Babies Genius
Despite their ubiquity, and the fact that many babies are transfixed by the videos, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no screen time at all for children under In 2006, Ms. Linn's group went to the Federal Trade Commission to complain about the educational claims made by Disney and another company, Brainy Baby. As a result, the companies dropped the word "Educational" from their marketing. "Disney was never held accountable, and parents were never given any compensation. So we shared our information and research with a team of public health lawyers," Ms. Last year, lawyers threatened a class-action lawsuit for unfair and deceptive practices unless Disney agreed to refund the full purchase price to all who bought the videos since 2004. "The Walt Disney Company's entire Baby Einstein marketing regime is based on express and implied claims that their videos are educational and beneficial for early childhood development," a letter from the lawyers said, calling those claims "False because research shows that television viewing is potentially harmful for very young children." The letter cited estimates from The Washington Post and Business Week that Baby Einstein controlled 90 percent of the baby media market, and sold $200 million worth of products annually. The letter also described studies showing that television exposure at ages 1 through 3 is associated with attention problems at age In response, the Baby Einstein company will refund $15.99 for up to four "Baby Einstein" DVDs per household, bought between June 5, 2004, and Sept. 5, 2009, and returned to the company. Lawyers in the matter refused to comment on the settlement. Last month, Baby Einstein announced the new refunds - or "Enhanced consumer satisfaction guarantee" - but made no mention of the lawyers' demands. "Fostering parent-child interaction always has and always will come first at The Baby Einstein Company, and we know that there is an ongoing discussion about how that interaction is best promoted," Susan McLain, vice president and general manager, said in the statement.
