Windows XP Rules Global OS Market

Windows XP has attained operating system dominance, according to WebSideStory’s StatMarket, capturing nearly 35 percent of the worldwide Internet user population.

Users have been slow catching on to the operating system. It took 18 months since its October 2001 launch to achieve one-third of the market share, while Windows 98 reached the same benchmark in January 1999, only six months after it was released.

“Windows XP’s slower adoption rate on the Web may reflect a downshift in consumer’s willingness to upgrade operating systems since the launch of Windows 98,” said Geoff Johnston, vice president of product marketing for HitBox StatMarket. “There are many people who are probably completely satisfied with Windows 98. Others may want to upgrade, but don’t want to spend the money.”

Further underscoring Windows’ dominance are findings from OneStat.com. The company reported in September 2002 that Windows accounts for 97.46 percent of the global operating system market. The second most popular operating system, Apple’s Macintosh, trails dismally at 1.43 percent, followed by Linux with 0.26 percent.