Intel snubs Microsoft in tablet market push

Chip maker wants to ship 40 million tablet processors this year, 90 per cent of which will be for Android, it claims

Intel has distanced itself from long-term partner Microsoft and placed its chips on Android as it bets big on tablets to bolster its market position.

The vendor claimed on an earnings call last night that it hopes to ship 40 million tablet processors this year alone, and admitted the vast majority of those will be on Android-based devices.

Microsoft has only a very thin slice of the tablet market after its Surface tablets failed to capture the imagination of users following the initial launch back in 2012.

According to Gartner figures from last month, Android grabbed 61.9 per cent of the global tablet market share and Apple snapped up another 36 per cent. Microsoft managed to snatch only 2.1 per cent.

Intel boss Brian Krzanich said that of the 40 million tablet processors it aims to ship, between 80 per cent and 90 per cent will be Android-based with the remaining 20 per cent to 10 per cent running on Windows.

He said his company's choice of tablet platform will track the market.

"Our percentages look very much like the marketplace," he said on the earnings call, which was transcribed by Seeking Alpha. "So if Windows continues to grow and gain traction, I think our percentage would just align directly to that. Don't separate what we ship from what's basically in the marketplace."

During its first quarter, Intel shipped five million tablet processors and claimed the result showed "strong progress" towards its 40 million unit goal.

Overall in Q1, which ended on 29 March, Intel's net income slumped 26 per cent annually to $1.9bn (£1.13bn) on sales which slid eight per cent to $12.8bn over the same period.