For the last decade, developers have been told that because Microsoft’s Internet Explorer dominates the Internet population’s Web browser usage, applications and sites should be built for IE first. To a certain extent, 50% has been a magic number. It’s guided app design, test designs and QA processes. Now, it’s clear that IE will soon lose its greater-than-half leadership in the global marketplace. The latest statistics from Net Applications show IE at 52.6% share worldwide and on pace to go below 50% in two months.
What happens then? Will the Internet suddenly seize up like our computers did on 1-January 2000?
Clearly, the passing of the 50% threshold is purely symbolic. IE’s share in various regional markets has already dipped below half, and has long since broken through the mark according to StatCounter (which uses a different methodology than Net Applications). Developing exclusively for IE is the exception, not the rule today. But this milestone eliminates yet another reason for not building and testing websites across multiple browsers. Even as modern browsers adopt greater standardization, the differences still matter—especially when it comes to performance.
For Microsoft, the challenge is no longer to maintain IE’s super-majority status. Rather, it is to effectively compete against Chrome, and Firefox on the Windows 7 (and beyond) platform.
This strategy appears to be working. Since the introduction of IE9, IE’s share in North America has remained stable, despite Chrome’s gains.
But as the mobile browser continues to grow in popularity and usage with smartphone and tablet consumers, the trend is undeniable. It’s a multi-browser world that requires multiple screen solutions. What do you think is the significance of IE’s market share falling below 50%?
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