Parliament (cigarette)

Parliament

Older-style Parliament Lights cigarette package (soft pack).
Product type	Cigarette
Produced by	Altria Group (formerly Philip Morris USA); Philip Morris International
Introduced	1931
Website	MyParliament.com

Parliament is a brand of cigarettes marketed by the company Philip Morris. The brand was introduced in 1931 and is distinctive for its recessed paper filters. It was originally used as an advertising gimmick when cigarettes did not have filters. The first commercial cigarette filters came into use in 1935. Cigarette filters became common in most cigarettes in the 1950s. In the 1940s and 1950s, the brand was marketed for its unique filters, with advertisements reading, "Only the flavor touches your lips", and "Tobacco tastes best when the filter's recessed". The brand also claimed that the recessed filter prevented tar from making contact with the smoker's mouth, unlike standard filters. The Parliament brand holds a strong market position in Georgia, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Argentina, Armenia, Israel, South Korea, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Russia, Montenegro, Ukraine and United States.

Parliaments are one of few brands of cigarettes on the mainstream market to feature a recessed paper filter. Marketing campaigns by Philip Morris stated that the filter was designed to prevent tar from making contact with the smoker's mouth, thus making them lower in tar content as well as enhancing flavor.

Parliaments are sold in the following varieties:

Parliament make up 1.9% of U.S. cigarette sales, in contrast to the corporation's leading seller, Marlboro, which represent 41.1% of U.S. cigarette sales. Actor Charlie Sheen appeared in ads for Parliament in the 1990s.