IE Numbers Falling, But So Is Firefox!

Wow! The browser wars are heating up. Internet Explorer’s numbers are falling, but so is Mozilla Firefox. I think it is because Google Chrome is just SO much faster, and Firefox memory issues are still slowing it down!

Internet Explorer usage is a falling rock

“First of the month means fresh browser usage data from NetApplications. Despite all the hoopla about IE9, Internet Explorer’s share, as measured in usage, declined (again) in June — to 53.68 percent from 54.27 percent in May and 55.11 percent in April. Internet Explorer 9 launched in March.

Firefox usage share dipped slightly — 21.71 percent to 21.67 percent month over month. Chrome continued its steady gains, up to 13.11 percent from 12.52 percent. Safari also nudged up, to 7.48 percent from 7.28 percent. Opera was the month’s other shocking loser, with usage sharing falling to 1.73 percent from 2.03 percent.
Google and Mozilla are now cranking out new browser versions every few months, pushing Microsoft to speed up, too. Already, Google has released three Chrome versions this year, and v13 is beta testing.

IE9 was supposed to be the browser that fixed Microsoft’s problems, according to NetApps. In January, IE share was 56 percent. A year earlier 62.12 percent, and 75.47 percent in January 2008. Unless Microsoft can reverse the ongoing trend, Internet Explorer’s global market share will fall below 50 percent sometime in the next 12-18 months.

As it has done in other months, NetApps spun Internet Explorer numbers around Microsoft’s risky bet on Windows 7. IE9 does not support Windows XP, which still represents most of the Windows install base. NetApps seems convinced that as more people adopt Windows 7, IE usage will increase.”