PCR Tech and IT retail, distribution and vendor news
Antoine Gutzwiller, has won a lawsuit against Acer over a laptop he purchased that came pre-loaded with Windows XP and other software he didn’t want installed.
The French national claimed he had no choice but to buy the €599 Acer notebook with the seemingly ubiquitous operating system, which included Microsoft Works, PowerDVD, and Norton AV.
The court of Puteaux ruled against the manufacturer, which currently holds the title of world’s third largest computer vendor, and ordered it to refund Gutzwiller €311.85 to cover the cost of software pre-loaded on his notebook.
The judge ruled that Acer should also cough up €500 in fees to cover what it described as "abusive resistance and committed expenses".
It Is now possible that the ruling could set further precedent for future European cases involving pre-loaded software.
