Five High-Tech Segments Make Consumer's Top 10 List

Five out of the 10 industries rated highest for customer service by consumers were either computer- or Internet-related, a research firm said Thursday.

None, however, topped the list, Harris Interactive said. That honor went to the supermarket industry, which had a score of 84 in the Harris poll.

The research firm polled more than a thousand U.S. adults in the study, asking them whether an industry was doing "a generally good job or a bad job of serving their customers." To come up with a final score in the annual survey, Harris subtracted the negative responses from the positive responses.

Computer hardware companies, online search engines and computer software companies came in second, third and fourth, respectively. Software companies tied for fourth with packaged food companies.

The remaining high-tech-related companies, online retailers and Internet service providers, were eighth and ninth, respectively.

The industry with the worst score was oil companies, which received a negative 36. That industry was probably hurt by the public's displeasure with high gasoline prices, Harris said.