Ducal (cigarette)
Luxembourgish cigarette brand
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ducal is a Luxembourgish brand of cigarettes, currently owned and manufactured by Landewyck Tobacco.[1][2]
.jpg)
An old Luxembourgish pack of Ducal cigarettes, with a French and German warning at the bottom of the pack. | |
| Product type | Cigarette |
|---|---|
| Produced by | Landewyck Tobacco |
| Country | Luxembourg |
| Introduced | 1969 |
| Markets | See Markets |
| Carcinogenicity: IARC group 1 | |
History
Ducal was established in 1969 by Landewyck Tobacco in response to a price war in the cigarette market during the 1960s. During this time, smokers began to favour filtered and king-size 25-pack cigarettes over the traditional 20-packs.[3]
Advertising
Ducal is advertised on billboards, as well as through branded items such as ashtrays and advertising pins.[4][5][6]
Controversy
In 2014, two e-cigarette businessmen named their brand "le Grand Ducal" ("the Great Ducal" in English). Landewyck Tobacco issued a cease and desist letter, requesting the name of the brand to be changed due to the unauthorised use of the brand name by a third party. The respondents claimed that despite the similarities between the brand names, their brand, logo and domain name had all been registered.[7]
Ducal is currently protected under class 34 of the International Classification of Goods and Services, namely that of tobacco and smokers. However, the same law also applies to e-cigarettes. As of January 2018, a judge has yet to decide whether or not the name is a breach of the brand protection law.[7]
Markets
The brand is mainly sold in Luxembourg, but it is sold in Belgium, Netherlands (as rolling tobacco), Germany and Peru.[2][8][9][10][11]