NetMarketShare, a globally recognised and trusted technology statistics company, has released its statistics of browser and operating system share for September 2016. Looking at the latest share report, it is definitely interesting, with at least a couple surprise changes.
Mobile Market Share September 2016
In September, Windows Phone share is reported to have increased by 0.05%, from 2.30% in August to 2.35% in September. This is a surprise change, as no recent changes or announcements by Microsoft have excelled any positive projections, however, it is possible that HP’s Elite x3 device is picking up good reception from businesses. Of course, there is also the margin of error to take into account, particularly following Windows Phones share increasing to 3.26% in June, only to fall to a share of 2.79% in July. Also of interest is that iOS fell by 2.18%, which is interesting due to the recent launch of its iPhone 7 devices.
Browser Market Share September 2016
Turning over to web browsers, Microsoft’s Edge browser remained steady at its previous market share, 5.16%, whereas Google’s Chrome increased from 53.97% to 54.41%, showing continued consumer trust and interest in the dominant browser. Likewise, Internet Explorer continued its fall, dropping from 27.38% in August to 25.48% in September. Firefox saw an increase, despite losing market share last month, bringing it up from 7.69% to 9.19%, likely due to Mozilla’s new commitment to bring enhanced features and support for the browser, such as separating tab processes out, much like Chrome. Apple’s Safari fell from 4.28% to 4.00%, which is in-line with the fall of MacOS, as noted below.
Desktop Market Share September 2016
Taking a look at the overall market share for operating systems, Microsoft’s Windows increased marginally from 90.52% to 90.85%, whereas Apple’s Mac fell from 7.37% to 6.92%, a trend that has been happening for quite some time. Linux saw an increase from 2.11% to 2.23%.
For you Microsoft fans, however, the more interesting statistics come when looking at the specific Windows versions and the share associated with each of them. As has been the case since June, Windows 7 market share is continuing to increase. It went from 47.25% in August to 48.27% in September. Likewise, Windows 10 usage fell from 22.99% to 22.53%. Windows XP also decreased, from 9.36% to 9.11%, along with Windows 8.1, from 7.92% to 7.83%.
September 2016 has definitely highlighted interesting points across Microsoft’s product lines – showing a decrease or stall in share of its latest operating system, while its latest browser also sticking to its current position. Surprisingly, its only increase is Windows Phone and Windows 7, one that ourselves wouldn’t have expected so soon for mobile, and Windows 7 appears to continue to hold the trust of consumers and businesses alike.
Let us know what you think of the latest market share figures in the comments below!
