Item 1. Business.

General Development of Business

General

Philip Morris International Inc. is a Virginia holding company incorporated in 1987. We are a leading international tobacco company engaged in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes, as well as smoke-free products, associated electronic devices and accessories, and other nicotine-containing products in markets outside the United States of America. In addition, we ship versions of our Platform 1 device and consumables to Altria Group, Inc. for sale under license in the United States, where these products have received marketing authorizations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") under the premarket tobacco product application ("PMTA") pathway; the FDA has also authorized the marketing of a version of our Platform 1 device and its consumables as a Modified Risk Tobacco Product ("MRTP"), finding that an exposure modification order for these products is appropriate to promote the public health.

We are leading a transformation in the tobacco industry to create a smoke-free future, based on a new category of reduced-risk products that, while not risk free, are a much better choice than continuing to smoke. Our goal is to ultimately replace cigarettes with smoke-free products to the benefit of adults who would otherwise continue to smoke, society, the company and its shareholders.

Reduced-risk products ("RRPs") is the term we use to refer to products that present, are likely to present, or have the potential to present less risk of harm to smokers who switch to these products versus continuing smoking. We have a range of RRPs in various stages of development, scientific assessment and commercialization. Because our RRPs do not burn tobacco, they produce an aerosol that contains far lower quantities of harmful and potentially harmful constituents than found in cigarette smoke. Through multidisciplinary capabilities in product development, state-of-the-art facilities and scientific substantiation, we aim to ensure that our RRPs meet adult consumer preferences and rigorous regulatory requirements.

Our IQOS smoke-free product brand portfolio includes heated tobacco and nicotine-containing vapor products. Our leading smoke-free platform ("Platform 1") is a precisely controlled device into which a specially designed heated tobacco unit is inserted and heated to generate an aerosol. Heated tobacco units ("HTU") is the term we use to refer to heated tobacco consumables, which for us include our HEETS, HEETS Creations, HEETS Dimensions, HEETS Marlboro and *HEETS FROM MARLBORO (*defined collectively as HEETS), Marlboro Dimensions, Marlboro HeatSticks and Parliament HeatSticks, as well as the KT&G-licensed brands, Fiit and Miix (outside of Korea). Platform 1 was first introduced in Nagoya, Japan, in 2014. As of December 31, 2020, Platform 1 is available for sale in 64 markets in key cities or nationwide.

Our cigarettes are sold in more than 175 markets, and in many of these markets they hold the number one or number two market share position. We have a wide range of premium, mid-price and low-price brands. Our portfolio comprises both international and local brands and is led by Marlboro, the world’s best-selling international cigarette, which accounted for approximately 37% of our total 2020 cigarette shipment volume. Marlboro is complemented in the premium-price category by Parliament. Our other leading international cigarette brands are Bond Street, Chesterfield, L&M, Lark and Philip Morris. These seven international cigarette brands contributed approximately 79% of our cigarette shipment volume in 2020. We also own a number of important local cigarette brands, such as Dji Sam Soe, Sampoerna A and Sampoerna U in Indonesia, and Fortune and Jackpot in the Philippines.

Source of Funds — Dividends

We are a legal entity separate and distinct from our direct and indirect subsidiaries. Accordingly, our right, and thus the right of our creditors and stockholders, to participate in any distribution of the assets or earnings of any subsidiary is subject to the prior rights of creditors of such subsidiary, except to the extent that claims of our company itself as a creditor may be recognized. As a holding company, our principal sources of funds, including funds to make payment on our debt securities, are from the receipt of dividends and repayment of debt from our subsidiaries. Our principal wholly owned and majority-owned subsidiaries currently are not limited by long-term debt or other agreements in their ability to pay cash dividends or to make other distributions that are otherwise compliant with law.

Description of Business

We manage our business in six operating segments as follows:

• The European Union Region (“EU”) is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland, and covers all the European Union countries and also Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and the United Kingdom;

• The Eastern Europe Region (“EE”) is also headquartered in Lausanne and includes Southeast Europe, Central Asia, Ukraine, Israel and Russia;

• The Middle East & Africa Region (“ME&A”) is also headquartered in Lausanne and covers the African continent, the Middle East, Turkey and our international duty free business;

• The South & Southeast Asia Region (“S&SA”) is headquartered in Hong Kong and includes Indonesia, the Philippines and other markets in this region;

• The East Asia & Australia Region (“EA&A”) is also headquartered in Hong Kong and includes Australia, Japan, South Korea, the People's Republic of China and other markets in this region, as well as Malaysia and Singapore; and

• The Latin America & Canada Region (“LA&C”) is headquartered in New York and covers the South American continent, Central America, Mexico, the Caribbean and Canada. LA&C also includes transactions under license with Altria Group, Inc., for the distribution of our Platform 1 product in the United States.

As of March 22, 2019, we deconsolidated the financial results of our Canadian subsidiary, Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc. ("RBH") from our financial statements. For further details, see Item 8, Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this Annual Report on Form 10-K (“Item 8”) Note 20. Deconsolidation of RBH.

Following the deconsolidation of our Canadian subsidiary, we will continue to report the volume of brands sold by RBH for which other PMI subsidiaries are the trademark owners. These include HEETS, Next, Philip Morris and Rooftop.

References to total international market, defined as worldwide cigarette and heated tobacco unit volume excluding the United States, total industry, total market and market shares in this Form 10-K are our estimates for tax-paid products based on the latest available data from a number of internal and external sources and may, in defined instances, exclude the People's Republic of China and/or our duty free business. Unless otherwise stated, references to total industry, total market, our shipment volume and our market share performance reflect cigarettes and heated tobacco units. In addition, to reflect the deconsolidation of RBH, effective March 22, 2019, PMI's total market share has been restated for previous periods.

2020 estimates for total industry volume and market share in certain geographies reflect limitations on the availability and accuracy of industry data during pandemic-related restrictions.

Our total shipments, including cigarettes and heated tobacco units, decreased by 8.1% in 2020 to 704.6 billion units. We estimate that international industry volumes, including cigarettes and heated tobacco units, were approximately 4.9 trillion units in 2020, a 3.0% decrease from 2019. Excluding the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”), we estimate that international cigarette and heated tobacco unit volume was 2.5 trillion units in 2020, a 5.8% decrease from 2019. We estimate that our reported share of the international market (which is defined as worldwide cigarette and heated tobacco unit volume, excluding the United States of America) was approximately 14.4% in 2020, 15.1% in 2019 and 15.2% in 2018. Excluding the PRC, we estimate that our reported share of the international market was approximately 27.7%, 28.4%, and 28.3% in 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively.

Shipments of our principal cigarette brand, Marlboro, decreased by 11.3% in 2020 and represented approximately 9.5% of the international cigarette market, excluding the PRC, in 2020, 10.0% in 2019 and 9.7% in 2018.

Total shipment volume of heated tobacco units reached 76.1 billion units in 2020, up from 59.7 billion units in 2019.

We have a market share of at least 15% in approximately 95 markets, including Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, the Czech Republic, Egypt, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Kuwait, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey and Ukraine.

Distribution & Sales

Our main types of distribution are tailored to the characteristics of each market and are often used simultaneously:

• Direct sales and distribution, where we have set up our own distribution selling directly to the retailers;

• Distribution through independent distributors that often distribute other fast-moving consumer goods and are responsible for distribution in a particular market;

• Exclusive zonified distribution, where the distributors are dedicated to us in tobacco products distribution and assigned to exclusive territories within a market;

• Distribution through national or regional wholesalers that then supply the retail trade; and

• Our own brand retail and e-commerce infrastructures for our RRP products and accessories.

Competition

We are subject to highly competitive conditions in all aspects of our business. We compete primarily on the basis of product quality, brand recognition, brand loyalty, taste, R&D, innovation, packaging, customer service, marketing, advertising and retail price and, increasingly, adult smoker willingness to convert to our RRPs. In the combustible product category, we predominantly sell American blend cigarette brands, such as Marlboro, L&M, Parliament, Philip Morris and Chesterfield, which are the most popular across many of our markets. In the RRP product category, we predominantly sell Platform 1 devices and heated tobacco units under the IQOS brand umbrella. We seek to compete in all profitable retail price categories, although our brand portfolio is weighted towards the premium-price category.

The competitive environment and our competitive position can be significantly influenced by weak economic conditions, erosion of consumer confidence, competitors' introduction of lower-price products or innovative products, higher tobacco product taxes, higher absolute prices and larger gaps between retail price categories, and product regulation that diminishes the ability to differentiate tobacco products and restricts adult consumer access to truthful and non-misleading information about our RRPs. Competitors include three large international tobacco companies, new market entrants, particularly with respect to innovative products, several regional and local tobacco companies and, in some instances, state-owned tobacco enterprises, principally in Algeria, Egypt, the PRC, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. Industry consolidation and privatizations of state-owned enterprises have led to an overall increase in competitive pressures. Some competitors have different profit and volume objectives, and some international competitors are susceptible to changes in different currency exchange rates. Certain new market entrants may alienate consumers from innovative products through inappropriate marketing campaigns, messaging and inferior product satisfaction, while not relying on scientific substantiation based on appropriate R&D protocols and standards. The growing use of digital media could increase the speed and extent of the dissemination of inaccurate and misleading information about our RRPs.

Procurement and Raw Materials

We purchase tobacco leaf of various types, grades and styles throughout the world, mostly through independent tobacco suppliers. In 2020, we also contracted directly with farmers in several countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Italy, Pakistan and Poland. In 2020, direct sourcing from farmers represented approximately 25% of PMI’s global leaf requirements. The largest supplies of tobacco leaf are sourced from Argentina, Brazil, China, Italy, Indonesia (mostly for domestic use in kretek products), Malawi, Mozambique, the Philippines, Turkey and the United States.

We believe that there is an adequate supply of tobacco leaf in the world markets to satisfy our current and anticipated production requirements.

In addition to tobacco leaf, we purchase a wide variety of direct materials from a total of approximately 400 suppliers. In 2020, our top ten suppliers of direct materials combined represented approximately 55% of our total direct materials purchases. The three most significant direct materials that we purchase are printed paper board used in packaging, acetate tow used in filter making and fine paper used in the manufacturing of cigarettes and heated tobacco units. In addition, the adequate supply and procurement of cloves are of particular importance to our Indonesian business.

We discuss the details of our supply chain for our RRPs in Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations of this Annual Report on Form 10-K (“Item 7”) in Business Environment—Reduced-Risk Products.

Business Environment

Information called for by this Item is hereby incorporated by reference to the paragraphs in Item 7, Business Environment.

Other Matters

Customers

As described in more detail in “Distribution & Sales” above, in many of our markets we sell our products to distributors. In 2020, sales to a distributor in the European Union Region and a distributor in the East Asia & Australia Region each amounted to 10 percent or more of our consolidated net revenues. See Item 8, Note 12. Segment Reporting for more information. We believe that none of our business segments is dependent upon a single customer or a few customers, the loss of which would have a material adverse effect on our consolidated results of operations. In some of our markets, particularly in the European Union and in the East Asia & Australia Regions, a loss of a distributor may result in a temporary market disruption.

Employees

Our Workforce*.* At December 31, 2020, we employed approximately 71,000 people worldwide, including full-time, temporary and part-time staff. Our businesses are subject to a number of laws and regulations relating to our relationship with our employees. Generally, these laws and regulations are specific to the location of each business. We engage with legally recognized employee representative bodies and we have collective bargaining agreements in many of the countries in which we operate. In addition, in accordance with European Union requirements, we have established a European Works Council composed of management and elected members of our workforce. We believe we maintain good relations with our employees and their representative organizations.

Our Internal Transformation. To be successful in our transformation to a smoke-free future, we must continue transforming our culture and ways of working, align our talent with our business needs and innovate to become a truly consumer-centric business. To achieve our strategic goals, we need to attract, retain and motivate the best global talent with the right degree of diversity, experience and skills. Therefore, we strive to ensure the development of our existing talent while increasingly recruiting those with the expertise in areas that are new to us such as digital and technical solutions. We set the levels of our compensation and benefit programs that we believe are necessary to achieve these goals and remain competitive with other consumer product companies.

Oversight and Management. Our Board of Directors provides oversight of various matters pertaining to our workforce, and the Compensation and Leadership Development Committee of the Board is responsible for executive compensation matters and oversight of the risks and programs related to talent management. As part of our commitment to workplace diversity in 2020, our Board appointed a Chief Diversity Officer who reports directly to our CEO. Our Code of Conduct highlights our commitment to diversity, inclusion, fairness, safety and equal opportunity in all aspects of employment. We were the first multinational company to receive a global EQUAL-SALARY certification from the EQUAL-SALARY Foundation. This achievement is an important building block on the road to creating a more inclusive gender-balanced workplace and continuing our reputation as a top employer.

Our Initiatives in Response to COVID-19. We focused on business continuity, health and safety of our employees, and rapidly adapting our ways of working to a new environment. We implemented additional safety measures for essential employees in our facilities and offices and continue to pay salaries to those employees who are unable to work due to government restrictions. We enhanced remote work arrangements and digital collaboration and related risk management, and to date, a large majority of our employees continues to work remotely.

Government Regulation

As a company with global operations in a heavily regulated industry, we are subject to multiple laws and regulations of jurisdictions in which we operate. We discuss our regulatory environment in Item 7, Business Environment.

We are subject to international, national and local environmental laws and regulations in the countries in which we do business. We have specific programs across our business units designed to meet applicable environmental compliance requirements and reduce our carbon footprint, wastage, as well as water and energy consumption. We report externally about our climate change mitigation strategy, together with associated targets and results in reducing our carbon footprint, through CDP (formerly known as the Carbon Disclosure Project), the leading international non-governmental organization assessing the work of thousands of companies worldwide in the area of environmental impact, including climate change. Our environmental and occupational health and safety management program includes policies, standard practices and procedures at all our manufacturing centers. Furthermore, we have engaged an external certification body to validate the effectiveness of this management program at our manufacturing centers around the world, in accordance with internationally recognized standards for safety and environmental management. Our subsidiaries expect to continue to

make investments in order to drive improved performance and maintain compliance with environmental laws and regulations. We assess and report to our management the compliance status of all our legal entities on a regular basis. Based on current regulations, the management and controls we have in place and our review of climate change risks (both physical and regulatory), environmental expenditures have not had, and are not expected to have, a material adverse effect on our consolidated results of operations, capital expenditures, financial position, earnings or competitive position.

Based on current regulations, compliance with government regulations, including environmental regulations, has not had, and is not expected to have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, capital expenditures, financial position, earnings, or competitive position.

As discussed in more detail in Item 1A. Risk Factors, our financial results could be significantly affected by regulatory initiatives that could result in a significant decrease in demand for our brands. More specifically, any regulatory requirements that lead to a commoditization of tobacco products or impede adult consumers' ability to convert to our RRPs, as well as any significant increase in the cost of complying with new regulatory requirements could have a material adverse effect on our financial results.

Information About Our Executive Officers

The disclosure regarding executive officers is hereby incorporated by reference to the discussion under the heading “Information about our Executive Officers as of February 8, 2021” in Part III, Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance of this Annual Report on Form 10-K (“Item 10”).

Intellectual Property

Our trademarks are valuable assets, and their protection and reputation are essential to us. We own the trademark rights to all of our principal brands, including Marlboro, HEETS and IQOS, or have the right to use them in all countries where we use them.

In addition, we have a large number of granted patents and pending patent applications worldwide. Our patent portfolio, as a whole, is material to our business. However, no one patent, or group of related patents, is material to us. We also have registered industrial designs, as well as unregistered proprietary trade secrets, technology, know-how, processes and other unregistered intellectual property rights.

Effective January 1, 2008, PMI entered into an Intellectual Property Agreement with Philip Morris USA Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Altria Group, Inc. (“PM USA”). The Intellectual Property Agreement allocates ownership of jointly funded intellectual property as follows:

• PMI owns all rights to jointly funded intellectual property outside the United States, its territories and possessions; and

• PM USA owns all rights to jointly funded intellectual property in the United States, its territories and possessions.

The parties agreed to submit disputes under the Intellectual Property Agreement first to negotiation between senior executives and then to binding arbitration.

Seasonality

Our business segments are not significantly affected by seasonality, although in certain markets cigarette consumption may be lower during the winter months due to the cold weather and may rise during the summer months due to outdoor use, longer daylight, and tourism.

Available Information

We are required to file with the SEC annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information required by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). The SEC maintains an Internet website at http://www.sec.gov that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC, from which investors can electronically access our SEC filings.

We make available free of charge on, or through, our website at www.pmi.com our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of

the Exchange Act as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the SEC. Investors can access our filings with the SEC by visiting www.pmi.com.

The information on our website is not, and shall not be deemed to be, a part of this report or incorporated into any other filings we make with the SEC.