Microsoft loses 7pc of browser market

PARK CITY, USA: Janco and the IT Productivity Center have just released their Browser and Operating System Market Share White Paper.

The major findings are:

Microsoft's browser market share has continued to erode and has fallen to 58.50 percent versus 65.48 percent (loss of 6.96 percent) in August 2007 and 82.99 percent (loss of 24.49 percent) in August 2005; Firefox has maintained its number 2 browser position and now is used by almost 19 percent (18.94 percent) of all users; Google Desktop has over 4 percent (4.01 percent) of the market; and Time Warner made a strategic error in abandoning Netscape as users continue to use Netscape even though AOL no longer supports it.

The study also finds that on theOperating System front, Microsoft's Vista has just under 15 percent (14.94 percent) of the market after almost 20 months since Vista's first release candidate (RC1).

Victor Janulaitis, CEO of Janco, said: "Both Vista and Netscape show that large companies make huge blunders in technology. In the case of Microsoft, they no longer count on moving users to new products as quickly as they want. Time Warner's short-sighted decision to abandon Netscape shows technology decisions are long-term ones, and companies that want to create value in that market need to look beyond quarter-to- quarter earnings. But the real story is the continued erosion of Microsoft's market share."

Janco's top five browser market share rankings are:

1. Microsoft's IE - 58.50 percent;

2. Firefox - 18.94 percent;

3. Netscape - 11.63 percent;

4. Google Desktop - 4.01 percent;

5. Mozilla - 3.05 percent.

A summary of Janco's browser market share data can be found on the Janco's web site and the IT Productivity Center's web site.. In addition the full white paper with excel spread sheets can be purchased at both sites for $249.