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Dell offers free Net access
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June 9, 1999: 4:09 a.m. ET
PC giant joins no-charge Internet market in UK, Europe to follow
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LONDON (CNNfn) - Dell Corp. plans to launch a free pan-European Internet service, making it the first computer manufacturer to join the increasingly congested no-charge Internet access market, according to a report published Wednesday.
Software for its DellNet service has already been rolled out in the United Kingdom and can be downloaded from the company website. It will now be pre-installed on Dell computers, allowing the company to accelerate growth in its online customer base and differentiate it from other ISPs, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Direct-sell manufacturers such as Gateway (GTW) already offer free Net access as part of their customer packages, but use other Internet service providers.
Dell held 9.8 percent of the European PC market in the first quarter of this year and, following the U.K. launch plans to offer the free service in France and Germany from June 21 and expand it to other countries this year, said the report.
The European ISP market has been shaken up by the success of Freeserve, the no-charge access offered by U.K. retailer Dixons (DXNS) which has secured 1.5 million subscribers in just nine months.
U.K. retailer Kingfisher (KGF) and France's Group Arnault last month announced plans for the first pan-European Internet service.
The rapid expansion of the European market has pushed Dell to alter its strategy from the United States where its computers come loaded with software offering free Web access for a limited time period.
DellNet runs on software provide by British Telecommunications (BT.A)
Dell (DELL) shares closed Tuesday down 1-3/4 at 34. 
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