Millions of disused cell phones are gathering dust in German households. According to current estimates, there are around 195 million devices lying unused in drawers.
Deutsche Telekom $DTE (-1,38%) wants to change this and is combining its recycling campaign with a special incentive:
Anyone who hands in their old cell phone at a Deutsche Telekom store between October 7 and November 15 can win valuable prizes.
The main prize is a one-kilogram gold bar made from recycled precious metal đȘđ°
ăEnvironmental awareness meets competitionă
With this campaign, the company wants to increase the return of old devices and at the same time raise awareness of sustainable consumption. Every cell phone handed in counts as a ticket for the prize draw, up to a maximum of ten per person. In addition, trips to FC Bayern Munich away matches, VIP tickets for soccer matches and vouchers for the DFB fan store will be awarded.
Telekom is also supporting social projects with the campaign: For every device handed in, two euros will go to the children's aid organization "Ein â€ïž fĂŒr Kinder".
In this way, the company combines ecological responsibility with social commitment đđ»đđ»đđ»
ăReturn to the raw materials cycleă
Returned devices are reused or professionally recycled depending on their condition. Valuable materials such as gold, silver or copper can be recovered from the circuit boards and reused in production. This conserves natural resources and reduces electronic waste.
ăTarget: circular economy by 2030ă
Deutsche Telekom's long-term goal is to return the majority of its end devices to the recycling loop by 2030. This applies not only to cell phones, but also to routers, repeaters and TV receivers.
In 2024 alone, the company took back more than eleven million cell phones worldwide. A further 4.6 million other end devices were also returned to the cycle for recycling - 1.35 million of them in Germany alone.
Recycling significantly extends the lifespan of many devices, while valuable raw materials remain in circulation.
