re: Live Essentials Update Rant

Stein Aasmul — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 20:05:48 GMT

This is the well known bloatware strategy from companies such as RealNetworks from years back. It is all about tricking people into installing bundles of stuff they did not ask for. It is all marketing mumbo jumbo, but sadly it works well. My bet is that 90% of the people installing this will not know what to do and will leave the settings as they are.

I am not as concerned with the software in question - since the app might not even be used even if installed (i.e. there is still a choice) - but the automatic changing of the search provider is a blatant display of typical Microsoft monopolism. In effect it is trying to direct people away from Google by sheer trickery.