Power Blance Bracelets exposed

Power Balance exposed


A bracelet which made false claims about being able to improve balance has been forced to offer refunds to customers.
Misleading advertising claims about the alleged benefits of Power Balance wristbands and pendants have been withdrawn by the manufacturer after Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) intervention.
Power Balance has agreed not to supply any more products that are misleadingly labelled and refunds have been offered for those who previously purchase the product.
The bracelet, complete with a hologram with a built-in 7.83mhz frequency, was marketed as a way to improve balance, strength and flexibility.
However sceptics have consistently argued how a frequency can be built into the hologram and how even that would have an effect on the body.

Watch Richard Saunders from the Australian Skeptics debunk the claims of Power Balance on Today Tonight here: News Video - Yahoo!7 News

The ACCC raised concerns that these claims were likely to mislead consumers into believing that Power Balance products have benefits that they do not have.
ACCC chairman Graeme Samuel said there is no supportive scientific evidence.
"Consumers should be wary of other similar products on the market that make unsubstantiated claims," he said.
"They may be no more beneficial than a rubber band."
Power Balance has admitted there is no credible scientific basis for the claims and therefore no reasonable grounds for making representations about the benefits of the product.

The company also acknowledged its conduct may have contravened the misleading and deceptive conduct section of the Trade Practices Act (1974).
The wristbands were widely promoted in the media by various sporting celebrities.
"When a product is heavily promoted, sold at major sporting stores, and worn by celebrities, consumers tend to give a certain legitimacy to the product and the representations being made," Mr Samuel said.
"Retailers that continue to sell the product with misleading representations on the packaging are warned that they may be open to action from the ACCC."
The bands are worn by various celebrities such as AFL player Brendan Fevola, NRL star Benji Marshall, basketballer Shaquille O'Neal and England cricket captain Andrew Strauss.
Power Balance will now make various changes to the way it markets its "rubber band" by publishing corrective advertising, amending its website and changing its packaging.

Power Balance exposed - The West Australian

that's like the iRenew crap they are hocking here in the States.
iRenew

Power Balance forced into bankruptcy

The manufacturer of rubber hologram wristbands that claim to increase strength and flexibility is about to declare bankruptcy.

According to some reports a settlement amount of up to $57 million is on the cards after customers sued Power Balance claiming the products were bogus.

Earlier this year the company was forced to admit that its product is not scientifically-proven to enhance balance, strength or flexibility.

The Australian company distributing the product was forced to close its doors in May after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) found the product to be a sham.

ACCC chairman Graeme Samuel said there was no supportive scientific evidence.

"Consumers should be wary of other similar products on the market that make unsubstantiated claims," he said. "They may be no more beneficial than a rubber band."

Other similar products in the market such as NRG and EKEN Power Bands – which claim NRL star Billy Slater as a client – have not come under the public scrutiny Power Balance has.

Tom O'Dowd, whose company sold Power Balance bracelets in Australia for $60 dollars, told Today Tonight the secret to the bracelet was in a hologram.

"It's a frequency that's been embedded in mylar tech in the hologram and that frequency - when it comes in comes within 2 inches of your skin - reacts with electrical field of your body," he claimed.

"You are the battery that powers this product."

It also had the backing of Melbourne chiropractor, Dr Matt Bateman, who tried it on hundreds of his patients.

"I felt it for myself," he told Today Tonight.

"I am not faking 500 per cent strength and stability, which is what I felt."

However a series of double-blind tests conducted by Richard Saunders from the Australian Skeptics showed the bracelets to be no more effective than a placebo.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...;v=Ynbx5JfEwcA

Score another one for the good guys! Another obvious scam is going off of the map. It is really ridiculous that this scam was able to get away with those fraudulent solicitations for as long as they did.

Soapboxmom