Tech Desk 
Jun 07, 2024
If you're a Samsung phone user, you'll soon have fewer options for getting your phone repaired. Best Buy's Geek Squad is discontinuing its Samsung Authorised Service Provider programme, which allowed some stores to repair Samsung phones with genuine parts and training.
The programme ensured that Best Buy — a consumer electronics retailer that sells a wide range of products, had certified technicians and official Samsung parts to repair phones. But now, Best Buy stores are disappearing from Samsung's authorised service centre locator, and the programme is ending.
This means Samsung phone owners will have fewer options for repairs, and may need to rely on Samsung direct services or alternative repair shops.
Read more: Nvidia overtakes Apple in market value
However, if you're accustomed to visiting Best Buy for repairs, this change will limit your options for servicing your Samsung phone. Now, you may need to select Samsung's mail-in service or visit a UBreakiFix location.
Both companies confirm they are discussing how to help customers move forward. Samsung has more than 9,000 certified technicians in the US, while Best Buy is evaluating how to help mobile customers with authorised service and repairs. "We are in discussions with Best Buy to determine how Samsung can best support our customers moving forward," said Mario Renato De Castro, head of mobile customer care at Samsung.
Additionally, this development comes after iFixit ended its partnership with Samsung regarding parts pricing and availability. Samsung's contracts with repair shops have also raised eyebrows, requiring them to remove non-OEM parts and report them to consumers.
