Buckyballs® Manufacturer Implores President Obama, Congress To Stave Off Destruction by the Consumer Product Safety Commission

NEW YORK, Aug. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Today the company that makes Buckyballs^® and Buckycubes™, America's favorite adult desk products, implored President Obama and Congress to save it from destruction at the hands of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), in advertisements placed in the Washington Post, Politico, The Hill and Roll Call. (See www.getbuckyballs.com/blog).

The advertisements are a response to an administrative complaint issued by the CPSC last Wednesday to Buckyballs'^® manufacturer, Maxfield and Oberton. In the complaint, the Commission seeks to compel the company to stop selling its products and initiate a consumer recall, asking the 2.5 million responsible adult buyers of the product to stop playing with them immediately as, sadly, a handful of children had gotten hold of the products and misused them since 2009.

The advertisements appeared in advance of testimony by the four CPSC commissioners at a hearing called by the House Subcommittee on Commerce Manufacturing and Trade, which takes place today at 9:30 AM.

In Politico, The Hill and Roll Call, Maxfield and Oberton pointed out that it has worked with the CPSC for years "to make sure" its products "stay out the hands of children through warnings and education." After noting that warning labels are considered acceptable for balloons, corded baby monitors and many other common household products that may be dangerous in the hands of children, the advertisement called upon legislators to ask the Commissioners: "Why are some safety and warning labels considered trustworthy by CPSC, and others aren't? Why is the CPSC shutting down our retail sales without warning or due process and disseminating misinformation in the media before we even have a chance to defend ourselves in court? Why does CPSC want to put a small US company out of business and our employees out of jobs?"

In a different advertisement, a full-page open letter to President Obama in the Washington Post, Craig Zucker, the company's Founder and CEO, told the President: "I know that you support small business. And now I need your help to save ours from being shut down by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)."  The letter noted that "not only does our vigorous safety program work, but it surpasses that of many other products and industries. We do not understand why our products, marketed exclusively for adults and with so few injuries, have suddenly been raised to the very top of the CPSC's action list to become the target of the first litigation of this type filed in 11 years."

Mr. Zucker told the President, "We will fight back vigorously. But we sure could use your help. Our adult customers and online community of hundreds of thousands of supporters love our products and don't want them taken away by the CPSC. We ask for your help in ensuring that our products are treated just like any of the thousands of others regulated by the CPSC that are potentially harmful if misused and yet are allowed to be marketed, so long as they bear a proper warning label."

The effort to reach out to elected officials comes on the heels of Maxfield and Oberton's "Save Our Balls" video campaign (www.SaveOurBalls.net), launched last week to educate consumers about ongoing safety efforts and protest the CPSC's actions. According to Mr. Zucker: "Thousands of consumers have bought our products on-line to help us stay in business, and have flooded the CPSC with the message that it should keep its hands off their balls! The people have spoken. Now we hope our political leaders will help to right this wrong and help a small business stay alive."  Mr. Zucker will be available for interview after the hearing. Contact Andrew Frank at 212-935-4539.

Buckyballs^® and Buckycubes™ are the number one selling brand names in high-powered magnets - recently called America's "fave desk accessory" by the Washington Post (July 13, 2012), and named "the next big thing in cubicle fidgeting" by New York magazine (July 16-23, 2012).

CONTACT: Andrew Frank (212-935-4539)

SOURCE Maxfield and Oberton