IE market share continues to erode

Slashdot It! Despite favorable early reviews for the new Internet Explorer 7 browser, Microsoft's market share continues to slip. However, IE7 may get a boost when the software giant's new Vista operating system is released early next year. The share of total browser use attributed to Internet Explorer fell in October to 81.3 percent, down from 82.1 percent in September, Net Applications said. Along with other tracking firms, Net Applications has been observing a steady erosion of IE use for some 18 months, with a rash of viruses and other security concerns encouraging the adoption Mozilla Foundation's Firefox browser and Apple's Safari. Microsoft hopes Internet Explorer 7, released early last month, can turn the tide.

Microsoft can take some solace in the fact that the debut of Firefox 2.0, which became widely available on Oct. 24. Firefox use accounted for 13 percent of Web visits during October, up just slightly from 12.5 percent in September.

Microsoft still wants it's strong market share of IE Most observers believe the browser market is forever altered and that it's unlikely Microsoft will ever see the same level of market share dominance that it saw when Internet Explorer use topped 90 percent. Microsoft may see more of a boost for IE7 when the consumer version of Windows Vista is released, something set to happen early next year. IE7 will be bundled with Vista and feature tighter integration into other desktop applications.

Firefox is not likely to suffer much, however, even after IE7 gains wide adoption, said Chief Marketing Officer Rand Schulman. "Once a favorite browser gets installed, it's difficult to replace," he noted. "Firefox appears to have become the browser of choice for about 10 percent of Americans."

While IE 7 use will grow quickly, most of it will come at the expense of older versions of the Explorer browser rather than its competitors.