Google has reignited a battle for the classroom with a foray into inexpensive hardware coupled with dirt cheap (often free) collaborative scholastic software; software that stands to threaten Microsoft’s future among users who learn to transition from using Google Docs in school to using the software in business.
Even with that being said, Microsoft’s position in enterprise appears to be strengthening at Windows 10 adoption continues to rise according to a recent study.
The latest figures from Context, a firm which receives data directly from European distributors points to Windows 10 now accounting for a quarter of all business PCs being sold.
The analyst house found that Windows 10 Pro accounted for 24% of Windows Business PCs sold through Western Europe’s distributors, up from 18% in July and 16% in June.”
Perhaps more telling is the Context comparison which highlights how Windows 7 and Windows 10 are trending very similarly in their respective 13-month life spans after launch.
For the first time in a long time, Windows users who are upgrading to Windows 10 outright have finally edged out the number of Windows users who have chosen to cling to Windows 7 or purchase Windows 10 and downgrade to Windows 7.
Furthermore, senior analyst Marie-Christie Pygott at Context also see signs of “European Windows 10 businesses spending picking up further towards the end of the current year.”
It has been a while since Microsoft has updated its Windows 10 install count from its 350 million tallies back in August 2016, but it seems reasonable to hear of more adoption numbers coming soon as the company’s primary customers (the business crowd) tepidly begin to upgrade as well.
While Microsoft appears to be fighting the future threat of Chromebooks and Docs offerings from Google in North America, it seems the company is solidifying its presence in the after-school, enterprise sector quite nicely.
