No Windows 8 Tablet OS Until 2012?No Windows 8 Tablet OS Until 2012?

Microsoft won't release a version of the Windows operating system geared for tablet computers until late 2012, according to a report published Friday.

Citing unidentified sources said to be familiar with the situation, the Bloomberg news service said Windows 8, which Microsoft has previously indicated will be available in versions for tablets, desktops, and mobile platforms, won't hit the street until the 2012 back-to-school shopping season.

The timing, if accurate, could make it difficult for Microsoft to catch rivals Apple and Google, which are dominating the nascent tablet market with their iPad and Android offerings, respectively. Microsoft has not commented on the report.

Earlier this year, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Microsoft officials confirmed that Windows will undergo a significant overhaul with Windows 8 so that it can run on ARM's system-on-a-chip architecture, as well as on traditional x86 platforms. The officials, however, did not say when Windows 8 would be released.

ARM, with its low-power requirements and light footprint, has become the platform of choice for tablets and slates. More than 50 ARM-based tablets, from Motorola, Nokia, and others, are expected to ship this year.

In developing a version of Windows for ARM, Microsoft is looking to ensure that its venerable OS has life in the tablet era. But the significant work involved in coding the software for an entirely new platform creates the risk of significant delays and at least another year of Apple and Google having the tablet market virtually to themselves and their partners.

Goldman Sachs analyst Bill Shope voiced his concerns about the situation in a recent research note, in which he said tablets could replace one in three PCs this year.

"We expect the vast majority of these devices to run the ARM architecture with either iOS or Android as the operating environment. If this is the case and our tablet forecast is anywhere near accurate, this would be the first time in three decades that a non-Wintel technology has made legitimate inroads into personal computing," wrote Shope.

Microsoft shares were off .67%, to $26.02, in midday trading Friday.