2013 set to be worst-ever year for PC market

Worldwide PC shipments worse than IDC expected, making it the worst yearly slump on record

The end of this month is set to mark the worst year ever for the PC market, according to IDC, which is less than optimistic about the market's long-term future.

The analyst forecasts global PC shipments to fall by 10.1 per cent annually for the whole of 2013 – what is expected to be the worst year-on-year slump on record. It had thought the market would only contract by 9.7 per cent annually.

Next year, worldwide shipments will shrink by a further 3.8 per cent before eventually flattening out around 300 million, a similar shipment figure to that in 2008.

Even emerging markets – a growth engine for the PC market – are going off PCs, with shipments across the regions forecast to decline next year too, IDC said.

Jay Chou, senior analyst at IDC, said use cases for PCs have not evolved, meaning lifespans have extended, resulting in limited growth.

"Perhaps the chief concern for future PC demand is a lack of reasons to replace an older system," he said. "While... the PC still remains the primary computing device – for example, PCs are used more hours per day than tablets or phones – PC usage is nonetheless declining each year as more devices become available.

"And despite industry efforts, PC usage has not moved significantly beyond consumption and productivity tasks to differentiate PCs from other devices. As a result, PC lifespans continue to increase, thereby limiting market growth."