American Dell Inc. has decided to expand the sales of personal computers with the installed Linux operating system to the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and China, the company announced.
This second-largest personal computer manufacturer in the world began selling personal computers with the installed Ubuntu Linux operating system in May, but only in the United States. Ubuntu is a free version of that software. Linux software, the largest rival to Microsoft’s market-dominant Windows, has become one of the most popular types of software for business computers in the past year. However, it has not yet established itself in the consumer market where Windows is installed on more than 90 percent of personal computers. Dell stated that sales of Linux in the U.S. market so far largely come from supporters of open-source software, which offers thousands of compatible free programs and is easy to modify, alter, and improve.
However, Dell emphasizes that there is also a smaller number of Linux customers who are simply interested in finding an alternative to Windows. If that group grows, it could harm Microsoft’s profit growth. Every personal computer sold with Linux installed instead of the Windows system means one less licensing fee for Microsoft from the computer manufacturer. Microsoft and computer manufacturers do not disclose what those amounts are, but retail versions of Windows Vista generally cost between $200 and $400. On Monday, Chinese Lenovo, the third-largest personal computer manufacturer in the world, announced the introduction of a wide range of laptops with Linux – representing the largest application of open-source software to date by a leading computer manufacturer. Dell announced that the computers with the Linux operating system, whose sales in Europe began on Tuesday, have the installed version of Ubuntu Linux. (H)
