Microsoft admits goal of 1 billion devices running Windows 10 won’t be achieved on time, blames phone business

Back in April 2015, before Windows 10 was even available, Microsoft made a very bold goal: Windows 10 on 1 billion devices “in two to three years.” Now, just shy of the operating system’s one-year anniversary, Microsoft is admitting defeat, as first reported by ZDNet‘s Mary Jo Foley.

“Windows 10 is off to the hottest start in history with over 350M monthly active devices, with record customer satisfaction and engagement,” a Microsoft spokesperson told VentureBeat. “We’re pleased with our progress to date, but due to the focusing of our phone hardware business, it will take longer than FY18 for us to reach our goal of 1 billion monthly active devices. In the year ahead, we are excited about usage growth coming from commercial deployments and new devices — and increasing customer delight with Windows.”