Study: Analog TVs to Be Reused When DTVs Arrive
Questions of what will happen to millions of analog TVs following next year's transition to digital television (DTV) have been answered with news that is also good for the environment, according to a new study by the Consumer Electronics Association® of Arlington, Va.
Results of the study, Trends in Consumer Electronics Afterlife show that households receiving broadcast signals only over-the-air expect to remove fewer than 15 million televisions from their homes through 2010, 95 percent of which will be sold, donated, or recycled. Forty-eight perscent of those households expect to buy a digital converter box and continue using the same TV.
"Consumers are far more likely to recycle, reuse, give away or sell analog TVs than throw them away," says CEA's Senior Director of Market Research Tim Herbert. "While some have speculated that millions of TVs would enter the waste stream, this new study suggests that is not the case."
Recycling is an increasingly common way to dispose of unused TVs. In fact, according to the survey, consumers report recycling nearly 30 percent more TVs in 2007 than in 2005.
Among those consumers that did report throwing away a TV in the last year, 42 percent reported that they weren’t aware of recycling programs for electronics.
"It's terrific to see more consumers being more thoughtful and proactive about the responsible disposal of their electronics devices," added Herbert. "However, there is still much to be done in terms of educating consumers about the options for electronics recycling."