In April 2015, before Windows 10 was even released, Microsoft set a very lofty goal: “In two to three years” Windows 10 will exist in 1 billion Appliances. Today marks the one-year anniversary of the operating system's release, and Microsoft has admitted defeat for the first time, as reported by ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley.
“Windows 10 had the hottest start in history with over 350 millions monthly active devices, with record customer satisfaction and loyalty," said a Microsoft spokesperson.
"We are pleased with our progress to date, but due to the focus on our phone hardware, it will take longer to reach the goal of 1 billion monthly active devices with Windows 10."
In other words, Windows 10 Mobile did not deliver as expected, since there is virtually no Windows Mobile, at least not as Microsoft dreams of, or to say it better, not as its customers dream.
Microsoft also clearly calculated the sales of devices running with the mobile operating system of the company, so perhaps the target of one billion devices seemed feasible, although I personally find it still very high. But sales of Windows phones are falling more and more every quarter, so much so that Microsoft has to revise its target schedule with Windows 10.
Windows 10 had been installed on over 75 million computers in the first four weeks, then 110 million devices arrived at 10 weeks, at 200 million in less than six months, at 270 million after eight months at 300 million after nine months, and then 350 million after 11 months.
The numbers are definitely impressive as they surpassed any other operating system of the company, even the Windows 7. So "Microsoft failed to achieve its goal."
In the meantime, Microsoft's free upgrade offer ends this month, and as we have before, the company should seriously consider expanding it.
