Microsoft saw its Internet Explorer web browser claim less than a 60 per cent share of the market in April.
IE, which was by far and away the most dominant browser in the late 1990s, has now lost market share for 10 months in a row according to data from Net Applications. Although IE easily retains its position as the world’s most popular browser with a 59.95 per cent share, competitors are fast encroaching on its territory.
For the month of April, FireFox claimed second place in the browser market with a 24.59 per cent share – up 0.07 per cent from March. Google’s Chrome also continued its assault on IE, increasing its own share by 0.6 per cent to 6.73 per cent.
A report by the BBC said back in 2003 Microsoft had almost total dominance, with a 95 per cent share of the browser market.
The company has taken a number of major knocks in recent weeks and months however. In March, users of Microsoft Windows were made aware they could choose between various available browsers and did not have to remain with Internet Explorer which came as Windows’ default browser. It followed a ruling by the European Commission.
In another blow earlier this year, the French and German governments advised internet users to switch away from Internet Explorer due to security issues.