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Google’s Android has overtaken Microsoft Windows for the first time as the world’s most popular operating system (OS) in terms of total internet usage across desktop, laptop, tablet and mobile combined.
The research department of StatCounter, a web analytics firm, conducted a survey on the worldwide usage of various operating systems. During March 2017, Android topped the worldwide OS internet usage market share with 37.93%, which puts it marginally ahead of Windows (37.91%) for the first time.
StatCounter based its findings on 2.5 million websites and tracked the gradual converge of usage for the two operating systems over time. Aodhan Cullen, CEO StatCounter, said,
“This is a milestone in technology history and the end of an era. It marks the end of Microsoft’s leadership worldwide of the OS market which it has held since the 1980s. It also represents a major breakthrough for Android which held just 2.4% of global internet usage share only five years ago.”
Cullen said that main drivers of the breakthrough were the growth of smartphones to access the internet, a decline in sales of traditional PCs and the impact of Asia on the global market.
Operating Systems market share in Asia
In North America Windows (all versions) maintained its lead across all platforms with 39.5% share in March followed by iOS (25.7%) and Android (21.2%). It’s a similar story in Europe where Windows (51.7%) is more than twice the level of Android (23.6%). However, in Asia, Android is on 52.2% compared to 29.2% for Windows.
Operating Systems market share in Pakistan
Android OS dominated Pakistan during March 2017 with 57.68% market share, as compared to 26.98% of Windows OS.
However, Windows still dominates the OS desktop market (PC and laptop) with an 84% internet usage share in March. Cullen said,
“Windows won the desktop war but the battlefield moved on. It will be difficult for Microsoft to make inroads in mobile but the next paradigm shift might give it the opportunity to regain dominance. That could be in Augmented Reality, AI, Voice or Continuum (a product that aims to replace a desktop and smartphone with a single Microsoft-powered phone).”
