Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!wuarchive!udel!udccvax1!sun.acs.udel.edu!sjm
From: sjm@sun.acs.udel.edu (Steve Morris)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Mail Order Companies
Summary: Ain't no more.
Message-ID: <5036@sun.acs.udel.edu>
Date: 4 Nov 89 03:30:33 GMT
References: <5924@merlin.usc.edu> <AZH_tfS00Xs18bv0Yz@andrew.cmu.edu> <254FB70A.DF8@drivax.UUCP> <35442@beta.lanl.gov> <3182@jhunix.HCF.JHU.EDU>
Reply-To: sjm@sun.acs.udel.edu (Steve Morris)
Distribution: usa
Organization: University of Delaware
Lines: 26


I have been reading through several postings about mail order Amigas and
have not seen any comments about the new policy so I thought I would
give a brief summary.
	Commodore has just gone through a dealer cleanup. Their
contracts for all dealers specify that the initial sale to the customer
must be made in a face to face meeting. This is the same sort of policy
that IBM, Apple, et al. have with their dealers. The decision was made
to ensure that those buying Amiga`s would get real customer support. The
gamble is short term volume vs. long term customer satisfaction. A local
sysop here in Delaware is also harware purchasing agent for the 2
Computerland stores in the state. He had been trying for some time to
get the Amiga line into his stores. Computerland was one of the dealers
that got burned when Commodore started selling the C-64 through
Toys-R-Us at less than their wholesale cost. The Amiga needs the retail
support of major vendors like Computerland and General Computer (who
will also be carring Amigas) if it is to ever gain the respect it deserves.
The only way dealers like that are going to take on a product is if they
are not going to be undercut by mail order houses and discount stores
that save money by not providing support for the machines.
	So in other words: forget mail order. Most if not all magazine
adds should no longer be indicating Commodore hardware for sale. If they
are, there is a near 100% chance that the goods are Gray market. And you
are not going to find anyone who will do warranty repairs on that
machine.
		-Steven