CTIA and ReCellular Bring 40,000 Reasons for Wireless Recycling to CTIA Wireless 2008

As the official recycling partner of CTIA Wireless 2008, ReCellular will help illustrate the need for increased wireless recycling, which is estimated to be as low as 10 percent of the 150 million phones Americans retire each year.

To illustrate the average number of used cell phones retired every year in the U.S., CTIA and ReCellular will showcase more than 40,000 idled phones in display towers throughout the Las Vegas Convention Center. These phones also illustrate the potential impact if each of the 40,000 attendees at CTIA Wireless 2008 donated just one phone to recycling.

To encourage attendees to participate, CTIA and ReCellular will also offer onsite wireless collection centers throughout hall, enabling attendees to donate their used cell phones and accessories for recycling, and to support the CTIA's Call to Protect program.

These initiatives are the cornerstones of the "Going Green" theme for CTIA Wireless 2008, intended to help reduce the environmental footprint of both the conference itself and of the entire industry.

"We are proud to lend our knowledge and expertise in wireless recycling to help make 'Going Green' at CTIA Wireless 2008 a reality," says Chuck Newman, founder and CEO of ReCellular. "This is a great opportunity to build awareness for recycling, and to support the wireless industry's work to reduce the footprint of our business."

According to David Diggs, vice president of CTIA The Wireless Association, this is a natural extension of the agency's "Wireless...The New Recyclable" initiative:

"Developing a recycling solution for the wireless industry has been a cornerstone of CTIA's mission since we first partnered with ReCellular in 1996. Today, virtually every consumer has access to convenient, no-cost recycling options, including in-store collection points in all 50 States and national mail-in recycling programs. Now, our focus will be building awareness of these wireless recycling options with both our colleagues and our consumers."

ReCellular pioneered the wireless recycling industry, as the first enterprise dedicated to the emerging cell phone market. Today, ReCellular collects 4 million phones per year through corporate, charitable and grassroots collections programs.