While the global smartphone market is as competitive as ever in terms of manufacturers fighting for the consumers’ love (and money), the long-raging platform war appears to be over. According to a recent report by Gartner, Android and iOS now account for 99 percent of global smartphone sales, rendering every other platform irrelevant. ( 雖然全球智能手機市場仍是廠商間對於消費者的激烈競爭，長期平台之戰爭似乎已經結束。根據Gartner，Android和iOS的最新報告，現在佔全球智能手機銷量的99％，使其他平台變成與市場無關。)
As the chart below illustrates that hasn’t always been the case. Back in 2010, Android and iOS devices accounted for less than 40 percent of global smartphone sales. Back then, devices running Nokia’s Symbian and BlackBerry accounted for a significant portion of smartphone sales and Microsoft’s market share stood at 4.2 percent. ( 如下圖說明了智能手機並非一直如此。早在2010年，Android和iOS設備佔據了全球智能手機銷量不到40％。當時，運行諾基亞的Symbian和BlackBerry設備佔據了智能手機銷量的顯著部分和微軟的市場份額為4.2％。)
While Symbian is long extinct and BlackBerry has started transitioning to Android devices, Microsoft has not yet given up on Windows 10 Mobile as a platform aimed at professional users. Whether Windows, or any other platform for that matter, stands a chance against the dominance of Android and iOS at this point seems highly doubtful though. ( 雖然 Symbian 是完全滅絕和黑莓已經開始移到Android設備上，微軟還沒有放棄在Windows10 Mobile而針對專業用戶。無論是Windows或其他任何平台對於這個問題，站在對Android和iOS在這一點上佔主導地位的機會似乎很值得懷疑。)
FRAMINGHAM, Mass., July 11, 2016 – Worldwide PC shipments totaled 62.4 million units in the second quarter of 2016 (2Q16), a year-on-year decline of 4.5%, beating the forecast of -7.4% by roughly 3%, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker. The United States market performed best, reflecting the strength of the U.S. dollar and relative
market stability.
Improvement in channel inventories appears to have contributed to the stronger results, along with an easier year-on-year comparison and easing of component supply. Unfortunately, these types of supply-side drivers don't necessarily reflect a change in consumer purchases. Even PC channels remain fairly cautious following challenges over the past year, so the results are not likely to raise the forecast.
Nevertheless, improved inventory levels put the market on a better footing for the second half of the year, and the expiration of free Windows 10 upgrades may transition some users into buying new systems rather than updating older ones. Commercial evaluations of Windows 10 remain healthy and a near-term driver that could also be contributing to the relative strength in U.S. shipments.
"The PC market continues to struggle as we wait for replacements to accelerate, along with some return of spending from phones, tablets, and other IT," said Loren Loverde, vice president, Worldwide PC Trackers & Forecasting. "Our long-term outlook remains cautions. However, the strong results in the U.S. offer a glimpse of what the market could look like with pockets of growth and a stronger overall environment. It's not dramatic growth, but it could push the market into positive territory slightly ahead of our forecast for 2018."
"As expected, the start of the peak education buying season helped generate large Chromebook shipment volumes in the U.S.," stated Linn Huang, research director, Devices & Displays. "A somewhat unexpected boost came from intensified inventory pull-in as cautious channel players, who had been working to pare down inventory over the last several quarters, opened up inventory constraints a bit. This was likely a one-time shipment boost to bring aggregate inventory levels back to market equilibrium. The larger story remains whether an early wave of enterprise transition to Windows 10 could help close out a 2016 that is increasingly looking stronger in the U.S."
In Europe, market sentiment remained muted. "Even the best case scenario calls for PCs to face significant challenges, with a somewhat fragile stabilization in the long run. The preliminary results did not capture the potential repercussions from the Brexit vote, which is expected to affect the timing and scope of spending plans in Europe," said Jay Chou, research manager, IDC Worldwide PC Tracker, "IDC continues to monitor the evolving situation closely. The better than expected 2Q16 results should not be interpreted as a harbinger of significant improvements for PCs."
分析及趨勢統計
- 智慧型手機平台主要贏家 Android，次要贏家 iOS 主控手機市場，將持續影響使用者之使用習慣，這趨勢使得 PC 市場持續衰退，PC時代完全結束了嗎？
- 而 Windows 把持 PC 市場使用者習慣也將持續減少，所以 Microsoft 策略應該有誤，Microsoft 策略應該是將PC 市場轉成PC 結合平板市場，才能維持Windows 使用者習慣之人數，否則，將有危機，因為使用者習慣改變了。Microsoft 平板都太厚太重，以致很難讓使用者習慣用Microsoft 平板。
- 在超低價智慧型手機時代，台灣廠商應該軟體、差異化及行銷創新成重點，如何再創新是台灣廠商之問題？
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