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Google’s Android Just Beat Microsoft Windows As Most Popular OS

Lucinda Shen
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Lucinda Shen
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Lucinda Shen
By
Lucinda Shen
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April 3, 2017, 11:05 AM ET
Opening Day Of The Mobile World Congress
An attendee enters the Google Inc. Android stand on the opening day of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain, on Monday, Feb. 27, 2017. A theme this year at the industry's annual get-together, which runs through March 2, is the Internet of Things. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesChris Ratcliffe — Bloomberg via Getty Images

Move mover, Microsoft: Google’s Android is now the world’s most popular operating system (OS).

That’s according to web analytics firm StarCounter, which found Android’s OS is most popular in terms of Internet usage across desktop, laptop, tablet, and mobile combined. In fact, in March, Android’s worldwide market share reached 37.93% — a smidge ahead of Windows and its 37.91% market share. It’s the first time Android has overtaken Microsoft on the OS front, StarCounter said in a Monday report.

“It … represents a major breakthrough for Android which held just 2.4% of global internet usage share only five years ago,” CEO of StarCounter Aodhan Cullen said in a statement. “It will be difficult for Microsoft to make inroads in mobile but the next paradigm shift might give it the opportunity to regain dominance. That could be in Augmented Reality, AI, Voice or Continuum (a product that aims to replace a desktop and smartphone with a single Microsoft powered phone).”

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Lucinda Shen
By Lucinda Shen
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