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Altria is joining the e-cigarette fray. The nation’s largest cigarette maker will debut MarkTen, its first electronic brand, this August in Indiana under its Nu Mark subsidiary.

The announcement makes Altria, owner of Philip Morris USA, the last of the major U.S. tobacco companies to recently make a push into the growing field of e-cigarettes, which command 1% of the cigarette market. The push in e-cigarettes comes as the traditional cigarettes face declining sales, tax hikes and increased opposition from health and anti-tobacco groups.

The recent push into e-cigarettes marketing by major marketers comes during an absence of government regulation in the segment. Spending on e-cigarette TV ads was up 17.9% from 2011 to 2012 and print ad spending shot up 71.9%, according to a Citibank report.

Continue reading at AdAge.com