What is the make, model and age of the printer? You mention a ribbon so I will assume its a dot matrix.

I'm not sure I understand the question. Are you expecting to trade-in the old printer on the purchase of a new printer? More likely they will charge you to dispose of the old printer.

If you can find a repair shop that actually works on printers (and they are rare to non-existent), they might pay a few dollars to use the old machine for parts.

If you don't need dot matrix's special abilities (such as tractor feed or multi-part paper) consider replacing it with a laser printer. Lasers start at about $100. Dot matrix printers start at about $200.