Winston-Salem-based R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. has sued e-cigarette maker SAS Technologies, accusing the company of infringing on its Camel and Winston brands.

SAS Technologies does business as SaveASmoker.com and promotes and sells flavored liquid nicotine products for use with electronic cigarettes. The lawsuit was filed last week in U.S. District Court in North Carolina by Reynolds Innovations Inc., a subsidiary of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., which is itself part of Reynolds American Inc. (NYSE: RAI).

Reynolds Innovations claims that SaveASmoker.com is selling "E-Liquid" products with names such as "Camell Tobacco" and "Winston" among the different flavors of liquid nicotine products.

According to the lawsuit, Reynolds Innovations believes that the use of the Camel and Winston names and images "is likely to cause confusion, mistake, or deception among consumers as to the source, origin, or sponsorship of such products."

Reynolds Innovations is seeking the recover damages from the unauthorized use of the Camel and Winston names and images and all of the profits SAS Technologies generated from the products. As of Nov. 5, the flavors targeted by Reynolds Innovation had been removed from SaveASmoker.com.

he legal action comes at a time when RAI is entering the e-cigarette market with its own product, named Vuse, which will be produced by subsidiary R.J. Reynolds Vapor Co.

"As you can understand, it's early days for these new products, but we're excited about their potential for growth," RAI President and CEO Daan Delen said during an earnings call last month.

RAI plans to share more about its Vuse brand during an Investor Day presentation next week. Enditem