Your Baby Can Read Goes Bust

The company that persuaded hundreds of thousands of parents to buy Your Baby Can Read products is going out of business, citing the high cost of fighting complaints alleging its ads were false. "While we vehemently deny any wrongdoing, and strongly believe in our products, the fight has drained our resources to the point where we can no longer continue operating," said the company on its website.

A complaint against the company was filed with the FTC last year by the Boston-based Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, which has led a series of campaigns against what critics call the "genius baby" industry. The group said Your Baby Can Read's claims of teaching infants to read were false and deceptive. "The commission has in its power to force Your Baby Can to provide compensation for parents who were deceived," said the group's director. "Even more important, taking action will deter other companies from making deceptive claims about the educational value of screen media for babies." (More babies stories.)