People are already doing it. India has a thriving secondary market if you are not aware. Many can't afford to buy new phones so they buy second hand phones from

People are already doing it. India has a thriving secondary market if you are not aware. Many can't afford to buy new phones so they buy second hand phones from these markets. But this buying and selling of used devices happens within the Indian market i.e. the seller of the old phone is an Indian and so is the buyer. The problem is that this is the first time a foreign company has requested the Government to grant license to sell second hand phones in the secondary market. What this essentially means is that Apple would dump second hand phones it receives from it's recycling policy World over into Indian secondary market. If the Government allows this then it sets a dangerous precedent with all other electronic manufacturers wanting a license to sell e-waste in India's secondary market. This is already happening with e-waste being smuggled into India illegally creating environmental hazards. Read this article published in 2007: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-apple-china-idUSKCN0V4200 http://www.reuters.com/article/us-apple-china-idUSKCN0V4200. Imagine the amount of e-waste already imported illegally into India since 2007. This has nothing to do with poverty or human development index. US environmental laws are strict enough to not allow e-waste from accumulating in US soil. So Apple is using it's "Recycling policy" to dump e-waste in India which doesn't yet have strict environmental laws. If Apple extends it's "Recycling policy" to second hand phones there would be no barrier to entry into India's secondary market. It's up to Apple to clarify it's policy.