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Less than 5 percent of the more than 1 billion mobile phones produced annually end up being recycled or disposed of in eco-friendly ways, reports ABI Research.

Despite public pressure for “green” products, economic realities deter handset manufacturers from creating biodegradable and recyclable products from sustainable resources, ABI says. Although most mobile handset vendors do have recycling programs, they need to continue to address the challenge of creating environmentally sound products as part of their corporate responsibility charters.

“Several proof products that epitomize a vendor’s best greening efforts are currently being marketed,” says ABI director Kevin Burden. “But our research found that very few handset manufacturers — except those with the scale to do it economically, such as Samsung and Nokia — are highly motivated to produce lines of green phones. Instead, the effort is towards compliance and the trickling down of proven green elements throughout entire product lines.”

Scale is the key concept, according to ABI. Despite the vast numbers of phones that are produced and discarded every year, few vendors are working on the kind of scale that makes entire green product lines economically viable in their view.

Regulatory pressures, coupled with corporate and social responsibilities, have forced the issue for most manufacturers, adds ABI. Many toxic substances have been legally banned and other substances known to threaten human health and the environment are being phased out voluntarily by many manufacturers.

“A 2008 Nokia survey indicated that 76 percent of their respondents are more likely to buy phones from companies they consider environmentally responsible,” Burden notes. “That is a potential economic benefit, but hard to measure. As vendors move green features toward a platform approach for broader implementation, that is when negative economic factors flatten and the environment truly wins.”

ABI’s report, entitled “Mobile Handset Green Initiatives,” explores issues associated with the manufacture and recycling of environmentally-friendly mobile handsets. It identifies the key players and discusses their green initiatives, and concludes with a summary of the latest regulatory requirements and other factors affecting this market, according to ABI. The report is part of the firm’s Mobile Devices Research Service.
 
[This research brief is copyright © 2008 ABI Research. All rights reserved. Reproduced by DeviceGuru.com with permission.]