Litebook Charge n’ Go Retraction

I received a phone call yesterday from Larry Pederson, the founder of The Litebook Company Ltd. in regards to my previous post about their Litebook Charge n’ Go.

Apparently my humor didn’t come across to Larry. But my question remains, why might the manufacturer recommend to not look directly at it? Would that not give the potential for possible blinding if someone did that for extended amount of time?

I think my concerns are valid even though it was posted originally in humor, but we’ve complied with this retraction request cause we’re nice people – seriously, we ain’t trying to piss anyone off. But it’s time to relax a bit – you can always tell who doesn’t have a sense of humor by all those disclaimers on the bottom of emails.

Speaking of disclaimers, Litebook.info shows us this:

USE ONLY AS DIRECTED.

The Litebook® emits an intense beam of white light. DO NOT STARE DIRECTLY AT THE LIGHT SOURCE. It is NOT harmful to glance at the light for a few seconds at a time.
We encourage use of The Litebook® while engaged in other activities, such as reading, eating, applying makeup, or working at a computer or desk. However, take care that The Litebook® is NOT brought into contact with water or heat-producing appliances, as they may damage The Litebook®, and may pose possible fire hazards.
Do not use this product if you have a history of eye disease including, but not limited to, cataracts and macular degeneration, have undergone laser corrective eye surgery in the past 30 days, or if you are currently taking any medications including certain antibiotics which render you photosensitive (extremely sensitive to light). Please consult your ophthalmologist or health care provider if you have any concerns about the use of this product.

Occasional mild side-effects may occur, including headaches, a ‘stinging’ sensation in the eyes, and on rare occasions, nausea. Generally, these are due to the body’s adjustment to the light, and should disappear after a few days. On rare occasions (1% of users) mania may be induced, typically from overuse. If these side-effects, or any other adverse effects not listed, do not resolve after three days, discontinue use of The Litebook® and consult your health care provider.

Below is the email (with original formatting retained) – I’ve also posted it in the “comments” section of the original post where anyone has the opportunity to share their opinion and correct anything I may have said wrong – that’s what the blogging world is all about.

Mika,

Thanks for your time today; further to our conversation, please consider this a formal request to correct a misstatement regarding our product which appeared on your blog entry of September 10, 2006:

Helpful for people suffering from “seasonal affective disorder” in various stages from “the blues” to “contemplating suicide” the Litebook could be a life-saver, with possible blindness as only a minor side effect.

The Litebook has been extensively tested for ocular safety by a leading medical physicist in the U.S., and as such does not pose any hazard for blindness. Thus, the statement in your blog (highlighted above in red) is false and misleading, and potentially actionable for libel. Therefore, I am requesting that you immediately a) delete this misstatement from your blog, and b) issue a statement on your blog correcting the misinformation.

As I said during our conversation, while we appreciate the exposure you are providing our product, false information will not serve anybody’s interest – consumer or manufacturer, a point which I’m sure you can appreciate.

Thank you for your cooperation with the above request.

Regards,

Larry

Larry Pederson
Founder / International Business Development
The Litebook Company Ltd.
ISO 9001:2000 & ISO 13485:2003 Certified
www.litebook.com
1-877-723-5483 – Toll-free (N. America)
1-403-504-1533 – Tel (Worldwide)
1-403-526-9444 – Fax

‘A Little Lite Goes a Long Way’

IMPORTANT NOTICE: This message is intended only for the use of the individual or entity to which it is addressed. The message may contain information that is privileged, confidential and exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient, or the employee or agent responsible for delivering the message to the intended recipient, you are notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited. If you have received this communication in error, please notify Litebook immediately by email at info@litebook.com. Thank you.