The founder of DriverPack Solution changed the business model and earned $ 1 million on installing drivers and utilities.

    “People face problems when they start using the computer actively,” says 25-year-old founder of DriverPack Solution ( DPS ), Arthur Kuzyakov. Many of the problems users of Windows, according to Kuzyakov, are associated with installing drivers.

    DPS installs drivers automatically. By 2014, the program brought its creator about $ 1 million in net profit.

    How it all began


    At 10, Kuzyakov got a computer. “While all my classmates were playing on the computer, I climbed into the depths of the OS, trying to understand how it works,” he recalls. Kuzyakov began to provide computer assistance while still a student: “At first I worked without an office: I had a website, I bought advertising, promoted and developed the website, executed orders, in short, I did everything myself.” A year later, Kuzyakov registered an IP for his father, rented a small office for 10 thousand rubles a month and hired four friends as employees.

    “Installing drivers on each individual computer took too much time,” says Kuzyakov.
    In May 2008, he created there was a driver package for Windows, which allowed you to configure multiple computers at once. “My employees began to set up computers twice as fast for people, respectively, to fulfill twice as many orders,” says the entrepreneur.

    According to Kuzyakov, DPS can solve two problems: firstly, to speed up the process of setting up a computer, and secondly, to improve the quality of its work. “We were able to make the program so simple that not only the system administrator, but even a simple user can press one button, and the program itself will monitor, analyze the system and install everything that is needed,” says DPS spokesman Alexander Blikshtein.

    Search for a business model


    Kuzyakov could not attract the desired amount ($ 1 million) for the development of the project. “I didn’t consider it a big amount, but investors figured it out,” the entrepreneur laughs. In 2009, Kuzyakov began selling the program on CD discs through the site. At that time, due to the slow Internet, it was more difficult to download software than to buy a CD for 150 rubles. On drives Kuzyakov earned 300 thousand rubles a month. In 2010, Kuzyakov realized that in addition to drivers, software installation also takes a lot of time for users, and decided to add useful programs to the DPS package - codecs, players, browsers, antiviruses, archivers.

    Yandexbecame the first DPS client: at first, through the program, it was proposed to set the Yandex.Bar search bar, set up a default search, make Yandex the home page, and subsequently install Yandex.Browser. “If you compare different methods of attracting users, then users coming from DriverPack are loyal to Yandex,” says Vadim Kovalev, head of Yandex's desktop distribution department.

    Then Kuzyakov’s partners were Opera , Amigo (from Mail.Ru Group) browsers , Chinese 360Total Security antivirus or Kaspersky antivirus, various codecs and archivers. For the installation of their programs, these companies pay DPS affiliate deductions: either a fixed amount - from 2.5 to 15 rubles for each installation, or a part of the income (from 30 to 60%) received due to attracted users.

    According to Kuzyakov, monthly DPS generates at least 1 million installations of affiliate software, and the total number of service users worldwide exceeds 35 million. According to SimilarWeb, in July, 5.6 million users visited the DPS website.

    For half a year in 2012, even Microsoft was among the DPS partnerswith Internet Explorer. “When we started cooperation, the browser could not automatically update, and we worked together with the company to increase the user base of the most modern version of IE at that time,” said Microsoft marketing manager Anton Grachev to RBC.

    For large IT companies, DPS distribution is a convenient and inexpensive way to attract customers.

    A spoon of tar


    Such a business model is rapidly becoming obsolete, says Parallels Access Program Management Director Alex Patsay:
    “At one time, Google had a good affiliate program to distribute the Google Toolbar in third- party software. But at some point it began to seem that you turn on the iron - and there will also be a Google Toolbar, it began to annoy people, and this spread has become smaller. "

    The release of the new version of Windows 10 also weakens the situation of DPS. Windows 10 solves problems with drivers better than previous versions, but it’s still a long way to go to resolve them, according to DPS. “Windows remains the most popular operating system. The release of new Windows has already attracted 20% more traffic to our company’s website, ”says DPS spokesman Alexander Blikshtein.

    RBCcites data from Mikhail Popov, senior analyst at IDC corporate systems: less than 10 companies work in the driver installation segment of the Russian IT market, including foreign ones, Driver Detective (7.4 million visits to the product’s website, according to SimilarWeb in July 2015) , Driver Genius (480 thousand), Device Doctor (250 thousand). DriverPack competitors charge users: Driver Detective works according to the freemium model - the free version has limitations, the paid version costs $ 29.95 (about 2 thousand rubles at the current rate), and Driver Genius and Device Doctor have improved paid versions of Pro.

    Future plans


    Kuzyakov continues to search for new ideas for the development of the company’s business. On its own initiative and at its own expense six months ago, DPS became a resident of the accelerator of the Internet Initiatives Development Fund. In addition, the company plans to conquer the mobile market: after the release of the new version of DPS, entrepreneurs will develop and release products that automate the configuration of Android devices .

    Arthur Kuzyakov believes that today DriverPack controls 5% of the Russian market for installing drivers.

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