Microsoft Corp said on Wednesday that its new Windows 10 software is running on more than 75 million computers, tablets and other devices — in just under a month since the operating system was released.
Analysts say that is a good start, although the company is hoping to get the software installed on a billion devices over the next three years. Microsoft, which is best known for making software for PCs, is hoping Windows 10 might help it rebuild loyalty among users who are increasingly relying on tablets, smartphones and other devices.
PC sales have been shrinking in recent years and that trend is likely to continue, according to a new forecast from International Data Corp. Analysts at IDC predicted on Monday that next year could mark the fifth consecutive year of declining PC sales worldwide.
Computer makers are hoping to get a boost from consumer interest in Windows 10, which manufacturers are making available on new machines being sold this fall, but IDC said in its report that Microsoft is also offering the new software as a free download for people who want to install it on their existing PCs.
The free upgrades probably account for the bulk of the 75 million devices now using Windows 10, analyst Patrick Moorhead of Moor Insights & Strategy said, although he said more new models are likely to be sold this fall.
Some of the machines getting Windows 10 are quite old.
Microsoft executive Yusuf Mehdi, who released the new figures on Monday, said in a Twitter post that, “even some devices manufactured in 2007 have upgraded to Windows 10.”
Along with new features, the software giant designed Windows 10 to fix some unpopular elements of Windows 8, the operating system’s previous version. It is intended to work on PCs, tablets, smartphones and other devices, although the company released it for PCs and tablets first.
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