Dell & Google Sitting In A Tree...

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So Google is the industry’s (and stock market traders’) champion of the moment. It’s dominating the search engine sector, kicking some serious app ass and getting Microsoft CEOs to deny throwing chairs around their offices in frustration. Well, whether it did or didn’t, a whole sofa could be headed out the window next…

Reuters is reporting that a Dell spokesperson has confirmed the company is right now deciding whether to ship its PCs with Google Desktop Search and Google Toolbar pre-installed. Naturally enough, Google was keen to back up Dell’s statement by confirming the news with the unbridled enthusiasm of Scooby Doo about to receive one of his famous snacks.

See Microsoft knows the value of shipping its software pre-installed out of the box (why do you think it made such as song and dance about Windows Media Player?). This is because, much as we lords and ladies of Geekdom know there are numerous better software alternatives out there to the ones the Redmond boys build, the major of technology challenged bods out there don’t. Walk down the street and ask the average Joe or Joanna if they have even heard of Firefox, chance is they won’t.

So, through a lack of knowledge, the masses tend to use what their given regardless of quality. Pre-load Microsoft software and people use that, pre-load Google software and I doubt you’ll see many rushing to the web to download and replace it with Microsoft alternatives. Should Dell give the thumbs up it would give Google a massive foothold in the software market. Why do you think AMD has spent so long trying to court Mickey D’s bunch? Figures banded around suggest Google may be willing to pay up to $1bn for the privilege.

Furthermore, while Dell remains the big fish, rumours also rumble that Google is about to tie up similar deals with HP, Gateway, Sony, Apple and Toshiba. Did I say a sofa was perilously close to being defenestrated (*best verb ever*)? I imagine – as we speak – some red cheeked junior, trembling scared in a war zone of a Redmond office, is placing an order of hitherto unparalleled bulk to Ikea…

Link:
Dell UK
Google UK

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