Internet Explorer Down, But Primed for Rebound

To quote LL Cool J, “Don’t call it a comeback.” Yes, Internet Explorer has been consistently shedding market share to rival browsers — primarily Google Chrome — but that is part of a calculated risk by Microsoft, and 2012 could be the year the tide turns.According to stats from Net Applications, Internet Explorer lost nearly seven percentage points of market share in 2011, finishing the year precariously close to falling below 50 percent in the near future. However, during that same timeframe, Internet Explorer 9 jumped nearly 11 percentage points, an important trend for Microsoft.There is more competition, but IE slide is more about Microsoft gamble on IE9 than its rivals.When you look at the big picture, Internet Explorer definitely lost market share in 2011, Firefox was down, but relatively steady, and Chrome jumped by just under eight percentage points to finish 2011 at 19.11 percent. Essentially, Chrome ate up the market share that was lost by Internet Explorer and Firefox.
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/247165/internet_explorer_down_but_primed_for_rebound.htmlAlso see:Chrome Nears 20% Share, IE Resumes Slide
After a one-month pause, Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) resumed its usage share slide in December, dropping to a new low and setting the stage for a fall below 50% as early as March.IE lost eight-tenths of a percentage point last month to end with a share of 51.9%, according to California-based metrics company Net Applications. IE dropped more than seven points during 2011.
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9223087/Chrome_nears_20_share_IE_resumes_slide
http://www.pcworld.com/article/247159/chrome_nears_20_share_ie_resumes_slide.html