WAL-MART SUED OVER BUBBLY CHUBBIES

MARTY SONNENFELD

NEW YORK -- British manufacturer Ragdoll Productions Ltd. and its North American licensing agent, The itsy bitsy Entertainment Co., based here, have filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Bentonville, Ark.

The suit, filed in U.S. Federal District Court here March 22, charges that Wal-Mart is marketing small figurines improperly copied from the plaintiffs' widely popular Teletubbies.

Wal-Mart features a line of four figurines called Bubbly Chubbies. Ragdoll and itsy bitsy allege that the retail giant's characters have coloring and features, a logo design, packaging and even a name that they argue are remarkably similar to their copyright-protected Teletubbies.

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs claim that Wal-Mart's Bubbly Chubbies are "obvious, studied knockoffs."

Teletubbies toys and other spinoff children's products have generated $800 million in sales, according to published reports.

The lawsuit, which seeks unspecified damages, also calls for Wal-Mart to withdraw its Bubbly Chubbies from the market and destroy them.

Les Copeland, director of communications for Wal-Mart Stores, said the retailer is "aware of the lawsuit," but that the company had not yet been officially served.

Copeland said that the Bubbly Chubbies, made by Soma International Ltd., were "brought to the attention of our buyers about a year ago as part of our routine buying practice." He said that "Wal-Mart clearly recognizes the products' similarities to the Teletubbies products, though there are also significant differences."

Copeland explained that because of the similarities, Wal-Mart, which also sells the Teletubbies figures, required Soma's legal counsel, Buchanan & Ingersoll, Pittsburgh, to provide a legal opinion about potential copyright infringement. "They determined that there was no infringement," Copeland said. He added that "Wal-Mart takes the issue very seriously and would never knowingly infringe upon copyright or trademark laws."

Wal-Mart purchased the Bubbly Chubbies as a "one-time purchase," intended to serve as a basket-stuffer for Easter. "We expect to sell the majority of the product by Easter Sunday."