BAT's internet marketing plan.(British American Tobacco)

Normally, a company wants maximum visibility for itself and its products when paying large amounts of money for advertisements and other promotional activities. So it is instructive to see that British American Tobacco (BAT) appears to be doing everything possible to hide its participation in an internet campaign to attract unwitting young consumers to bars and clubs where it promotes its cigarettes.

According to a leaked internal memo, BAT plans to invest [pounds]2.5 million (around $3.6 million) in building a new website (codenamed project Horeca) aimed at young people world wide. It appears BAT's aim is to promote Lucky Strike and State Express 555 brands to young …