Microsoft exec admits new reality: Market share no longer 90%, it's 14

[A Guy]

Microsoft exec admits new reality: Market share no longer 90% — it’s 14%

For many years, Microsoft was viewed as the dominant PC operating system vendor, with more than 90 percent market share on desktops and notebooks.

But the rise of computing on tablets and smartphones has turned the PC market into one slice of a much larger pie, and Microsoft chief operating officer Kevin Turner this morning told the company’s partners that they have to look at the world differently. Even though Microsoft still has 90 percent of the PC market, he said, the important figure is 14 percent, taking into account the entire world of devices.

Source

A Guy

 

[King Arthur]

So what they're saying is that MS is still the undisputed king of PCs, but they don't care and want to join the bandwagon of "mobile and cloud" so they can become Apple/Google and make us wonder why we're running Microsoft Windows in the first place?

Sometimes I hate where computing is heading, I really do.

Also, this bit made me chuckle:

Turner said that means focusing on disruption, differentiation and speed across a variety of devices

Disruption, aka: Engage in patent wars, buy-out and kill competition, aggressively persue ecosystem lock-in.
Differentiation, aka: Hi I'm Metro and you will say I am cool!
Speed, aka: We introduce hardware and have it fail, see Apple reinvent it and succeed, we come back again and fail harder than before.

 

[Slartybart]

Technology changes - MS has to adapt or suffer the fate of the 30 Carriage makers in Flint MI at the turn of the 20th century.

​

 

[King Arthur]

Well, unlike the carriages of ye olde days the PC will continue to be relevent for many years to come regardless of what OS ends up driving them; you just can't (among other things) play hard-core gaming, perform professional CAD, or do heavy-duty video editting on a tablet or smartphone.

MS proved with Windows 8 that they are more than willing to hang their core user base (consumer and business alike) out to dry in order to foolishly persue a market they have no slightest clue about. While I have some hope for Windows 9, the saying goes that history repeats itself and given that Nadella is someone who puts "the cloud" first I am hardly impressed.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, MS needs to take a step back and look back at its roots and what made it so great. PCs aren't going away, that foolish idea needs to die already. It's foolish of MS that even though they are the undisputed leader of PC operating systems they simply don't care and would rather toy with the idea of becoming the next Apple or Google.

 

[A Guy]

Well, unlike the carriages of ye olde days the PC will continue to be relevent for many years to come regardless of what OS ends up driving them; you just can't (among other things) play hard-core gaming, perform professional CAD, or do heavy-duty video editting on a tablet or smartphone.

While I don't dispute that, and will always have a PC myself, the thing is, the majority of people are using smart phones, and tablets. They don't care about doing those things. We are a subset here on the forums, and not the majority. We all agree with each other, but that majority isn't here, they are out there watching movies on a tiny (to me) phone screen. A Guy

 

[Slartybart]

Well, unlike the carriages of ye olde days the PC will continue to be relevent for many years to come regardless of what OS ends up driving them; you just can't (among other things) play hard-core gaming, perform professional CAD, or do heavy-duty video editting on a tablet or smartphone.

MS proved with Windows 8 that they are more than willing to hang their core user base (consumer and business alike) out to dry in order to foolishly persue a market they have no slightest clue about. While I have some hope for Windows 9, the saying goes that history repeats itself and given that Nadella is someone who puts "the cloud" first I am hardly impressed.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, MS needs to take a step back and look back at its roots and what made it so great. PCs aren't going away, that foolish idea needs to die already. It's foolish of MS that even though they are the undisputed leader of PC operating systems that they simply don't care and would rather toy with the idea of becoming the next Apple or Google.

Hmmm, I bet that's what the carriage makers thought too

---

you just can't
not yet....

Win8: No they didn't. Win8 had a bad rollout, but so did Win3, Win95, Win2000, WinXP, and WinVista. People forget change is pain. Win8.1 made improvements to Win8 based on customer feedback, and in relatively short time 8.1 update 1 was released.. XP had 3 SPs, Vista had 2.

---

and look back at its roots and what made it so great. PCs aren't going away, that foolish idea needs to die already.

DOS? :roflmao:

PCs are going away, when who knows. The trend is accelerating toward miniaturization and embedded processing.
TV and DVD players are Internet capable or ready
Printers are wireless
Tire stems are wireless (pressure sensors)
Cars have all sorts of chips in them
Houses are smart and can be controlled remotely *locked, heating/cooling)
New substrates are making chips smaller cooler and faster
Organic LEDs can be rolled up
Laser projection/detection is already available that creates a virtual keyboard

All of this spells the end of a 30 year industry.
It is the young who will adopt and adapt to typing in thin air, not this old man. As the article points out, MS only has 14% of the emerging market - they want 90% of that market too :shock:

I think devices like in the movie The Minority Report will be where the trend goes. Microsoft, the great imitator, has to balance it's current base while building stuff for the next user base. It's not easy!

But..... smartphones - the keys are wayyyyyy to small.

I don't know if you recall the DOS to Windows transition period. Developers couldn't care less about a GUI, it only slowed them down and made them less productive.

This will be my last post on this - it was fun going back through all of the memories about Windows changing. OMG, they changed Windows, OMG!

Bill
.

 

[Boozad]

MS only have a 14% share of a rapidly changing market because they missed the bus by a few years and fail to see that one size doesn't fit all. Now if they'd released W8 desktop and W8 Mobile it could well be a completely different story, and I'm pretty sure that when businesses are taken into account alongside home users then the amount of people who don't want cloud computing outweigh the number who do by a long stretch.

Desktop PCs won't go away, not when it comes to productivity and gaming.

 

[RBS7]

I think if Microsoft were part of the music industry, they would be viewed as the vinyl records. tapes and CD kings. The problem is the rest of the modern world are down loading songs directly and storing them on their iPads, tablets, and other devices. Who packs around tapes or CD's in their cars any more?

To me it seems, Microsoft was geared, more so, for a paper using world, but now, technology is moving people towards that paperless environment. Leaving Microsoft scratching their heads and touché trying to figure out how to cope.

They are so far behind the question remains can they catch up?

 

[RoasterMen]

Well, unlike the carriages of ye olde days the PC will continue to be relevent for many years to come regardless of what OS ends up driving them; you just can't (among other things) play hard-core gaming, perform professional CAD, or do heavy-duty video editting on a tablet or smartphone.

MS proved with Windows 8 that they are more than willing to hang their core user base (consumer and business alike) out to dry in order to foolishly persue a market they have no slightest clue about. While I have some hope for Windows 9, the saying goes that history repeats itself and given that Nadella is someone who puts "the cloud" first I am hardly impressed.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, MS needs to take a step back and look back at its roots and what made it so great. PCs aren't going away, that foolish idea needs to die already. It's foolish of MS that even though they are the undisputed leader of PC operating systems that they simply don't care and would rather toy with the idea of becoming the next Apple or Google.

Hmmm, I bet that's what the carriage makers thought too

---

you just can't
not yet....

Win8: No they didn't. Win8 had a bad rollout, but so did Win3, Win95, Win2000, WinXP, and WinVista. People forget change is pain. Win8.1 made improvements to Win8 based on customer feedback, and in relatively short time 8.1 update 1 was released.. XP had 3 SPs, Vista had 2.

---

and look back at its roots and what made it so great. PCs aren't going away, that foolish idea needs to die already.

DOS? :roflmao:

PCs are going away, when who knows. The trend is accelerating toward miniaturization and embedded processing.
TV and DVD players are Internet capable or ready
Printers are wireless
Tire stems are wireless (pressure sensors)
Cars have all sorts of chips in them
Houses are smart and can be controlled remotely *locked, heating/cooling)
New substrates are making chips smaller cooler and faster
Organic LEDs can be rolled up
Laser projection/detection is already available that creates a virtual keyboard

All of this spells the end of a 30 year industry.
It is the young who will adopt and adapt to typing in thin air, not this old man. As the article points out, MS only has 14% of the emerging market - they want 90% of that market too :shock:

I think devices like in the movie The Minority Report will be where the trend goes. Microsoft, the great imitator, has to balance it's current base while building stuff for the next user base. It's not easy!

But..... smartphones - the keys are wayyyyyy to small.

I don't know if you recall the DOS to Windows transition period. Developers couldn't care less about a GUI, it only slowed them down and made them less productive.

This will be my last post on this - it was fun going back through all of the memories about Windows changing. OMG, they changed Windows, OMG!

Bill
.

Ughh. I won't bother playing games with touch screen, it's horrible.

 

[Iforgot]

M$ missed the boat totally..

W8 should have been dual gui's, at least being simple to switch between the two.
Desktops for business would proceed as usual, tablet users could get accustomed to the new Metro concept.

Just think, a program that someone uses for business could be usable in both worlds, inside for stats and processing, outside for order taking/presentation.

And what even better for M$ is that they would have a massive pr-existing user base to work with, and promote a compatible phone/tablet interface, and data transfer to boot.

 

[Slartybart]

Ughh. I won't bother playing games with touch screen, it's horrible.

You don't have to use the Modern GUI, the Desktop is almost exactly like Win7.

People who haven't used Win8 (more precisely 8.1 update 1) just don't know what they're talking about.

W8 should have been dual gui's, at least being simple to switch between the two.
Desktops for business would proceed as usual, tablet users could get accustomed to the new Metro concept.

That's exactly what Win8.1 update 1 is!

MS didn't miss the boat (unless you accept what Boozad said - they were late to the game (as usual)).
Every release of Windows has growing pains. No release was perfect right out of the door, none!

If you want to bash MS or Win8, that's your prerogative, but you shouldn't parrot bad information and misconceptions.

Install Win8.1 update 1 and then cite what you don't like. I think a lot of people will be surprised.

This really is my last post on the subject (I promise), there's no point in debating anyone that doesn't have first hand knowledge.

(unsubscribed)

 

[Iforgot]

Ughh. I won't bother playing games with touch screen, it's horrible.

You don't have to use the Modern GUI, the Desktop is almost exactly like Win7.

People who haven't used Win8 (more precisely 8.1 update 1) just don't know what they're talking about.

W8 should have been dual gui's, at least being simple to switch between the two.
Desktops for business would proceed as usual, tablet users could get accustomed to the new Metro concept.

That's exactly what Win8.1 update 1 is!

MS didn't miss the boat (unless you accept what Boozad said - they were late to the game (as usual)).
Every release of Windows has growing pains. No release was perfect right out of the door, none!

If you want to bash MS or Win8, that's your prerogative, but you shouldn't parrot bad information and misconceptions.

Install Win8.1 update 1 and then cite what you don't like. I think a lot of people will be surprised.

This really is my last post on the subject (I promise), there's no point in debating anyone that doesn't have first hand knowledge.

(unsubscribed)

"That's exactly what Win8.1 update 1 is!"

That is what the first release of Win8 should have been.

 

[SIW2]

They need to work out what they doing.

Ferrari has a tiny fraction, of the "automobile market".They only operate in a small sector - deliberately. You could call it the "luxury sports car market."

If you add cars buses, trucks and bicycles to get the "personal transport market", you get an entirely different picture.

 

[jimbo45]

Hi there

Kodak was saying it was king of the photography market for years and saying how digital cameras would never be any good -- well we all know what happened to the likes of Kodak and Polaroid.

Ms is in a slightly different situation -- actually once the mobile phone market saturates Ms unlike Apple will STILL be supplying services and OS'es as well as having a decent set of mobile devices (surface pro 3) and the fledgling Windows phone market -- which will be good for the replacement phone stuff.

People are getting just a bit tired of Google and even AMAZON which is now supplying computer services for the CIA under US federal Govt contract --if that doesn't worry you as an amazon customer it really should.

Amazon's CIA Win Hurt More Than IBM's Pride - InformationWeek

Cheers
jimbo

 

[RBS7]

Ughh. I won't bother playing games with touch screen, it's horrible.

You don't have to use the Modern GUI, the Desktop is almost exactly like Win7.

People who haven't used Win8 (more precisely 8.1 update 1) just don't know what they're talking about.

W8 should have been dual gui's, at least being simple to switch between the two.
Desktops for business would proceed as usual, tablet users could get accustomed to the new Metro concept.

That's exactly what Win8.1 update 1 is!

MS didn't miss the boat (unless you accept what Boozad said - they were late to the game (as usual)).
Every release of Windows has growing pains. No release was perfect right out of the door, none!

If you want to bash MS or Win8, that's your prerogative, but you shouldn't parrot bad information and misconceptions.

Install Win8.1 update 1 and then cite what you don't like. I think a lot of people will be surprised.

This really is my last post on the subject (I promise), there's no point in debating anyone that doesn't have first hand knowledge.

(unsubscribed)

I agree that there are growing pains, unfortunately Windows 8.0, 8.1, 8.1 update 1 had birth defects and are afflicted for life. It has been several years now, and their usage numbers have declined.

Yes they are usable, but in my opinion, certainly not optimal. I have only 1 machine that runs properly with 8.1.1, I returned the others to version 8.0, to many problems.

 

[Iforgot]

They need to work out what they doing.

Ferrari has a tiny fraction, of the "automobile market".They only operate in a small sector - deliberately. You could call it the "luxury sports car market."

If you add cars buses, trucks and bicycles to get the "personal transport market", you get an entirely different picture.

I would like to hear to bicycle that sounds like a Ferrari..

Or how about a bus goes and that sounds like a Ferrari... :shock:

 

[jimbo45]

Hi there.

Stats can mean anything you want them to mean.

Take a part of Wimbledon (London SW 19 - quite an expensive area) -- nr of people who buy at least two bottles of wine in their supermarket shop will probably be much higher than say in a relatively poor part of Manchester UK (Moss Side) where a lot of people also are Muslims and therefore don't drink.

Stats might say just looking at Wimbledon a large percentage buy wine and is an increasing percentage - whereas in Moss Side it's probably fairly negligible.

Using these stats to estimate % of UK population buying Wine in their supermarket shop will lead to totally different results.

If you include markets that Ms doesn't have a share in or is very small then of course you'll get these type of results.

I think anybody who posts ANYTHING about statistics should at least demonstrate they have passed a decent level in elementary mathematics or at the very least have some idea of what they are trying to measure.

Cheers
jimbo

 

[Layback Bear]

It's me again. Layback Bear 3 brain cells tied behind my back.

I think most of us know Microsoft was a day late and a dollar short getting into the portable market in a meaningful way.
That was a management call.
I remember when IBM thought their would never be a PC market and Mr. Bill thought different. It happens.

Microsoft now has decided to get into the mobile market which I believe they should of been from the beginning.
It wasn't my call.

The part that I have a problem understanding is why does Microsoft think they have to abandon the stationary market. (PC's). I can't get my 3 brain cell wrapped around this idea. Their are large sums of money in both markets. Why not be in both markets in a big fashion. Microsoft has the money and technology to do both.

It reminds me of Windows Media Player.
Leaving it out of newer operating system just because many use 3rd party programs. DA, they use 3rd party programs because Microsoft hasn't updated the capability of WMP since Moses was wearing short pants.
Instead of fixing WMP they just through it away.
I would like to be able to go to a Microsoft site and be able to update WMP so I could use my two BluRay players with my store bought BluRay DVD's.

Instead of fixing things so Microsoft can be big in both portable and PC markets they seem to have decided to just through the PC market away in a somewhat slow fashion.
PC's will never go away if Microsoft has a corporate desire to keep PC's in their market plan.
The computing world is heading in a new direction like it always does. Who in the hell came up with the idea it could only go in one direction at a time. I think this thought pattern came from board rooms. It sure didn't come from consumers. Consumers want both; portable and PC's.

A perfect example is this forum and it's members.
John owns several Computer Help Forums and I would bet a dollar to a one legged tap dancer he also owns portable devices and know how to use both.
As a consumer we are allowed to buy into both markets and we do. I wonder how many members on this forum use both portable and PC's? One does not replace the other but instead (portable/PC) have the capability of working with each other as it should be.

Here is a example where two large companies want in both markets and are joining hands to do so.
http://www.zdnet.com/ibm-apple-forge-enterprise-app-pact-watson-meet-ipad-7000031641/


My rant for the day.
Layback Bear

 

[eatup]

It's me again. Layback Bear 3 brain cells tied behind my back.

I think most of us know Microsoft was a day late and a dollar short getting into the portable market in a meaningful way.
That was a management call.
I remember when IBM thought their would never be a PC market and Mr. Bill thought different. It happens.

Microsoft now has decided to get into the mobile market which I believe they should of been from the beginning.
It wasn't my call.

The part that I have a problem understanding is why does Microsoft think they have to abandon the stationary market. (PC's). I can't get my 3 brain cell wrapped around this idea. Their are large sums of money in both markets. Why not be in both markets in a big fashion. Microsoft has the money and technology to do both.

It reminds me of Windows Media Player.
Leaving it out of newer operating system just because many use 3rd party programs. DA, they use 3rd party programs because Microsoft hasn't updated the capability of WMP since Moses was wearing short pants.
Instead of fixing WMP they just through it away.
I would like to be able to go to a Microsoft site and be able to update WMP so I could use my two BluRay players with my store bought BluRay DVD's.

Instead of fixing things so Microsoft can be big in both portable and PC markets they seem to have decided to just through the PC market away in a somewhat slow fashion.
PC's will never go away if Microsoft has a corporate desire to keep PC's in their market plan.
The computing world is heading in a new direction like it always does. Who in the hell came up with the idea it could only go in one direction at a time. I think this thought pattern came from board rooms. It sure didn't come from consumers. Consumers want both; portable and PC's.

A perfect example is this forum and it's members.
John owns several Computer Help Forums and I would bet a dollar to a one legged tap dancer he also owns portable devices and know how to use both.
As a consumer we are allowed to buy into both markets and we do. I wonder how many members on this forum use both portable and PC's? One does not replace the other but instead (portable/PC) have the capability of working with each other as it should be.

Here is a example where two large companies want in both markets and are joining hands to do so.
IBM, Apple forge enterprise app pact: Watson, meet iPad | ZDNet


My rant for the day.
Layback Bear

I predict tablets (with docking stations) will replace PCs come Skylake CPUs. These little portable devices will be capable of decent gaming, CAD, 3D rendering to make Pixar movies, you name it. Microsoft sees this coming. If I was them, I'd do the same. Desktops/laptops will soon become extinct. Once again, you will have a small tablet with Skylake that can transform into a laptop or desktop if need be... Computers will just get smaller and smaller (the first computer was the size of a room). The size of the mini-tower desktops we have now will seem like dinosaurs to folks a few decades later!

Heck, I predict 50 years from now, tablets will die off too, to be replaced by computers the size of... You'll have a smart watch that can stream contents to a monitor. No need for clunky tablet-sized displays when the watch can also project a hologram with you interacting with the projected image via what we already currently have: 3D touch!

Include a blue tooth keyboard and you effectively have a desktop --- one that you can wear!

 

[Alejandro85]

The whole affirmation is flawed, in fact. When they say going from 90 to 14 they're comparing apples to oranges. The 90% share of yesterday was only on PC market, and the 14% of today was including a broad range of different devices, so how can we even attempt to compare those?

If we restrict only to the PC market of today, MS says it's still around 90%, not much lower than in the past really, so what's the surprise?

BUT! If we take into account the full range of devices of 10/15 years ago, then they're definitely NOT at 90%. While tablets and phones didn't existed yet (or at least to the extent of today), the whole article misses an important market, servers. There, Windows always had a bad history, generally speaking, and Linux and other Unix variations where the undisputed leaders there, even in the past. No idea what percentage would then MS have really back then, but it's not 90% for sure, not even close.