discouraging other brands from entering a sport still associated with tobacco. The magazine estimates that in the period between 2005 and 2011 Ferrari will receive $1 billion from the agreement. Depending on the venue of races (and the particular national laws) the Marlboro branding will be largely subliminal in most countries. In April 2008, Marlboro displayed explicit on-car branding on Ferrari for the last time, now permanently replaced with a variety of barcodes in place of it. Now there are calls from leading health officials, the European Commissioner for Health and influential doctors for a review of the subliminal advertising contract Marlboro has with Advertising Guerrilla and Ferrari, due to the implications of influencing the purchase of cigarettes with possible subliminal advertising, as no tobacco products can be promoted in sporting events in Europe by law. [2]. The Ferrari team claims the barcode is part of the car design, not an advertising message. [3]
The controversial barcode designed was recently removed by Ferrari for the start of the Spanish Grand Prix in the 2010 season.[4]
Marlboro also sponsored the Alfa Romeo Formula One team between 1980 and 1983, although unable to match up to its pre-war and 1950s heyday, the team only achieving one pole position, one fastest lap and four podium finishes.
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| Marlboro Cold Mint |
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| Marlboro Blue |
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| Marlboro Gold Edge |
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| Marlboro Silver Pack 72's |
