Microsoft's Windows RT operating system may fall to the same fate as Hewlett-Packard's (HP) webOS as most brand vendors have already stopped developing related products, leaving Microsoft's second-generation Surface RT, the only Windows RT-based device in the next-generation tablet competition, according to sources from the upstream supply chain.
Microsoft is also having trouble gaining growth in the smartphone industry, the company currently only has less than 1% and 3% shares in tablet and smartphone markets, respectively, the sources said.
Although Microsoft has been pushing measures including adding Outlook e-mail and calendar applications to its Surface RT, dropping Surface RT's prices in Japan, and providing students special prices for its Surface RT, to promote the ARM-based operating system, the efforts are unlikely to be answered with demand, the sources noted.
As for the smartphone segment, players such as Acer, Asustek Computer and ZTE, have also recently started postponing development of Windows Phone 8-based products, making Microsoft face difficulties gaining momentum in the mobile device market, the sources added.
The sources pointed out that Microsoft is also facing competition from operating system such as Chrome and Tizen, in the PC industry, and Windows 8.1's success will be important for maintaining Microsoft's morale in the IT market.
Article translated by Joseph Tsai
