Certification logo mark of the Reuse Mobile Related Guidelines Study Group

The Reuse Mobile Related Guidelines Study Group (chaired by Hamakazu Awazu, chairman of Reuse Mobile Japan (RMJ)), established by industry groups for used smartphones and smartphone repair, has formulated a revised set of guidelines to help consumers purchase used smartphones with peace of mind. The ban on SIM unlocking of used smartphones was also lifted, but Mr. Awazu said, "So far, there has been no noticeable movement. There is also the issue that many of the used phones collected by the major cell phone companies are leaked overseas; sales of used cell phones by RMJ regular member companies in FY2006 were down 60,000 units from the previous year to about 1.35 million. In order for more handsets to be distributed in the domestic market, measures other than quality assurance that can compete with the purchase subsidies of major cell phone companies are required. (= November 28, 2019, photo credit: Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun / Kyodo News Images)