PC prices plunge to zero

In what could be the beginning of the end of the PC price war, a US company is offering to give Compaq computers away for free.

Free-PC is offering free computers with modems and free Internet connections; in return, applicants must answer 20 questions about themselves for marketing purposes and put up with the borders of their screen being filled with adverts, whether they are online or not. Up to 2GB of adverts are stored on the PC's hard drive, updating automatically when users go online.

The firm hopes ad revenues will more than make up for the money it loses on the PC giveaway.

But Jupiter Communications analyst, Elizabeth van Couvering, said: "It's not impossible that the lifetime value of the customer would exceed the cost of the hardware, but it is an unproven stream of revenue." She added that it is likely that a clever hacker will find a way to remove the ads and share their methods with Web users.

For more information see www.free-pc.com.