Apple streaks ahead of competitors in customer satisfaction

Stephen Withers
Wednesday, 20 August 2008 02:30

IT Industry - Strategy

The simultaneous MobileMe launch was a fiasco, but at least most of the problems have been cleared up and subscriptions extended by way of compensation for the "rocky" start.

But by the time the 2009 survey comes around (ACSI measures separate sets of industries in each quarter) memories of these issues may be fading. Regardless, it would be unusual for any company to maintain such a large lead on its closest rival, so we won't be surprised if Apple slips back.

The company hasn't always been a leader in customer satisfaction. Up to 2003, its score was close to the industry average.

Other PC brands featuring in ACSI all saw their scores fall. HP dropped from 76 to 73, Compaq (an HP brand, but tracked separately from before the merger) fell from 73 to 70, Gateway from 75 to 72, and 'all others' from 75 to 72.