U.K. tobacco giant barred from promoting e-cigs on Instagram

British American Tobacco must stop using Instagram to market and advertise it’s e-cigarette product, the United Kingdom’s Advertising Standards Authority announced on Wednesday. 

The ban includes influencer marketing — the practice of paying celebrities and so-called influencers with large social media followings to post what look like candid images of them using a product.

BAT must also remove all of its advertisements for its e-cigarette, called Vype, from Instagram, according to the ruling, which followed a complaint filed by the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids and Stopping Tobacco Organizations and Products regarding BAT’s promotional practices. 

It is illegal to advertise e-cigarettes online in the U.K., but tobacco companies may share factual product information — like the name, content and price of a product — on their own websites. 

BAT may no longer use social media accounts, like its @GoVype handle, to distribute this kind of information, according to the ruling. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CBS News. 

Three other e-cigarette manufacturers — Ama Vapes, Attitude Vapes and Global Vaping Group — were also banned from using Instagram to promote their products. 

Anti-smoking advocates praised the decision, while also calling for further actions to prevent tobacco companies from marketing their products to youth. 

The British advertising group’s “ruling is a huge step forward in preventing tobacco companies from using social media to advertise to young people in the U.K. and around the world,” said Mark Hurley, director of international communications for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, an advocacy group that favors stronger tobacco marketing regulation.

Kid influencers: Few rules, big money

Hurley also called on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to implement their own policies barring tobacco companies from targeting young people. 

Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health, blasted BAT’s activity on social media as “both irresponsible and unlawful,” adding that it “must never be repeated.”

BAT continues to pay social influencers to promote Vype on social media in other countries, including Canada, Columbia, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy and Mexico, according to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. The company’s regular cigarette brands include Camel, Dunhill, Kool, Lucky Strike, Natural American Spirit and Pall Mall.