Sony Blue Blob Problem Continues To Grow

SHAWNEE, Kan. -- Sony television owners across the country are calling for action since our December report on blue blobs covering TV's.

There have been extended warranties and class action lawsuits to address these blue blobs.

Still, customers say they feel let down by Sony and the outrage is growing.

When our call for action story hit the airwaves and hit our Web site, Sony owners across the country sent us pictures of blue blobs blocking their picture including Ashley Pointelin of Olathe.

"I was like, 'Oh, my gosh, here is our problem exactly'," said Ashley Pointelin of Olathe. 

Pointelin says her LCD projection TV was just four years old when the blue stars first appeared.

The problem got so bad, she put the TV in the basement to collect dust.

Pointelin only turned it on to show us the problem.

"The entire screen became covered and it turned into this big black hole that's actually yellow when the picture is on," Pointelin said.

It's a symptom of a bad optical block. Sony extended the warranty to cover repairs, but Pointelin says that doesn't help her.

"Our model was involved in an extended warranty until June 2008. Ours didn't start doing it until September," Pointelin said.

For more than a year, Pointelin's been fighting with Sony on a solution. Without one, she faces a $1,200 repair.

"I want them to stand by their name to stand by their product. I want them to fix this," Pointelin said.

So, when we got Sony to fix Tony Otrosko's TV for free, other unsatisfied Sony owners turned to Call for Action for help.

Kevin Kelly described his frustration to our Scripps sister-station in Cleveland, Ohio.

"The repair costs more than buying a new TV set with newer technology," Kelly said.

Kelly connects with other upset users on the Facebook page "I have a defective Sony TV."

"We share experiences and ideas," Kelly said.

One user wrote about his experience taking Sony to small claims court which he says resulted in a refund.

Sony tells Call for Action it's not giving everyone a new TV since these sets are out of warranty. We again gave Sony a list of customers who contacted us. We've heard from over 30 people and we hear more stories every week.

Most say Sony offered to pay half the repairs or sell them a discounted TV.

"Their discount is less than what I could buy straight off Amazon," Kelly said.

Sony says it's offer is a deal.

Pointelin feels that's what she deserves.  She refuses to spend more money for a product that may last only a few years.

Some customers did take the offer.

Jim Clark wrote "Just thought I’d offer you my thanks in getting Sony to contact me! They did offer to reimburse me for ½ of the total repair cost, which at this point I consider a victory. While they still wouldn’t acknowledge that there was a problem with the optical block in all of these sets, at least they didn’t act like this was the first time they’d ever heard about the issue and tell me there was nothing that they could do.

"You were the key ally to have this time around and I’m very grateful to you for your efforts. I hope you realize that you make a difference in people’s lives. While my issue was a basically insignificant TV, I’m sure there are many others with real problems that now feel as good as I do times ten!"