It is better for both sides to work together than to fight each other. The customer usually will be able to resolve the technical problem more cheaply with help from the original source than from an independent contractor. The vendor has an incentive to cooperate in order to retain the customer and possible future business as well as to prevent more widespread damage to its reputation. For example, where the contract does not preclude mediation, defense contractors might wish to mediate disputes with the federal government, presumably a very important customer with whom they wish to do a lot of future business. Similarly, software companies should mediate, say, copyright infringement claims against those resellers with the strongest corporate client base in a particular geographic region.
Mediation provides prompt resolution.
In the 17 months remaining before the year 2000, the time of any and all companies with Y2K problems is best spent on remediation, not in litigation. A mediation can be convened quickly because it does not require discovery and extensive preparation. K disputes should be resolvable through mediation in a day or two. Then the parties can get back to business. Even without the Y2K type of fixed deadline, prompt resolution is essential in many other high-tech disputes.