Philip Morris International (PMI) (NYSE:PM) announced today that
it has reached an agreement with Imperial Tobacco Group (Imperial) to
acquire certain brands in the Other Tobacco Products (OTP) category.
The agreement transfers to PMI, Imperial´s rights to the Interval
fine-cut tobacco trademark worldwide and either transfers or licenses
other select OTP trademarks currently sold in several countries across
the European Union.
As part of its acquisition of Altadis, Imperial was required by
the European Commission to divest itself of certain OTP brands. In
2007, the acquired brands accounted for an approximate 2% share of the
total fine-cut category in PMI´s EU Region and Interval, a strong
French heritage brand with a high quality blend, was the leading
fine-cut brand in the French market with a 14.8% share of the
category. The deal is valued at 254 million euros.
"We look forward to further developing these quality brands and
building on our already strong presence in the growing OTP segment in
the region," said Paolo Degola, President, EU Region for PMI. "This
expanded brand portfolio will allow PMI to enhance its position in
this profitable segment in the EU and, in particular in France."
The transaction is subject to approval by the European Commission
and certain local regulatory agencies and is expected to be completed
in the second quarter of 2008.
Other brands included in the agreement are the fine-cut brands
Bergerac, Santoya and Wervicq (France), Van Nelle (Italy and Canary
Islands) and Picadura (Spain) and the pipe tobacco brands Bergerac
(France) and Kilta (Finland).
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About Philip Morris International
Philip Morris International is the leading international tobacco
company, with seven of the world´s top 15 brands including Marlboro
the number one cigarette brand worldwide. PMI has more than 75,000
employees and its products are sold in over 160 countries. In 2007
the Company held a 15.6% share of the international cigarette market
outside of the United States. For more information, see
www.philipmorrisinternational.com
