From time to time, CCS Insight, a renowned British research and analysis firm with deep expertise in the mobile technology and telecommunications sectors, organizes insightful and data-driven webinars aimed at delivering the latest evaluations of the global secondary device landscape. These well-regarded virtual sessions serve as an important channel for delivering timely updates, market intelligence, and trend forecasting to a wide audience. Industry stakeholders, analysts, investors, and observers increasingly rely on these events to maintain a competitive edge and deepen their understanding of this rapidly evolving and complex sector. In this context, SecondaryMarket.news presents its second in-depth article derived from the findings and expert commentary featured in a recent CCS Insight webinar.
Difference between trade-in and resell prices
For the first time, CCS Insight provided detailed data on the gap between average trade-in values and sell-out prices, offering valuable new transparency into pricing dynamics within the secondary device market. What stands out is that this gap is shrinking at a notable pace — not just on a global scale, but particularly within European markets, where the trend is especially pronounced. According to CCS Insight’s latest findings, both trade-in values and resale prices in Europe are significantly higher than the global average, suggesting strong consumer demand and market maturity in the region. This new data offers important insights for businesses aiming to optimize pricing strategies and stay competitive in this evolving landscape.
Discarded and refurbished units
According to the analysts, an estimated 40% to 45% of all devices that are traded in turn out to be unusable — essentially discarded — and can no longer serve a second life as functional devices. These units are deemed beyond repair and are instead sent for responsible recycling to recover valuable materials. On the other hand, the remaining traded-in devices go through a thorough refurbishment process: they are completely wiped of all personal data, undergo functional testing, receive a quality grading, and are professionally cleaned before being resold to consumers, typically with a warranty included. Interestingly, only about 10% of these resold devices require any component replacement at all, highlighting the overall solid condition of most trade-ins.
Trade-in percentages
Later this week, we will be sharing more detailed information about attach-rate percentages and how they are evolving across different markets. In the meantime, we can already reveal a key data point: global take-back percentages have seen a modest but noteworthy increase in 2024 compared to the previous year. The worldwide take-back rate rose from 16.5% in 2023 to 16.7% in 2024, signaling a slow yet steady improvement in consumer participation. For added context, the take-back rate in 2022 was recorded at 15.3%, which means the industry has been making incremental progress over the past two years in encouraging device returns for reuse or recycling.
Market
Trade-in
Repair
Refurbishing
