system
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I can vouch that it works just fine when one does so. I hope they never remove these options.
As far as why companies create more “encompassing” products, everyone wants to reach more users. There are only a limited number of users who know what they’re doing with computers, and they already have Avast!, so clearly the rest need more. 
Let us also not ignore the fact that Microsoft also provides anti-malware protection With Windows 8+. Perhaps Alwil feels they now need to differentiate the Avast! product from the basic protection provided by Microsoft right out of the box. Most folks probably can’t tell the difference between the protection afforded by Security Essentials vs. Avast!, and seeing a bunch of visible evidence of Avast!'s presence gives them warm fuzzies.
I agree that also I prefer lean, focused products to “all-encompassing suites”. Of all the entries in the first sections shown in the Everything tab in Autoruns (i.e., extra “stuff” application designers feel you “need” running in the background), I have a majority disabled.
-Noel