Saturday, December 11, 2004
Recycling phones may be the answer, but who can do it?
Recycling phones may be the answer, but who can do it? - The correct answer, of course, is anyone who wants to make a good profit - full or part time! This article points out the difficulties of doing the actual refurbishing, resale, or ultimate disposal of used mobile sets.
As it rightly indicates, there are a few companies which are desparately looking for good used cell phones, and will pay up to $200 apiece for certain handsets. It also gives a very good hint of what is to come at the end of 2005 when US regulations require phones to have GPS capabilities - a whole new generation of used phones will rapidly become available for recycling.
The BIG point is, however, that the average people owning and using cell phones, simply are NOT AWARE that there is a need to dispose of these units properly, nor that many have value beyond what they could get as a tax break for donating their used and unwanted items.
That is why this is such a great recycling opportunity - the biggest I've seen since the introduction of catalytic converters in 1975 - for the entrepreneur who wnats to make safe, sure profits. This arena, like most recycling niches, will depend upon local recycling entrepreneurs to fill the supply pipeline efficiently for the major recyclers. No one company is going to be large enough to collect phones on a neighborhood-by-neighborhood, or even a community-by-community basis.
As it rightly indicates, there are a few companies which are desparately looking for good used cell phones, and will pay up to $200 apiece for certain handsets. It also gives a very good hint of what is to come at the end of 2005 when US regulations require phones to have GPS capabilities - a whole new generation of used phones will rapidly become available for recycling.
The BIG point is, however, that the average people owning and using cell phones, simply are NOT AWARE that there is a need to dispose of these units properly, nor that many have value beyond what they could get as a tax break for donating their used and unwanted items.
That is why this is such a great recycling opportunity - the biggest I've seen since the introduction of catalytic converters in 1975 - for the entrepreneur who wnats to make safe, sure profits. This arena, like most recycling niches, will depend upon local recycling entrepreneurs to fill the supply pipeline efficiently for the major recyclers. No one company is going to be large enough to collect phones on a neighborhood-by-neighborhood, or even a community-by-community basis.
