The Federal Trade Commission said that, as part of its ongoing study of the U.S. e-cigarette market, it has issued orders to five e-cigarette manufacturers directing them to provide information to the FTC about their sales, advertising, and promotional practices.  The FTC said that the reason it is collecting this information is to, "help the Commission, policymakers, and the public better understand this rapidly growing market."  

The FTC is collecting a variety of information from the manufacturers, including: 

• Annual data on the sales and give-aways of e-cigarette products; 
• Information about the characteristics of the companies’ e-cigarette products, such as product flavors; 
• Annual amounts the companies spent on advertising and promoting e-cigarette products; 
• Information about e-cigarette product placement; 
• Information about websites and social media accounts used to advertise or sell e-cigarettes; and 
• Information about affiliate,, influencer marketing, and college campus programs.

This is the second time that the FTC has sought this information from e-cigarette manufacturers.  In 2019, the FTC collected information from six companies about their practices during the period 2015 through 2018.