Microsoft Gains Browser Market Share

Netscape Communications Corp. is still the leader in the Internet browser business, but rival Microsoft Corp. is nipping at its heels, recent reports show. A survey by Internet advertising company AdKnowledge of Palo Alto shows that in the last six months, Netscape’s market share for its Navigator browser fell 8.9% to 52.2% of users. In the same period, the share of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer rose 9.6% to 45.6%. Netscape, which once held more than 80% of the browser market, has begun to give its browser away for free and focus on other businesses to generate revenue.