Microsoft: Windows 8 Sales 'on Par' with Win 7 after 3 Months

News
By Zak Islam
published

Operating system has sold more than 60 million licenses.

Microsoft has said that Windows 8 sales are on par with Windows 7 three months after the former operating system's launch.

"More than 60 million licenses sold is on par with the record setting pace we saw with Windows 7," said Microsoft Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Financial Officer Tami Reller, in a Windows blog interview.

She added that users' demand for touch is increasing. "Together, we've made progress, and the trajectory of touch devices continues to grow. From tablets, to touch laptops, to all-in-one PCs, customer interest in new touch form factors is increasing."

Reller also revealed that the Windows Store surpassed 100 million downloads during the first two months of launch. The number of apps available for the platform has more than quadrupled since the launch of Windows 8, with the executive stating that the Windows Store allows developers to utilize their own commerce engines and retain 100 percent of in-app sales profits.

Microsoft, which has blamed PC vendors for having below par Windows 8 sales, previously said the 60 million licenses sold figure could be attributed to both upgrades and sales to manufacturers instead of sales of only PCs.

Research firm Gartner said that during the Q4 of 2012, Windows 8 failed to have a "significant impact" on PC shipments. A month after its launch, Windows PC sales decreased by 21 percent, while it's also behind Windows Vista in regards to usage share.

During January 2013, Windows 8's market share stood at 2.2 percent, an increase from 1.72 percent in December 2012. Windows 7, meanwhile, accounted for 44.4 percent of the worldwide operating system market. During 2012's Q4, Microsoft's Windows division generated revenue of $5.88 billion, an increase of 24 percent year on year.

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Zak Islam
54 Comments Comment from the forums
  • jisamaniac
    I have yet to meet anyone using Windows 8 on a tablet.
    Reply
  • anononon
    Win 8 on a tablet is the only way I found win/fail 8 semi-appealing with its start screen b.s.

    I have a hard time believing this considering TH just published this the other day: http://www.tomshardware.com/news/Windows-8-Market-Share-Microsoft,20859.html


    Reply
  • ta152h
    jisamaniacI have yet to meet anyone using Windows 8 on a tablet.
    I've yet to meet anyone who's cousin's, sister's dog is using a Windows 8 Tablet.

    I know cousin's, sister's, dogs that are still using Window 3.11, but not Windows 8 Tablet (I think the dogs prefer the simpler interface. To be honest, they aren't that smart).

    Selling out the PC for the tablet and phone was a big mistake. But, we have to expect that from Microsoft these days.
    Reply
  • Retrowire
    The sales caught up because they're forcing everyone to have it on their new computers, and forcing all the builders to pay for it out of the fact that it's cheaper than their last OS, Windows 7. They don't have a right to brag and tout their sales quotas if they did it unfairly.

    That's like saying .50 Oranges are better than 1.00 Apples because people buy oranges more than apples.
    Reply
  • InvalidError
    How many of those sales are:
    1) people who faked having a new Win7 PC to get the $15 upgrade
    2) people who had a genuine new Win7 PC and upgraded for $15
    3) people who upgraded for $40

    So Microsoft had to practically give Win8 away to catch up with Win7... doesn't sound particularly good to me.
    Reply
  • Pinhedd
    TaplampThe sales caught up because they're forcing everyone to have it on their new computers, and forcing all the builders to pay for it out of the fact that it's cheaper than their last OS, Windows 7. They don't have a right to brag and tout their sales quotas if they did it unfairly.That's like saying .50 Oranges are better than 1.00 Apples because people buy oranges more than apples.
    They did the exact same thing with Windows 7. They did the exact same thing with Windows Vista. They did the exact same thing with Windows XP. As soon as they release a new OS, they start loading up the OEMs with it.
    Reply
  • Ragnar-Kon
    jisamaniacI have yet to meet anyone using Windows 8 on a tablet.I have yet to meet anyone that is using Windows 8 period. Everyone I know is either on Windows 7, Mac OS X, or have ditched their desktops all together for an iPad/Android tablet.

    My boss (who isn't exactly computer literate) actually returned his brand new Windows 8 laptop in exchange for a Macbook Pro because he found Macs easier to use. When you have a life-long Windows user switching to Mac because it is easier to use than Windows 8--you got a problem.

    And as much as Microsoft is claiming that Windows 8 is doing fine... everyone knows they are a little bit disappointed with the reception it has gotten so far.
    Reply
  • SoiledBottom
    Zak Islam....master of deception
    Reply
  • ringzero
    PinheddThey did the exact same thing with Windows 7. They did the exact same thing with Windows Vista. They did the exact same thing with Windows XP. As soon as they release a new OS, they start loading up the OEMs with it.
    Partially true, but PC makers typically gave you a choice when custom ordering for about 6 months after the new OS released. This time, nope. Win7 is byebye, there is no option on most configs.
    Reply
  • tpi2007
    This is PR talk for failure. Let's see:

    1. The PC install base is bigger than it was back in 2009 when Windows 7 was launched, therefore the market for upgrades is bigger;

    2. Microsoft did indeed state that they had a 40% increase in Windows 8 upgrade sales. That was because of what I stated in nr. 1., but also because:

    a) The special upgrade offer was for Windows 8 Pro compared to Windows 7 Home Premium; this offering of a higher tier product at that price level was never done by Microsoft;

    b ) The special upgrade price was $39.99 compared to $49.99 for Windows 7, so not only cheaper, but also a higher version (with free Media Center upgrade to bring it on par feature wise with Windows 7 HP);

    c) For the first time ever, people who had installed the Consumer and Release Preview also qualified for the special Windows 8 Pro upgrade price;

    d) For a few days people were able to insert false data regarding their date of purchase of a computer (MS didn't want a scanned receipt or anything to verify, so even the purchase of the PC could be fictitious) on Microsoft's site in order to be able to only pay $15 for the upgrade, in what amounts to either a deliberate marketing stunt without admitting to it or it was just incompetence, in any case, many people got the chance to upgrade for even cheaper;

    3. They are not stating how many people are actually using Windows 8. Many people just took advantage of the special upgrade price ($39.99, or 29,99 € in Europe, which is what I paid), and are keeping the .ISO on the HDD or on a burned DVD, while still using Windows 7. Data from Internet browsing suggests that people are not actually using Windows 8, it's usage share is below Windows Vista for the same period (and that is worrying given that the market was not only smaller back in 2007, but Windows XP wasn't as old as it is now. In fact, Windows XP's usage actually went up slightly in January (http://www.tomshardware.com/news/Windows-8-Market-Share-Microsoft,20859.html) as strange as that seems!

    4. The Market shares of tablets with Windows 8 And Windows RT with touchscreen input are 0.08% and 0.02% respectively, and that is supposed to be the main focus of the OS, at least according to their ads that show nothing but the once called Metro UI.

    There is only so much bending of reality Microsoft can do. The Surface Pro should be a niche product given its size, weight, and especially battery life (4- 5 hours according to none other than Microsoft) and price, not to mention many tech savvy people will probably wait for a Haswell powered Surface Pro with much better battery life later in the year.

    Considering that the special upgrade price offer has ended, and the holiday season before that, Microsoft can only count on more and cheaper touchscreen devices being sold. Perhaps Atom powered instead of Core i5 powered, but until Intel releases the 22nm out of order with Ivy Bridge graphics Atom, I don't think many people will buy those either as they will be waiting. So the hope lies with cheaper ARM powered tablets, but will people buy a Windows RT powered tablet that doesn't differentiate itself because it can't run desktop applications instead of an Android powered device that has a store with many more apps ?

    My bet is that Microsoft may see a noticeable increase in sales in the second half of the year, but even then Windows 8's performance in the market and usage share will comparatively be below Windows 7.
    Reply