AQUOS Promo Targets Recycling

By Greg Tarr -- TWICE, 4/2/2007

Mahwah, N.J. — Sharp is using the spate of state and local TV recycling laws that are either in place or coming soon to a recycling center near you as a promotional opportunity for its big-screen AQUOS LCD TVs.

Sharp said that during the month of April it will cover the cost and bother of recycling an old analog TV set if consumers buy one of its new 37-inch or larger flat-panel AQUOS HDTV sets through its customer-direct retail program.

The new set must be of the same size or larger than the old one, and purchases must be made from www.sharpdirectusa.com.

The company said the month-long recycling program will be used to "celebrate Earth Day."

"This recycling initiative gives our customers the opportunity to participate in an environmentally-responsible green program," stated Erik Durko, Sharp Electronics services and solutions group strategic services director.

"We are proud to be implementing one way to keep television sets from becoming additional waste in landfills."

The program works like this: after purchasing a 37-inch or larger AQUOS LCD TV from www.sharpdirectusa.com during the month of April, the new set will be delivered in-home free of charge, and the old qualifying set will be carted away by the delivery team for recycling. Old televisions will be delivered to a local Sharp-certified recycler, Sharp said.

In a statement, Sharp said it "is dedicated to becoming an environmentally advanced company, and the entire company works to develop products and technologies with strong environmental performance."

All AQUOS LCD TVs have a long lamp life of 60,000 hours and low power consumption, using 60 percent less power than comparably-sized CRT (cathode-ray tube) direct-view televisions, the company said.

Many of Sharp’s AQUOS models are also Energy Star certified, which means they meet energy efficiency guidelines set by the EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy.

If that isn’t green enough, Sharp said its products are designed from environmentally friendly materials, including stands that use recycled plastic and plant-based paint, cabinets that use non-halogen resin that gives off almost no dioxins or other toxic substances when incinerated, power cords and wiring that are halogen-free, lead-free solder circuit boards and instruction manuals made from recycled paper and soy ink.

The company, which said it aims to be a zero global-warming contributing company by 2010, is also among the world’s largest producers of solar power systems.