Microsoft Projected To Steal Tablet Market Share From Google And Apple With Windows 10

Last month, we reported that for the first time since their market big break, tablets had begun to decline in overall sales. That caused analysts to backtrack on their projections a little bit, although many are still optimistic for the future. Right now, tablets mostly target the regular consumer, but they could evolve over time and spread out into other parts of the market.

According to IDC's latest report, 2015 could see a 2.1% increase in tablet sales - a modest gain, but a gain nonetheless. Beyond that, it continues to believe that we'll see growth in the years ahead, although it's once again going to be modest.

Despite the modest uptick, one company stands to gain handsomely: Microsoft. Windows 10 is shaping up to be a great OS, and one that could spur the sales of tablets based around the OS. While I have a hard time believing Windows 10 could do much better than Windows 8 did for tablets, IDC's Jean Philippe Bouchard makes a great point: "There is an appetite for a platform that can provide a productivity experience that remains consistent across multiple form factors and device types".

Google's Android has held 67.3% of the marketshare in 2014, and IDC predicts that will go unchanged during 2015. iOS, meanwhile, is expected to drop from 27.6% to 25.6%. That's where Microsoft's share comes in; it's projected to get a bump from 5.1% to 7.0%.

Even better for Microsoft: IDC says that by 2019, the company could own 14.1% of the tablet market. Things are not quite as positive for Apple, though, as it's expected to continue a decline, reaching 23.0% by the same period.