Personally speaking....

Times have changed a lot since Windows XP in regards to Windows, and tech in general. XP, while bringing in a new look compared to previous versions, was still different and being able to change it to something really different and amazing was great -- and fun.

Vista introduced a new look for the OS, and Windows 7 and 8 built more upon that all the way up to Windows 10. For most people, the OS looks fine clean and fine now.

Computing has also changed since the old skinning days with the introduction of mobile technology. I think there are a great deal of people now who don't use the desktop much (aside from work) and just use their mobile devices such as phones and tablets. 

With lots of people content on how Windows looks, it's now moved more over to the productivity side of things. I think that's the reason why apps like Start8/10 and Fences are so popular.

I don't think there's one single reason for the decline in the interest of skinning, but a combination of things such as the ones I mentioned above. That certainly doesn't mean there isn't a future or interest in skinning, it's just moved back into that niche category for a certain portion of Windows users.

I'am one that uses his desktop all the time.  The phone is more for calling but I do use it for other things when I'am not home.  But I will admit I only use object dock, WB and cursorFX now

Wondering about that interest thing...we all take that as a 'for granted'. Perhaps that should be questioned. Site mismanagement (e.g. Customize.org), etc. don't necessarily mean general public uninterest...

When Jorge introduced Winstep to the German market, he saw large interest despite the fact that Winstep wasn't new at that point...I'm not fully convinced that the market isn't really there if skillfully done marketing done by specialists showing the work of Master skinners applied to W10 were done. If that gets a response, then the logical extension might well be to extend skinning to mobile devices...the only fly in that ointment would be the general lack of interest in Windows phones...

Maybe if there is interest demonstrated by the marketing, MS's Surface devices might be amenable to a modified WB...just thinking out loud...FWIW.

Andy...Brad believes in WB...and his company's products. Don't forget: He's the guy keeping WC alive. 

I just think that yes, the PC market is shrinking and I.D. is correct: The mobile market is the big time. I just wonder whether a simpler WB10 Mobile might not generate business...realizing that the real market is iOS and Android. It might well be that the investment might be large...so that the way to go would be first to see if there's any interest by gauging the response to WB10 in a naive (unexposed to skinning) group of consumers...and crunching the numbers.

The Surface market, at least with respect to skinning, is the same as the desktop market - both running the desktop OS (except for RT).  I expect to move into the Surface market by this spring & will look forward to using the compatible apps.  Re-upping this month.

At some point at least, say 10-15 years ago, there were some people making skins for the handhelds at the time - Palms and Clie's anyway.  Don't know how that went for them and I didn't follow it - not for my lack of interest in the skins, rather that's when I discovered I had very little interest in handheld devices.  (That's just the way it is for me and I've accepted it, ya a lot of people do have interest in them   ).

Oh, I think that that had more to do with my (lack of) marketing skills than anything else. The reason there was a large interest was mostly because the Proxma AG guys did a great job making German people aware that something called Winstep existed - they contacted German magazines, German software sites, promoted the Winstep software wherever and whenever they could, etc... Marketing done right is a full time job, I assure you, but it's worth it's weight in gold.

For instance, I'm pretty sure a large number of people still running RocketDock have never even heard of Winstep Nexus.

This is one thing Brad (and by extension Stardock) excelled at. You get a guy who is really good at promoting and evangelizing stuff like Brad together with a tech wizard like Neil (hey, look, I got your name right this time ) and magic happens!

Same here, the desktop PC is the only way to go when at home... better screen real estate and easier on the eyes.  And yes, the phone is for making/receiving calls, though I do use mine as a MP3 player and other things while out.  Mostly, though, I use my HP .2-in-1 tablet while out... again, better screen real estate [13.5"] and it has the full version of Win 8.1, meaning I have all the funtionality of my desktop PC at home.

As for the desktop PC being dead, tell the PC manufacturers that, not to mention Intel. AMD, Nvidia and other hardware manufacturers, all of whom having invested heavily in the larger form of computing.  Not only that, I read recently that tablet sales have slowed recently, suggesting that tablets are an 'as well as' rather than an 'instead of.  With most people who wanted a tablet now having one, sales are going to slow, with perhaps some first-time buyers but moreso users replacing older units being the main buyers.

Ooo, thank you for reminding me about Winstep! I had forgotten all about that. I've been disappointed in the last couple of iterations of OD and had been using it for a long time but it just doesn't seem to be keeping up anymore. In the past it did seem that Stardock was quicker about getting compatibility with the newest version of the operating system, but that has dropped off in the past few years. I had gauged the decline to coincide when they started game development, but that's just my guess.

My HP 2-in-1 tablet. has a 13.5" screen, which is plenty big enough for a poratable device.

I was just as the OP says, wondering...Are there special reasons why Stardock can't/won't produce apps for Apple products ?

Mark, Jim...that's a "delayed" spam reply by Hamiltion. 

I agree Andy. I know that even before I started skinning using Stardock products, a friend told me about it. But I never saw a single advertisement anywhere on the Internet, TV, tech magazines, etc. for any of their products, which I really found weird.

How do you sell something if no one knows about it? Advertising is the key element for sure.