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I asked a company if they could sell me a PC without an installed Operating System, as I plan to install my own. Their response was that "We have to legally include a OS with all of our systems. So we include Windows 10." It surprised me that this would be a legal issue rather than a company policy.

The company is based in Utah. Is this an actual legal requirement by law? Why? Could it be to protect consumers? Would it protect the company from liability? Is it likely part of a contract they are in? Or is this a misunderstanding by customer service?

I didn't find anything with a cursory web search. (I am a new poster, so any critiques of my question are welcome.)

jacobandgeckos
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2 Answers2

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No

AFAIK there is no such legal requirement.

Why this company told you there was I can’t speculate, but I will:

There may be under contract with Microsoft to put their OS on every box they sell — that would be a legal requirement. Or they just don’t sell boxes without this and their employee told you it was a legal obligation to get out of the conversation.

Runxi Yu
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Dale M
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I am not aware of any legal requirement to include software with hardware. If they insist on providing an operating system, tell them to include Linux, as this costs $0 so you do not need to pay for the Windows license.

As Dale M says, if they have a contract with a provider to force certain software onto their customers, that does mean that they specifically have a contractual obligation to give you that bloatware. Then again, you have no legal obligation to purchase from them.

David Siegel
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James Geddes
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