Dell Belgium forced to install Windows only?

Geert Uytterhoeven of the Linux m68k effort reports that Dell admitted it is forced to sell Windows in Belgium by an agreement with Microsoft. Microsoft and Dell have denied this accusation. By not supplying an OS-free PC, Dell would be contravening EU law which prohibits product-tying.

Comments

Re:Seperate lines

[Accipiter]

It's easier to just use CR to break lines. If you have to use HTML code, use it around the line breaks. You don't necessarily have to use [p] or [br]....Just hit enter. It works for me.

-- Give him Head? Be a Beacon?

Re:I'm shocked, simply shocked

[daviddennis]

Perhaps it is business as usual, but I think Slashdot readers should be aware of Bill's latest antics.

If you don't like a story, you can always skip it. Rob doesn't put a gun to our heads to force us to read everything posted here, after all. Indeed, I doubt that it would be possible, even as a full-time job, to read everything on Slashdot now.

D

----

Re:Product Tying and the European Union

[patrickv]

The issue of "product tying" is covered by article 85 of the Treaty on the European Union. However, its implementation is left to national governments. I inquired about the Belgian authorities position on that matter. Their reply (in French) states that a computer and OS form one "logical unit". Product tying prohibition covers only unrelated products (eg. a mortage and a life insurance).

Re:Should we really be surprised by this behavior?

[Adam Knapp]

Nope, I've used at least one version of burn-in software and it's OS-less. Or rather, it is an OS. They just scan the hard drive for bad blocks, write and verify patterns in memory, test all of the instructions on the processor, and fool around with the video card for a while. Don't really need an OS for that, just a couple of drivers and some glue.
I suppose the software they use could run under windows, but I don't see any reason why.

I'm shocked, simply shocked

[anticypher]

Actually, this sounds like business as usual in Europe. Micro~1 has rebounded lately in their pressure on PC makers in europe when they realized the commission has no enforcement of articles 81, 82 and 83 (and a few others). Micro~1 is smart, they don't explicitly put the exclusion in writing, but the companies know very well they must be 100% M$ or they will not have their license renewed next year.

Several large customers who were able to negotiate deliveries of non-M$ machines a year ago are no longer able to get machines without win98 pre-installed. Even customers with site licenses are once again being forced to pay the micro~1 tax on all new machines from Dell, Gateway, and others.

I doubt a couple of emails from a low level acount manager to a university in Belgium would be enough to get the commission moving on the issue. Micro~1 is now reaping the rewards from scaring off the investigators, by once again forcing all computer users to pay the tax. They can act with impunity for the next year or more inside of Europe until after the next round of elections.

I think /. would do better to find more stories on cool new toys, nanotech, space, and real computer advances, and spare us from more micro~1 bashing.

the AC

Dell is NOT forced to install Windows

[Trojan]

This story is at least a week old. For Belgium, Dell has a contract with Microsoft saying that Dell will install an OS on each computer sold. This can be Windows 98 or Linux or whatever they like, but 'technical reasons' have forced Dell to limit themselves to Windows.

So whatever it is, it's a decision by Dell to not preinstall Linux. Selling a bare computer would violate their contract with Microsoft, but selling with Linux installed would not. It's pretty weird or course. Illegal? I don't know.

Re:Should we really be surprised by this behavior?

[frohike]

What's difficult about leaving the hard disk blank is that the manufacturers have to test the hardware one way or another. This generally involves some kind of "burn in" test where a program is used to test the hardware for long periods of time under stressful conditions. This software is probably for Windows only, and they figure that reformatting the disk could somehow invalid the tests.. or perhaps you could recover Windows and get a free copy.

To preinstall another OS would require them to port their testing program to the new OS, and they can't be sure that it's as effective as the original. The beuracracy will prevent anything ad-hoc from being used.

But my point is that there ARE technical reasons for it. (Not that I like it any better.. =)