2012 could be a banner year for Microsoft. The software giant is set to release the next generation Windows software, Windows 8, which is slated to run on both tablets and desktops. It's a huge gamble for Microsoft, one that could very well spell the difference between success and failure for Microsoft in this post-PC era.

Windows 8 could be the breakthrough product for Microsoft in the tablet market. Tablet sales are booming worldwide. A Gartner report estimates that tablets sales will hit 70 million units this year and will continue to grow through the end of 2015 with expected sales of 326.3 million units.

Microsoft can't ignore those figures especially as its rivals, Apple and Google, make huge strides in the tablet market. Apple's iPad is setting the standard for any tablet in the market while tablets running on Google's Android system are becoming tough competitors. With more consumers opting to buy tablets instead of desktops, Microsoft needs to provide a viable product for the tablet market or risk getting left behind.

It's not going to be an easy road for a Windows tablet, though. Even as Microsoft's Windows continues to be the dominant software for desktops, its forays into mobile computing have woefully fallen short. Microsoft was supposed to have produced the first tablet, the Courier, before it killed it off prematurely. Windows Mobile and Kin weren't successful and the promising Windows Phone is suffering from slow sales notwithstanding the partnership with Nokia and good reviews. Fortunately, Windows 8 is looking to be a better contender in the tablet arena despite being late to the game.

Why will Windows 8 succeed in the tablet market? For starters people actually want a Windows tablet. Consumers are used to Windows software. There are more than 1 billion Windows PCs, and Microsoft is counting on that customer base to want Windows on their tablets as well.

One of the main selling points of Windows 8 is that it's going to provide users with a unified experience for their electronic devices. Users can transfer data from their PCs to their tablets or smartphones through Microsoft's cloud system, the Windows Live SkyDrive. Metro apps are HTML5-based meaning it will work with tablets and PCs which will translate to a painless syncing process between those devices. Apple and Google won't have the same integration, which is a big advantage to Microsoft.

Microsoft will also straddle the middle ground between Google and Apple in terms of its relationship with its hardware partners. Google gives its hardware partners free reign over how they use Android in their devices, which means more fragmentation among Android devices. Apple's taken the other route and hasn't fostered any hardware partnerships but has released smartphone and tablets by itself. Apple and Google have found success in their strategy. Microsoft could strike the happy balance between the two extreme strategies and attract more hardware partners and consumers by allowing a modicum of flexibility to its hardware partners in terms of packaging and form but still retaining control over the software content.

According to a Forrester report in order to succeed Microsoft has to create a product that is different from its competitors. With Windows 8, Microsoft could have that product.