Microsoft to scrap Internet Explorer 6

BANGALORE, INDIA: Microsoft Corporation has urged its Internet Explorer 6 (IE 6) users to stop browsing its ten-year-old browser.

This was announced by the company in a unique way by launching a website theie6countdown.com.

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The website said, "Now that we’re in 2011, in an era of modern web standards, it’s time to say goodbye to IE 6".

"This website is dedicated to watching Internet Explorer 6 usage drop to less than 1 percent worldwide, so more websites can choose to drop support for Internet Explorer 6, saving hours of work for web developers," added the website.

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As part of the campaign, the company had asked visitors to display the countdown meter banner on their respective website and educate others to upgrade to new version of the web browser.

In a blog post at Microsoft TechNet blog, Steve Clayton posted, "Internet Explorer 6 is clearly one of the biggest hurdles developers face in their work and in helping us all move to the beautiful new world of HTML5."

According to Net Applications statistics available on the website, China leads in usage of IE 6 with 34 percent and Norway stands least with .7 per cent.