That practice was outlawed with the anti-trust decision 10 years ago.
Microsoft cannot charge an OEM for Windows on PCs that don't ship with Windows.
That being said, Microsoft does sell them bulk-discount Windows licenses. The more PCs they sell with Windows, the cheaper each license is for them. It is in the OEMs best interest to attempt to ship as many Windows licenses as possible.
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Re: Appealing to the wrong authority
Date: 2011-09-25 05:37 am (UTC)Microsoft cannot charge an OEM for Windows on PCs that don't ship with Windows.
That being said, Microsoft does sell them bulk-discount Windows licenses. The more PCs they sell with Windows, the cheaper each license is for them. It is in the OEMs best interest to attempt to ship as many Windows licenses as possible.