The "Windows XP Apocalypse" - China's Headache
It is not uncommon in the United States to find that citizens like to keep abreast on the newest technology. Consumers constantly upgrade their gadgets to get the newest features, while businesses find it useful to upgrade systems to maintain security and support. When it comes to PC operating systems though, it appears that several consumers, both personal and business, are stuck in time.
In April 2012 Microsoft confirmed that its support for Windows XP SP3 and Office 2003 will end on April 8, 2013. Although two years seems like a pretty long time frame to allow users to migrate, it is important to take three major things into consideration.
The first issue, and probably most obvious, is that people do not like change. Once people become comfortable and familiar, often times they do not steer away from it. For example, it most cases, an iPhone user will consistently purchase iPhone upgrades, while an Android user may consistently buy Android upgrades. The battle between "team iPhone" and "team Android" appears to me to be simply a battle of familiarity and loyalty.The same applies to PCs. It is not often that people find the need to buy a PC, but when they do they are more likely to lean towards a brand and OS that they've become familiar with and loyal to.
The second issue to consider is that Microsoft has not had the best reputation when in comes to stabilizing operating systems. If you own a PC with a MS Windows operating system, I'm sure you are familiar with the several updates and patches that are recommended on a basis that is....too often. Windows XP, being 12 years old, is one of the most stable operating systems released by Microsoft to this date. From Windows Vista (flop), to Windows 7 (which is doing okay), to Windows 8 (super flop), Windows XP has been pretty much the only operating system proving itself trustworthy amongst consumers.
The last thing to consider is that based off figures provided by www.netmarketshare.com, as of July 2013, Microsoft currently owns approximately 92% of the overall market share for desktop operating systems. While that number may not be surprising to most, if you begin to break that market share down and look at the individual Windows operating systems Windows 7 is the largest chunk of the overall market share with 44.49%, and right behind it is Windows XP with 37.19%. I should also state, that the overall market share figure includes MS operating systems that we all thought have died such as Windows 8.1, Windows 2000, and Windows NT.
Microsoft estimates that there are currently 1.5 billion Windows users on the planet. Despite the end of support for Windows XP coming closer, it is also estimated that there are still 570 million PCs running Windows XP. Of that 570 billion, China has the largest sum on XP users. 72.1% of all machines are still running XP in China, and the country does not appear to be in a hurry to migrate. In case you do not know what end of support means: no security updates, hot-fixes nor free or paid support for almost three out of every four PCs in China. It is expected that this number will only be reduced to approximately 65% by April 2014.
Although Microsoft is looking to make as much as $32 billion in sales this year, what is referred to as the "Windows XP Apocalypse" by popular Windows blogger Paul Thurrot is more than a pain for the millions of users that need to migrate. In particularly, the consumers with the most worries are businesses. It is simple for individual users running a more recent OS, Vista for example, to purchase, download, and deploy the new OS. It is a bit more complicated, but completely realizable and rational, for users to migrate if their current PC meets the requirements for Windows 7 or Windows 8 since the OS can be bought from retailers and MS Certified partners. The problem is if a user is running a 12 year old operating system on their computer, how likely is it that the computer is compatible with the newer operating systems? Microsoft (being Microsoft) recommends that if PCs do not meet minimum system requirements, users should consider "purchasing a new business PC with Windows 8 Pro". While there are several things wrong with that previous statement, I digress.
Bottom line: If businesses and users in China do not move quickly, they're going to have a lot more concerns than they would if they began migration earlier. Enterprise migrations, according to Microsoft, can take 18 to 32 months. That means that several businesses in China are already way below the bar, and will not be prepared in 2014 if they have not already started migration. Seemingly, Microsoft is not going to go soft on the end of support this time. Based on their Support Lifecycle policy, "Microsoft Business and Developer products, including Windows and Office products, receive a minimum of 10 years of support (5 years Mainstream Support and 5 years Extended Support), at the supported service pack level". Windows XP users have gotten lucky for years 11 and 12, but with Microsoft trying to push their newer operating systems, this is a move that we should have all seen coming.
If you are a user that needs to migrate, I personally suggest Windows 7. Best of luck.
In April 2012 Microsoft confirmed that its support for Windows XP SP3 and Office 2003 will end on April 8, 2013. Although two years seems like a pretty long time frame to allow users to migrate, it is important to take three major things into consideration.
The first issue, and probably most obvious, is that people do not like change. Once people become comfortable and familiar, often times they do not steer away from it. For example, it most cases, an iPhone user will consistently purchase iPhone upgrades, while an Android user may consistently buy Android upgrades. The battle between "team iPhone" and "team Android" appears to me to be simply a battle of familiarity and loyalty.The same applies to PCs. It is not often that people find the need to buy a PC, but when they do they are more likely to lean towards a brand and OS that they've become familiar with and loyal to.
The second issue to consider is that Microsoft has not had the best reputation when in comes to stabilizing operating systems. If you own a PC with a MS Windows operating system, I'm sure you are familiar with the several updates and patches that are recommended on a basis that is....too often. Windows XP, being 12 years old, is one of the most stable operating systems released by Microsoft to this date. From Windows Vista (flop), to Windows 7 (which is doing okay), to Windows 8 (super flop), Windows XP has been pretty much the only operating system proving itself trustworthy amongst consumers.
The last thing to consider is that based off figures provided by www.netmarketshare.com, as of July 2013, Microsoft currently owns approximately 92% of the overall market share for desktop operating systems. While that number may not be surprising to most, if you begin to break that market share down and look at the individual Windows operating systems Windows 7 is the largest chunk of the overall market share with 44.49%, and right behind it is Windows XP with 37.19%. I should also state, that the overall market share figure includes MS operating systems that we all thought have died such as Windows 8.1, Windows 2000, and Windows NT.
Microsoft estimates that there are currently 1.5 billion Windows users on the planet. Despite the end of support for Windows XP coming closer, it is also estimated that there are still 570 million PCs running Windows XP. Of that 570 billion, China has the largest sum on XP users. 72.1% of all machines are still running XP in China, and the country does not appear to be in a hurry to migrate. In case you do not know what end of support means: no security updates, hot-fixes nor free or paid support for almost three out of every four PCs in China. It is expected that this number will only be reduced to approximately 65% by April 2014.
Although Microsoft is looking to make as much as $32 billion in sales this year, what is referred to as the "Windows XP Apocalypse" by popular Windows blogger Paul Thurrot is more than a pain for the millions of users that need to migrate. In particularly, the consumers with the most worries are businesses. It is simple for individual users running a more recent OS, Vista for example, to purchase, download, and deploy the new OS. It is a bit more complicated, but completely realizable and rational, for users to migrate if their current PC meets the requirements for Windows 7 or Windows 8 since the OS can be bought from retailers and MS Certified partners. The problem is if a user is running a 12 year old operating system on their computer, how likely is it that the computer is compatible with the newer operating systems? Microsoft (being Microsoft) recommends that if PCs do not meet minimum system requirements, users should consider "purchasing a new business PC with Windows 8 Pro". While there are several things wrong with that previous statement, I digress.
Bottom line: If businesses and users in China do not move quickly, they're going to have a lot more concerns than they would if they began migration earlier. Enterprise migrations, according to Microsoft, can take 18 to 32 months. That means that several businesses in China are already way below the bar, and will not be prepared in 2014 if they have not already started migration. Seemingly, Microsoft is not going to go soft on the end of support this time. Based on their Support Lifecycle policy, "Microsoft Business and Developer products, including Windows and Office products, receive a minimum of 10 years of support (5 years Mainstream Support and 5 years Extended Support), at the supported service pack level". Windows XP users have gotten lucky for years 11 and 12, but with Microsoft trying to push their newer operating systems, this is a move that we should have all seen coming.
If you are a user that needs to migrate, I personally suggest Windows 7. Best of luck.
Comments
Post a Comment