Microsoft looks at old computers amid slowed transition from Windows 7 to Windows 10

Microsoft is now looking at the old computers that are still running older Windows 7. The company had ended the support for the software last month in a bid to encourage users migrate to the newer Windows 10. The upgrade process usually helps Microsoft register a quicker surge in demand for its products and services. In the case of Windows 7, it's not happening.

On older versions of Windows PC and other products, Microsoft's finance chief Amy Hood said that the trend gives the company a "great funnel" to think about how it can help consumers transition to the cloud.

One of the primary reasons behind the snail-paced Windows 7 upgrade is believed to be the derailed supply chain from China over the coronavirus outbreak. Microsoft last week had asserted it would not meet its quarterly revenue forecast for its Windows and personal computing business due to the coronavirus. Windows is said to contribute a significant 15% to the company's revenues.

Regardless the coronavirus outbreaks, a lot of users are using Windows 7 anyway. According to Statcounter, Windows 7 has roughly 23% share as of February 2020, and is the second most popular OS after the Windows 10.

Hood asserted the challenges involving the Windows 7 upgrade. "I think, in general, these cycles tend to look similar. But what I would say is this one is certainly more complicated by a number of things that I'll talk about in a second. What is different about this is there still remains quite a bit of opportunity more than we saw at this point in the prior cycle. A lot of that exists where you would expect it to exist, which is small and medium business segment. Not unusual, but it means that we do have some room to continue to grow and likely means that the curve will look different than last time in terms of its shape," she is quoted as saying.

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"Now, then you add to it two complicating factors, one of which you brought up, which have been chip supply, which has impacted some of the growth rates over the past bit. And then, the second one which is the supply chain currently in China in terms of bindings and productions. And so those will — and as we've talked about, will impact the quarterly results. And so I'm not sure it'll look like the exact same curve in terms of the prior cycle, not just because we have a little bit more left to go than we have had in prior cycles, but also because it's been a bit more volatile due to those two issues as we work through them," she added.