Finally the long awaited Internet war for the Ultimate browser is back. Apple’s Safari a challenger and contender to Microsoft Internet Explorer now wants a bigger piece of Internet users after its announcement that Apple will be making available its Safari browser for Microsoft Windows users. This was not a surprise as it was inevitable for Apple to stay in the race.
Not many of us would have used or heard about Safari. In fact, most us wouldn’t even know that it is a web browser that comes as a package added on with Apple’s Macs as part of their proprietary operating system. It is a fairly new to Internet users and until 1997, Macs used Netscape Navigator with their comps .Five years after that Apple entered into an agreement with Microsoft for a version of Internet Explorer. Safari was developed in 2003 and has only been a default browser for Mac users. It soon developed a huge fan following among Mac users. Initially there was no intention of releasing Safari for Windows for a long time as is the case with most Mac applications but now Apple takes pride in its exclusivity.
The reason for the change is the June 29th launch in the U.S. of the highly hyped iPhone. There is also the issue of compatibility. Even though Safari accounts for 4.9 per cent of web surfers, it doesn’t figure in when people are designing websites.
But this is just the beginning for Safari feels Apple. The potential revenue for the Safari is unlimited because more Mac software is expected to be launched for Windows users. Safari is free to download but it is not that Apple is doing this without charges.Not many of us know that every time a web user uses the embedded Google or Yahoo! Toolbar for a search, the maker of the Internet browser makes money.
The Mozilla Foundation is said to be making $50 million annually from the Google search bar alone. And Safari has always had the embedded Google search bar. What Apple is doing now is, its increasing its revenue with minimal effort. But will Safari click and dent the market dominated and shared by Internet Explorer and Firefox? Apple claims Safari is now the fastest browser around and has a really cool user interface. Safari is compatible with only Windows XP and Vista. |
