Firefox Soars and Apple's Safari Jumps as 2005 Browser Share Race Leads to a Powerful Finish

ALISO VIEJO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 5, 2006--NetApplications, a provider of Web-based applications that measure, monitor and market Web sites for Small to Medium Enterprises (SME), today announced its monthly Web site browser statistics for year-end 2005.

2005 marked the return of the Browser Battles, as Microsoft Internet Explorer faced heated challenges from Firefox, Safari, Netscape and Opera.

“While any company would be thrilled to hold Microsoft's 85% market share, IE can not rest lightly. Netscape also once owned a huge percentage prior to IE's debut.”

Microsoft Internet Explorer ended 2004 with 90.31% browser usage market share, and steadily lost ground, ending 2005 with 85.05% market share. Microsoft promises IE's first major upgrade in years in 2006, but has also announced that it is abandoning the Mac version of IE.

Mozilla Firefox championed the open source browser concept and is the primary challenger to IE's dominance. Firefox ended 2004 with 4.64% market share and although it started 2005 on fire, it cooled off during the summer months. Toward the end of the year, after releasing Firefox 1.5, it regained its momentum and closed the year at an impressive 9.57%.

Apple's Safari browser enjoyed a highly successful 2005 as the only browser to gain market share each and every month of the year. Safari ended 2004 in fourth place with 1.56% market share. Safari gained steadily to end 2005, and leaped past Netscape to grab the third leading browser spot at 3.07% market share.

Netscape joined IE as the only browsers to lose market share in 2005. Netscape ended 2004 with 2.07% of browser usage market share, and was the third leading browser at the time. After an admitted error in reporting itself as either Firefox or IE was discovered and fixed, and an announced deal with HP to include Netscape browsers with new computers, Netscape enjoyed a brief surge in September to 2.16%. However, Netscape ended 2005 in 4th place with 1.24% browser usage market share.

Opera browser from Opera Software ended 2005 with 0.55% browser usage market share, which is exactly where it ended in 2004. Opera held steady while it completely changed its business model, going from a choice of a free browser with banner ads or a paid browser without the banners to a free browser without ads model. Opera browser maintains a strong presence on handhelds, and as those devices start to become more prominent, Opera is well-placed to take advantage of it.

"The close of 2005 marks the end of the calendar year, but also sets the stage for a very interesting 2006," observed Vince Vizzaccaro, executive vice president of marketing and strategic relationships at NetApplications. "While any company would be thrilled to hold Microsoft's 85% market share, IE can not rest lightly. Netscape also once owned a huge percentage prior to IE's debut."

Vizzaccaro continued, "FireFox is very close to hitting a critical mass of 10% which could mean a more rapid adoption rate. However, IE won't go away quietly as major, and long overdue upgrades are expected to be released in 2006. With Microsoft abandoning the Mac, combined with Apple's continuing market share gains, Safari has even more room to grow. Netscape seems to have been hit hard by Firefox's success, so 2006 will test the company's vigilance to hold on to and increase its user-base."

December Browser Market Share:

Microsoft Internet Explorer -- 85.05%

FireFox -- 9.57%

Safari -- 3.07%

Netscape -- 1.24%

Opera -- 0.55%

Other -- 0.53%

November Browser Market Share:

Microsoft Internet Explorer -- 86.08%

FireFox -- 8.84%

Safari -- 2.78%

Netscape -- 1.25%

Opera -- 0.53%

Other -- 0.43%

Additional statistics are available at http://marketshare.hitslink.com.

HitsLink(tm) is NetApplications' flagship product, providing advanced website statistics and analysis for webmasters and eMarketers alike.

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About NetApplications

Since 1999 NetApplications has been a leading source of tools and utilities for webmasters and eMarketers for small to medium enterprise (SME). The company has a complete suite of simple and affordable subscription-based applications that are designed to help users have greater success with their Web site marketing efforts. Headquartered in Aliso Viejo, California, NetApplications distributes its services through over 3,000 partners and affiliates. These services may also be found at www.netapplications.com, www.hitslink.com, www.submitter.net, www.publishplus.com, www.1stwarning.com and www.toolshack.com.