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Internet Explorer Use Slips Below 55%

Posted by Soulskill on from the slowly-but-surly dept.

rfc1394 writes with this snippet from an Infoworld report: "Internet Explorer's market share continues to drop like a rock. Net Applications published its numbers for May, and Internet Explorer's total share declined yet again, from 55.11 percent in April to 54.27 percent in May, a drop of [0.84 percent] in one month. Contrast that with Google's Chrome, which rose from 11.94 percent in April to 12.52 percent in May, an increase of [0.58 percent]. In the past year, IE's share of browser usage has dipped from 60.32 percent to 54.27 percent. How long before IE usage drops below 50%?'"

10 of 104 comments (clear)

  1. Oh really by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    For optimal user experience, we suggest viewing this first post using Internet Explorer 9

  2. That's odd by Lanteran · · Score: 2

    I've read elsewhere that it's already below 50% on weekends. Either way, good news for web designers everywhere.

    --
    "People don't want to learn linux" hasn't been a valid excuse since '03.
    1. Re:That's odd by Foofoobar · · Score: 4, Informative

      Net Applications bases their numbers on Fortune 500 companies (or something like that) so its REALLY slanted. IE actually already is well below 50%. It was also shown that while people were forced to use IE in the workplace, the second they left work, IE stats dropped dramatically as people started surfing at home on their personal computers.

      --
      This is my sig. There are many like it but this one is mine.
    2. Re:That's odd by Billly+Gates · · Score: 2

      "I've read elsewhere that it's already below 50% on weekends"

      That disparity is because China and Korea heavily use IE 6 and 7 which skew the numbers higher for IE. In North America IE had less than 50% marketshare for awhile. It is even lower in Europe.

      Most machines in China are pirated and therefore do not get Windows Updates which mean they use IE. Korea is IE because all banks and e-commerce sites force users to use activeX controls due to the lack of SSL thanks to US export controls with encryption. This is no longer a problem but Ebay and the banks do not care and still require it.

      Even if everyone but China dumped IE tomorrow, you can bet a good 25-35% of IE marketshare would still be there thanks to that market. In other words ignore the IE statistics for the world if you develop websites and just focus on North America. If you need to make an Asian site just write it for IE only.

      --
      http://saveie6.com/
  3. This can only be good for the web. by gurumeditationerror · · Score: 2

    As soon as IE loses majority I imagine it's remaining share will drop at an accelerated pace.

  4. Excellent! by simp · · Score: 4, Interesting

    A bit of competition is always good. That way nobody falls asleep and we will see regular updates with new features. The obvious problem is of-course feature bloat: I predict that in the year 2016 all browsers, Firefox 27, Chrome 27 and IE 32, will be so filled with useless junk that a lone, angry, nerd will create a new lean&mean browser, with just one feature: render standard compliant HTML7 pages with 100% accuracy.

    According to Wikipedia a Phoenix can rise from the ashes again and again. The future will be the same as the past...

    1. Re:Excellent! by Cinder6 · · Score: 2

      HTML7? That's optimistic. HTML5 will probably still be in draft...

      --
      If you can't convince them, convict them.
    2. Re:Excellent! by dkleinsc · · Score: 3, Insightful

      The most important part of this news, which has been true for a while now, is that no single browser is winning in anything remotely like a permanent way. That means that everybody still has motivation to stick to standards, making the old Embrace-Extend-Extinguish routine more and more difficult.

      Remember all those "This site is best viewed in ..." sections of far too many sites back in the day?

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      I am officially gone from /. Long live http://www.soylentnews.com/
    3. Re:Excellent! by ajo_arctus · · Score: 2

      According to Wikipedia a Phoenix can rise from the ashes again and again. The future will be the same as the past...

      Yep, and Phoenix Technologies will once again force that phoenix to change its name, just like they did the first version of Firefox (which was originally called Phoenix).

  5. Wait a second... by Lunix+Nutcase · · Score: 2

    Wait a second... Isn't this the same Net Applications that is constantly criticized over it's OS market share figures that show Linux as less than 1%? Apparently only the statistics that show anti-Microsoft things can actually be accurate. I would be willing to bet if a submitter made a story showing how Net Applications showed Linux had dropped from .94% to .91% over the same period that it would be flamed to hell as being inaccurate, etc etc yet when it shows IE dropping market share their figures are 100% truth. lol hypocrisy.