Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product
— -- The Consumer Product Safety Commission Wednesday said it has a lawsuit against the maker of the popular magnetic desk toy Buckyballs, as part of its response to safety issues when children and teens have played with the product.
In addition, retailers, including Amazon, Brookstone and Urban Outfitters, have agreed to stop selling these and similar products because of the risks posed to children who swallow the tiny balls, CPSC spokesman Scott Wolfson said Wednesday.
Dozens of children have needed surgery to remove the tiny magnets in Buckyball toys as well as those sold by competitors. At least 12 of the surgeries involved Buckyballs, CPSC says.
The tiny balls could be swallowed inadvertently by young children who gain access to them. But teenagers have also swallowed them when using them to pretend to have lip or nose piercings, Wolfson says.
A spokesman for Maxfield and Oberton, the maker of Buckyballs, said it would withhold comment until it reviewed the suit. Buckyballs and Buckycubes are the company's sole products.
In May, according to Courthouse News Service, Buckminster Fuller's estate filed suit in federal court, claiming that Buckyballs' maker did have permission to use Fuller's name for Buckyballs.
The lawsuit seeks an injunction and damages for unfair competition, in addition to invasion of privacy, name appropriation and unfair business practices. The suit also claimed that Buckyballs producer was marketing their product as the world's most popular desk toy.
Buckyballs made the cover of Brookstone's Father's Day catalog this year. An entire tie was made out of Buckyballs. The company has sold 2.5 million Buckyballs desk toys since 2009.
CPSC issued its first warning about this type of magnetic desk toy in November.
"We want parents to be aware of the danger associated with these innocent looking magnets," CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum said at the time. "The potential for serious injury and death if multiple magnets are swallowed demands that parents and medical professionals be aware of this hidden hazard and know how to treat a child in distress."
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