Avast Free Antivirus in 2019 [Let's Compare 2017 vs 2019]

[oldschool]

I'll have a look.

You will see some difference. Less scareware. :emoji_fearful::emoji_fearful::emoji_fearful:

 

[Bikeman0I17]

I Personally used Avast Free since 2006, but slowly starting to get away from it, scare tactics for one, and privacy started wondering on this year 2019, got 1 PC left with it installed, but probably not staying on there too much longer.

Got some other online friends I know that say I should reinstall it, and keep using it, but so far I haven't reinstalled it on the main Desktop or Laptop thus far

 

[uninfected1]

Due to the improvement of WD, the conversion from free users to paid users has declined from 25% (Yes that high in 2015) to below 10% Figure what that does to Avast's business model. The reduction of voluntary free-to-paid conversion is inversely proportional with the increase in aggressive tactics to convince free users in buying a paid subscription.

I wonder how effective these (imo) unacceptable tactics are in the longer term though. Sure, you'll get a lot of 'Joes' who wlll succumb to them, but the price Avast is paying is a reputation within the industry that is now in tatters in the minds of many.

 

[Windows_Security]

@uninfected1

That is the beauty of digital marketing and big data. Avast just has to monitor data of several sources (their own, their community, social media, google analytics, facebook pixel, affiliate network, utm etc) to keep it profitable and maintain brand reputation indicators at acceptable levels.

Remember the power users of security forums are not their target audience. But they scan these forums to get feedback. In 2015 I was asked by Avast to join a mini-conference in Prague which they held for their own Avast user forum advocates. They paid everything (also for my wife) and the CTO of Avast (Ondrej Vlcek) was very interested in what his own user base (a dozen Avast forum members) thought of planned new features and asked for feedback on existing features. At a dinner he told me he always asked some ' outsiders' (like me) who were active on security forums on these Avast advocates events. So besides big data they also organize qualitative market feedback.

My guess is that they know how to balance that perfectly.

Regards Kees

 

[RaduGL]

if any Avast employee is reading this thread, please stop scaring people for no reason: