WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A judge at the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has dismissed a complaint that the agency filed aimed at requiring Marlboro maker Altria Group to sell a minority investment in JUUL, Altria said in a release on Tuesday.
The FTC filed a lawsuit in April 2020, saying Altria’s decision to buy a 35% stake in JUUL, announced in December 2018, was bad for competition. The FTC said that the two companies were competitors in the market for closed-system e-cigarettes but that Altria opted to exit and invest in JUUL.
The judge’s decision may be reviewed by the FTC.
Murray Garnick, Altria executive vice president, said the company was “pleased with this decision and have said all along that our minority investment in JUUL does not harm competition and does not violate the antitrust laws.”
The FTC declined to comment.
(Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Mark Porter)
