Google Reaches Agreement to Have Its Software Installed on New Dell Computers
SAN FRANCISCO, May 25 — Google and Dell have reached an agreement to install Google software on millions of new Dell computers over the next few years, Google's chief executive said on Thursday.
Context & Ripple Effects
Dell’s February test of a preinstalled Google software package has progressed into a multiyear distribution agreement covering millions of new computers. The move gives Google a place in Dell’s out-of-box experience rather than relying solely on customers to seek out its software after purchase.
First-order effects
- Google gains distribution for its software across Dell’s new-PC shipments, while Dell can ship those machines with Google software already installed.
- Dell buyers encounter Google software as part of initial setup, reducing the separate step of finding and installing it themselves.
Second-order effects
- The agreement makes Dell an OEM channel for Google, tying part of Google’s user acquisition to Dell’s PC sales and software configuration choices.
- Other PC makers face a clearer incentive to weigh similar software-preload arrangements as a way to differentiate their own out-of-box bundles.
Third-order effects
- If large PC makers increasingly control which web services are present at setup, ownership of the initial desktop workflow shifts from post-purchase software choice toward hardware-distribution partnerships.
The trend: PC makers are becoming distribution gatekeepers for internet services by bundling software into the first-use experience.