[Animats]

It's a loss leader by JLBPCB to get the high-volume contract. Or so said the head of OshPark eight years ago.[1]

There does seem to be a willingness by Chinese manufacturers to deal with small-volume makers and sellers. Look at the minimum order quantities on Alibaba. That's supposed to be a wholesale market, but often wholesale starts at 2 units.

[1] https://www.reddit.com/r/PrintedCircuitBoard/comments/9bt5ed...

[edg5000]

Their PCB service must be a loss leader, but their assembly service might be profitable. What's also a loss leader is their default configuration. Want .2mm vias? That's another 30$. Want to assemble both sides? More fees. So it gets more profitable for them not just with volume, but also with designs that require the add-on fees.