Apple Co-Founder Steve Jobs Wanted Dell To License MacOS: Here's Why The Deal Didn't Work Out

Apple Inc AAPL co-founder Steve Jobs tried to convince Dell Technologies Inc DELL CEO Michael Dell to offer macOS to his customers.

What Happened: Dell made the revelation in an interview with CNET published on the 10th anniversary of Jobs’ death.

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Dell disclosed that he and Jobs became friends after the latter was ousted from Apple.

In 1993, Jobs visited his house in Texas more than once to persuade him to adopt the NeXT Operating system developed by the company Jobs founded after his exit from Apple, as per CNET.

Dell reportedly declined, citing a lack of software and consumer interest.

Later in 1997, after Jobs returned to Apple as interim CEO, he asked Dell to license a version of macOS built on NeXT’s Mach software, which had been ported onto an x86 architecture machine.

Jobs said, “look at this — we've got this Dell desktop and it's running Mac OS," as per Dell. Dell said Jobs asked, "Why don't you license the Mac OS?"

Why It Matters: Dell was interested in Jobs’ proposal and said he would pay a licensing fee for every PC sold with MacOS but Jobs was concerned about this affecting Mac sales, noted CNET.

See Also: Apple Likely To Launch New MacBook Pro In 'Coming Weeks,' Says Gurman

Jobs' counterproposal was that Dell installs MacOS and Microsoft Inc’s MSFT Windows operating system side-by-side on all Dell computers, allowing consumers to choose. Dell would in turn pay Apple a cut for all computer sales.

Dell would have to pay Apple licensing fees on each PC sold, irrespective of whether its customers used macOS or not. This did not make sense, as per Dell. Additionally, Jobs could not guarantee continued access to the operating system, CNET reported.

"It could have changed the trajectory for Windows and Mac OS on PCs," Dell said. "But obviously, they went in a different direction."

On Tuesday, Apple updated its website with a video that celebrated its co-founder.

The website also featured a statement from Jobs' family who wrote, "For all of Steve’s gifts, it was his power as a teacher that has endured. He taught us to be open to the beauty of the world, to be curious around new ideas, to see around the next corner, and most of all to stay humble in our own beginner’s mind."

Jobs’ successor Tim Cook is speculated to retire sometime between 2025 and 2028, as per the tech journalist Mark Gurman.

Price Action: On Tuesday, Apple shares closed nearly 1.4% higher at $141.11 in the regular session. The shares fell almost 0.2% in the after-hours session. On the same day, Dell shares closed 0.66% higher at $105.93 in the regular session.
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Photo: Courtesy of Ben Stanfield