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Gartner: Microsoft Tablet Market Share To Claim 4 Percent in 2012
Research firm Gartner is projecting that tablets running any version of Windows OS will make up 4.1 percent of all media tablets sold this year. It also projects that once Windows 8 tablet devices hit the market (estimated sometime in the second half of 2012), Microsoft's market share will increase to 11.8 percent by the end of 2016.
"IT departments will see Windows 8 as the opportunity to deploy tablets on an OS that is familiar to them and with devices offered by many enterprise-class suppliers," said Carolina Milanesi, research vice president at Gartner. "This means that we see Windows 8 as a strong IT-supplied offering more so than an OS with a strong consumer appeal."
Gartner has predicted that Microsoft selling 4.8 million devices this year will place it in third place in the tablet market, with Apple coming out on top with more than 72 million iPads sold and Android behind that with almost 38 million tablet devices sold.
Microsoft insider Mary Jo Foley was quick to point out in a recent blog entry that Gartner's projected numbers may be a bit off, as it tallied Microsoft selling zero tablets in 2011.
"I didn't notice this myself, but one of my Twitter buds (@mcakins) noted that Gartner mysteriously has Windows' share of the tablet OS market at 0 for 2011," wrote Foley. "They haven't been barn burners, but Windows tablets do exist already."
Gartner reached out to her and replied that Gartner's list tallied predicted sales of "media tablets" -- the firm classified tablet devices running Windows 7 as "tablet PCs."
Worldwide Media Tablet Sales (thousands of units)
| OS |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2016 |
iOS
|
39,998 |
72,998 |
99,553 |
169,652 |
Android
|
17,292 |
37,878 |
61,684 |
137,657 |
Microsoft
|
0 |
4,863 |
14,547 |
43,648 |
QXN
|
807 |
2,643 |
6,036 |
17,836 |
Other
|
1,919 |
510 |
637 |
464 |
Source: Gartner