At the recent Electronics Distribution Show in Las Vegas, Pioneer Standard announced a suite of services called StraightLine. The software tools include a comprehensive, unbiased component database for design engineers and bill of materials cleansing and quoting tools for buyers.

The offering is the latest example of an emerging trend in distribution called fee for services. It's a trend any buyer who purchases components and value-added services from distributors should keep a close eye on.

Besides Pioneer, Arrow and Avnet are pushing the notion of fee for services. In some cases distributors are trying to unbundle value-added services from the purchase of components. The effect would be that a buyer would pay separately for a component and for a value-added service such as programming or cable assembly. Currently, in most cases, the VA service is rolled into the price of the component. But distributors say that often the price does not cover the cost of providing the VA service so the service needs to be unbundled.

While only a handful of distributors are pushing fee for services, many other distributors are watching to see if the idea gains acceptance from buyers.

jcarbone@reedbusiness.com