$60 to keep crapware off of a Windows PC?

Earlier today Slashdot pointed me to a CBC article citing unnamed sources at Microsoft decrying the state of "craplets" on PCs. Just what are craplets? It's a cute nickname for all of the software an OEM installs on your new Windows PC before it arrives on your doorstep. Think: 2 or 3 ISP sign-up applications, instant messengers out the wazoo, and software for updating all of this software. And a lot more. Check out the CBC article for more basic details on what craplets are and why they make people, including Microsoft, angry.

Why do we get craplets on our machines? The answer, as you probably could already guess, is that OEMs make money from crapware (a collective term for all craplets). Companies like RealNetworks or JASC Software will pay to have their applications (say, PaintShop Pro) pre-installed on a PC. It's even more lucrative, sources tell us, when these applications can be established as default handlers for as many file types as possible. It's advertising, OEM-style.

This is also partially how Microsoft got into trouble back in the days of Netscape vs. IE. Telling OEMs what to do turned out not to be as kosher as Microsoft thought, and they got a hand upside the head for it. Microsoft now complains that this puts them in the position of not being able to do anything about crapware.

What can be done to stop it? It's a money problem, so it's going to take money to fix. At least, that was the message from Michael Dell earlier this week at CES. Our own Eric Bangeman sat in on a round-table with Mr. Dell, and one of the topics raised there was what do to about crapware. When asked about it, Dell responded by asking participants how much they were willing to pay to receive a computer sans crapware. It seems that, at the end of the day, OEMs want that money to come in somehow, someway.

Of course, Dell framed it differently, saying that such deals help keep the cost of computers low, with the idea being that Dell is passing on the savings to you (as well as the joy of un-installation). To get a crapware-free PC, we'd have to be willing to pay more for our computers. Accounting can be creative, and there's probably some truth in the matter.

What's more interesting is Dell's response to an offer from someone in the group who said that they would pay $60 to receive a PC without all of this bundled software. Dell's response was "sold!," implying that this would indeed be enough to cover the loss of revenues. Dell didn't respond to other offers, including one for $10. Would you pay $60 more for an OEM PC without all of the bundled stuff? I couldn't stomach it.

We'll probably never be given the "opportunity" to pay more for a PC without crapware. There are just some things you give up control over when you decide to buy from an OEM instead of building a box yourself. Those of you sticking with the OEM route, there's always the PC-De-crapifyer.