Microsoft has admitted that it's prepared to make alterations to Windows 8 in order to make it easier to use. At the same the firm has released new figures that show that 100 million licences for the operating system were sold in its first six months on the market.
That total places it at a similar level of sales as its predecessor Windows 7 was six months on from its initial launch. The figure includes sales of licences to OEMs as well as upgrades to Windows 8. It does not include copies sold via volume licensing agreements, and it is uncertain whether Windows RT sales are included.
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Despite the seemingly positive numbers, Windows 8, which was designed primarily for touchscreen devices, has been widely criticised for being confusing to use.
Gabe Newell, co-founder and managing director of predominantly PC-focused video game developer Valve, last year labelled Windows 8 as "a catastrophe for everyone in the PC space".
The OS was designed for Microsoft's Surface tablet, which was intended to compete with Apple's iPad and a variety of Google devices, but hasn't come close to threatening either.
"Is it perfect? No. Are there things we need to change? Absolutely. We are being very real about what needs to change and changing it as thoughtfully and quickly as we can", said Tami Reller, co-head of Microsoft's Windows unit.
She also acknowledged that the company needs to do more to help Windows 8 users with the look and feel of the interface, without alluding to specific plans for how it might do so.
"The learning curve is real, and we need to address it," said Reller. "We're not sitting back and saying 'they will get used to it'. We've considered a lot of different scenarios to help traditional PC users move forward as well as making usability that much better on all devices."
Windows 8's user interface is designed to be consistent across multiple device types, meaning it did away with traditional Windows software features such as the "start" button and replaced it with a touchscreen-optimised tile-based screen set up - which has received a lukewarm welcome.
But according to Robert Rutherford, managing director of IT consultancy QuoStar Solutions, the reason Windows 8 struggles to be accepted isn't because of the new user interface.
"Windows 8 was a failure of timing, not of design. Microsoft has set itself up in 2013 as a source of creativity and innovation, the problem is that the new vibe doesn't yet gel with what users know and expect from the brand," he said.
"On this occasion Microsoft pushed the envelope too much, but the time for these innovations will come. It's important that Microsoft keeps doing what it's doing to provide a challenge to Apple's creative dominance.
"On the commercial side, many businesses rely on Microsoft for their IT solutions whilst Apple focuses its energies in the consumer market. IT teams will be looking ahead to the raft of technologies that Microsoft has lined up for the remainder of 2013 with an interest undiminished by the failure of the Windows 8 interface," Rutherford added.
Microsoft's admission that it could be about to redesign Windows 8 comes as chairman Bill Gates told CNBC that it's going to become increasingly difficult to tell the difference between PCs and tablets, while also taking a swipe at Apple.
"With Windows 8, Microsoft is trying to gain market share in what has been dominated by the iPad-type device. But a lot those users are frustrated. They can't type. They can't create documents," he said yesterday.
"So we're providing them with the benefits they've seen that has made that a big category but without giving up what they expect in a PC."
"If you have Surface or Surface Pro, you have the portability of the tablet but the richness of terms of the keyboard and Microsoft Office of the PC," Gates added.
