Windows 7 use surpasses Vista - perhaps

Stephen Withers
Wednesday, 02 November 2011 08:10

Business IT - Technology

Worldwide use of Windows 7 has finally passed that of Windows XP, according to one web tracking company.

StatCounter reports that Windows 7 had a global web share of 40.5% during October 2011. This compares with 38.5% for Windows XP.

Thirteen months ago, StatCounter reported that Windows 7's global web share passed Vista's in September 2010. At that time, Vista still took a larger share in North America and Europe. StatCounter's analysis was that previous XP users in Africa, Asia and South America were bypassing Vista in favour of Windows 7.

Windows 7's web share passed XP's in the US in April 2011, and in Europe in July 2011. Despite its early adoption rate, Windows 7 still lags XP in Asia (36% vs 55%).

"Vista was like the ugly sister that few wanted to dance with," said StatCounter CEO Aodhan Cullen. "Despite Microsoft trying to keep it back in the kitchen, XP has retained tremendous loyalty over the last decade. However, it looks like the younger Windows 7 is now emerging in the Cinderella role."

Since the system requirements for Windows 7 are the same as for Vista, it isn't surprising that Vista's web share has slumped from 17.7% to 11.2% in just over a year.

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