So from a vendor's perspective, phone support is a money pit. These days, few PC makers have money to spare. Fewer consumers are buying, even at those prices. Naturally, vendors are scrambling to cut costs, including laying off their workforce, to stay competitive. Customer support is tricky to manage, too, says Giga analyst Kinikin.
Staff turnover is high, and telecommunications systems are expensive to set up.
But contract-based tech support can create a new set of headaches for customers. Third-party tech reps may have limited knowledge of the product brands that they field queries about. According to Kinikin, they may have minimal access to a vendor's bug fixes and advanced technical support. By the same token, a manufacturer's lack of direct involvement in the support process may slow its response to and correction of product flaws. He observes that the quality of third-party support often depends on the service level vendors are willing to pay for.