As
unusual a partnership as it may seem, Microsoft is now promoting ‘Firefox with
Bing’, a collaboration of Internet Browser Firefox with Microsoft’s search
engine Bing.
The
default search engine for Firefox has, up until now, has been Google, although
consumers were able to change this if they wished. Now an alternative version
of Firefox is available with Bing as the default search engine. The new ‘Firefox
with Bing’ supports all of the themes, extensions and additions that are
compatible with Version 7 of the Firefox browser.
Firefox
was launched seven years ago and has reached its current standing primarily
with Google’s aid. Google has powered Firefox’s search function and provided
funds to keep the organisation running, so is this collaboration with Bing the
right decision for Mozilla?
An
agreement made between Mozilla and Google in 2004 caused Google to be
responsible for as much as 91 percent of Mozilla’s revenue, as Mozilla received
a percentage of the money produced by Google searches within Firefox. This
agreement is set to expire this year and, although there is no apparent reason
why Google would not renew the previous agreement, the merge with Microsoft
gives Mozilla a solid ‘Plan B’.
Another
theory behind the Mozilla Microsoft merge is the rise of Google Chrome, which
Google released after their 2004 agreement with Mozilla. Google can now been
identified as a serious competitor to Mozilla with Google Chrome shares rising
from 9.57 percent in November 2010 to 16.2 percent in September 2011. Microsoft
also had a 31 percent search share through Yahoo US in September 2011 according
to Comscore.
If the
agreement between Mozilla and Google ceases at the end of the year then Google
may lose a lot of users from the Mozilla Microsoft merge, as Google currently
obtains a large number of its search requests from Firefox. Firefox is a
popular browser and many users may remain with the browser despite the change
in default search engine. If Google does decide to end the agreement it could
dramatically alter the internet and create a huge dent in Google’s search
dominance. Google would lose millions in advertising revenue whereas Microsoft
would be sitting pretty, reaping search revenue from both Internet Explorer and
Firefox, the No. 1 and No. 2 Web browsers.
References
http://www.geek.com/articles/news/firefox-and-bing-officially-get-cozy-20111026/
http://imjustcreative.com/wp-content/uploads/microsoft-bing-logo-design.jpg
http://news.cnet.com/i/tim/2011/01/17/logo-only_270x270.png
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