LAS VEGAS — Wireless carriers face a “clear and present danger” of increased regulation if they don’t convince policy-makers that competition is the best check on the industry, Lowell C. McAdam, Verizon Wireless president and chief executive officer, said at a trade show here yesterday.
“We have work to do to make sure there’s no need for regulation,” Mr. McAdam told the audience at CTIA Wireless. “As we grew up, our industry had some baggage that we now must discard.”
Mr. McAdam called on wireless carriers to embrace new market entrants and shed policies that have become outdated, or else face a “worst-case scenario” that includes 50 different regulatory frameworks.
But carriers already have made progress, he said. He cited recent decisions to offer flat-rate pricing for unlimited calling and opening up handsets to developers for new software applications.
“Even as the economy has worsened in recent months, the wireless industry has continued to be one of the few bright spots,” Mr. McAdam said.
As of December, there were 255 million U.S. wireless subscribers, accounting for 84 percent of the population, according to the CTIA. Wireless data revenues — that is, services excluding voice calls — have grown to more than $23 billion a year to 17 percent of overall carrier revenues.
That’s quite a contrast from the wireless industry 25 years ago, when its first trade show could fit in just one D.C. conference room, Mr. McAdam said.
TV Recycling
The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) says it answered the question of what will happen to millions of analog television sets.
According to the trade group, 95 percent of consumers it surveyed plan to sell, donate or recycle the nearly 15 million analog sets that will be retired by 2010.
Eighty-seven percent of respondents said “it’s important to recycle” their electronic devices, the study said.
“Not only is traditional recycling an increasingly popular option for consumers, but the vast majority of consumers report they give away or sell unused devices, which is also form of recycling,” said Tim Herbert, CEA’s senior director of market research.
The group sought to rebut the concerns of those who worry that discarded analog sets — especially in wake of next February’s nationwide transition to digital TV — will add to a toxic stream of electronic waste that often is not disposed of in an environmentally friendly way. While analog TV viewers don’t need to throw away their TVs after that date, they will need to subscribe to cable or satellite services or buy a digital tuner.
The CEA’s survey, however, did not address the controversies surrounding electronic waste disposal. As The Washington Times reported last month, the Environmental Protection Agency estimates that 80 percent of cathode-ray-tube devices collected for recycling in the United States are actually exported overseas.
The CEA noted there is room for improvement when it comes to consumer education, saying that 42 percent of consumers weren’t aware of electronics recycling programs.
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