Microsoft's Peril in Central Africa (Windows Usage Down Sharply)
THE countries where mobile phones - or cellphones as Americans typically call them - are abundant (compared to desktops and laptops) illuminate a problem Microsoft has been having in recent years. That's not to say Africa doesn't have many desktops and laptops; it's just that their relative share is small compared to mobile phones. In Somalia we see 6% for Chrome OS and 'proper' GNU/Linux (same in Ethiopia, which we wrote about last month; 6% for Chrome OS and 'proper' GNU/Linux isn't that unusual worldwide these days, but it's lower in Eritrea).
The above article (link at the top) shows that in more and more African countries, some of them very large, Windows is now measured at a mere 2%. Maybe later this year we'll even see 1%. █