PC Shipments To Fall By Double Digits In 2013: IDC

Worldwide PC shipments are expected to fall by -10.1 percent in 2013, slightly below the previous projection of -9.7 percent, and by far the most severe yearly contraction on record, according to the International Data Corporation Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker. Even in emerging markets – a primary growth engine of the PC market – shipments are projected to decline in 2014 and recover by only a few percent during the forecast. As a result, PC lifespans continue to increase, thereby limiting market growth.” “The emergence of 2-in-1 devices designed to function in both clamshell and slate configurations – many of which will run Windows – along with Windows-based tablets themselves, is expected to provide some new volume for the Windows platform as well as the PC vendors and other parts of the traditional PC ecosystem in coming years,” said Loren Loverde, Vice President Worldwide Quarterly PC Trackers. However, relative to a PC market size of roughly 300 million units, these Windows tablets would add just a couple percent a year relative to PC growth. Even so, these Windows devices are projected to account for 10 percent of a combined PC & Windows Tablet market by 2016 – making them an important growth segment for the PC ecosystem.”