MSA Squeezing Out Big Tobacco's Competitors

Source from:  Tobacco Reporter 02/01/2010

General Tobacco (GT) says that "big tobacco" in the US is squeezing competitors out of business under the auspices of the Master Settlement Agreement (MSA), according to a bizjournals story. The Mayodan-based company said on Wednesday that it would comply with recent notices requiring the removal of its cigarette brands from certain state directories of brands approved for sale. Some states have pursued additional payments from GT related to the MSA. GT disputes the validity of the agreement and maintains that it is owed more than $95 million in overpayments to states. "Consumers should not have to lose the choice of GT's brands over what the company considers to be a bona fide dispute over the interpretation of the MSA and its validity under federal and state law," said Ronald Denman, GT's executive vice president and general counsel. "Big Tobacco got away with billions in sales with no payments to the states before the MSA and is now squeezing its competitors out of business under the auspices of the MSA so that it can make many more billions." Enditem