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Sat, Nov 21, 2009 - 09:52 AM EST  —  AAPL: 199.92 (-0.59, -0.29%)  |  NASDAQ: 2146.04 (-10.78, -0.5%)

Google seeks to ink deals with PC box assemblers to preinstall Chrome browser; Mac version due 1H09
Friday, November 21, 2008 - 05:02 PM EST

"Google reportedly plans to convince computer makers to pre-install its Chrome Web browser on PCs, a move that would escalate the battle against market leader Internet Explorer from Microsoft," Antone Gonsalves reports for InformationWeek.

"In addition, Sundar Pichai, Google VP of product management, told The Times that the company planned to launch a major marketing push behind Chrome once Google finished with beta testing and launched the final version in January," Gonsalves reports.

"If successful, such a strategy could help the company boost use of the browser, which currently stands at less than 1% of Web users. Microsoft has more than 70% of the market, while Mozilla's Firefox has almost 20%," Gonsalves reports.

MacDailyNews Note: Apple's Safari is the worlds' #3 Web browser and currently holds 6.57% market share, according to Net Applications. Chrome is #5 with 0.74% share, just behind #4 Opera's 0.75%.

Gonsalves continues, "Pichai also said that Google planned to launch versions of Chrome for Linux and Apple's Mac OS X in the first half of next year. The current version of Chrome only runs on Windows."

Full article here.

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Nov 21, 08 - 05:07 pm Comment from: Twisted Sideways

Mac users can read the nifty webcomic explaining google chrome by the talented Scott McCloud

http://www.scottmccloud.com/googlechrome/index.html

Nov 21, 08 - 05:45 pm Comment from: PXT

This is good for Apple. Google want to ensure open standards to guarantee access to its content. And Apple want open standards so their software can compete with PCs and Linux on a level playing field.

Nov 21, 08 - 06:22 pm Comment from: MrScrith

This is good for Apple and for people in general, get Google Chrome out there, and normal people will be looking more at alternate browsers, including Firefox and Safari.

Nov 21, 08 - 06:26 pm Comment from: British Mac Head

It's also good for propervweb developers. If we can dissuade sheep from using IE then we will eventually abandon making IE fudged stylesheets for our sites and M$ will be forced out of the game.

Nov 21, 08 - 06:54 pm Comment from: Zune Tang®

Internet Explorer works great. Always has. Why do you MAC lemmings insist on moving away from Microsoft's magnificent innovations?

I'm a PC.

Your potential. Our passion.™

Nov 21, 08 - 07:13 pm Comment from: qka

@ Zune Tang®

Then why do sites that were designed for IE6 not work with IE7?

MS - your frustration, our fault.

Nov 21, 08 - 07:21 pm Comment from: WTFrank

They may preinstall it but the people who buy off the shelf PC's won't use it.
1. They tend to like IE since it's "standard" to the OS.
2. Many still believe that their OS is "Office"
3. IE is too heavily embedded in OS.
4. If they were interested in a better experience, they would have bought a Mac to begin with.

Nov 21, 08 - 07:36 pm Comment from: good times

Google seeks to ink deals with PC box assemblers to preinstall Chrome browser

SWEET!!!

It'd truly make Windows a Chrome-plated turd.

Nov 21, 08 - 08:34 pm Comment from: Tyk

I like Chrome. I use it on my PC at work. It's fast. I'd definitely try it on the Mac.

Nov 21, 08 - 08:46 pm Comment from: Mark S.

From what I have seen of the Chrome, there's nothing to compel me to switch from trusty Safari.

Nov 21, 08 - 08:49 pm Comment from: Victor Meldrew

Chrome is as butt ugly as any other Windows browser with the exception of Safari.

Nov 21, 08 - 10:51 pm Comment from: alansky

There is a growing controversy over the fact that Google uploads and caches every word of every message written by GMail subscribers. Google even caches messages you compose but never send. And it also caches every message you receive, including mail from non-subscribers. Although Google claims to have no ulterior motive for this clear invasion of privacy (other than optimizing the speed of their system), I personally would like to say that Hell will freeze over before Chrome will be installed on my computers. The problem is not Google's intentions, which I do believe are benign. The problem is that the U.S. government has already demonstrated its ability to force companies like Google and Yahoo to turn over anything that is asked for. To put it another way, both Yahoo and Google have already demonstrated their unwillingness to stand up to the government's questionable if not unlawful requests for the personal data of their subscribers. I do not wish to install any software on my computer that caches my keystrokes on Big Brother's hard drives, and I seriously doubt that I am the only one who feels this way.

Nov 21, 08 - 10:55 pm Comment from: alansky

@ZuneTang:

Believe it or not, some contributors to this forum are interested in having an intelligent discussion. What? They don't have those on pc's?

Nov 22, 08 - 07:11 am Comment from: krquet

I don't like Google. It reminds me very much of Microsoft, though Google has been clearly influenced by many things Apple. But the culture reeks M$ and it's in their DNA. Pre-loading browser on OEM boxes, if that's not a page from the tried and tested M$trategy, I don't know what is. DOS, Windows Xs, IE, .NET etc. And yet, Google gets a free pass most everywhere. All hail Google just because they said they won't be evil. Talk about sheep.

Nov 22, 08 - 07:22 am Comment from: Mymac4ever

I dont care so much about Chrome. Im more interested in Spacetime (http://www.spacetime.com/) but for some reason theres still no Macversion even though they've said that its in the works ever since that website went online...

Nov 22, 08 - 07:54 am Comment from: arthur

@: krquet
maybe think twice. Apple bundles safari...Your analyses is crazy and stupid.

Nov 22, 08 - 08:23 am Comment from: Mark S.

Mymac4ever, I was impressed by the demo of Spacetime and am surprised that Apple had not already done the same for Safari.

Just last week I was thinking how great it would be if we could shuffle through our web pages in Safari like we do our songs in iTunes.

Spacetime does this and a lot more.

Nov 22, 08 - 10:13 am Comment from: baaaaaaaaa

All hail Google just because they said they won't be evil. Talk about sheep.

Power corrupts.

Nov 22, 08 - 10:14 am Comment from: krquet

@arthur:

OEM, Safari, thanks for dropping by and imparting pearl of an analysis there with the word 'stupid' in the mix.

"Pre-loading browser on OEM boxes, if that's not a page from the tried and tested M$trategy, I don't know what is."

Nov 22, 08 - 10:56 am Comment from: Bob

@arthur
In fairness to krquet, Apple does not pre-load Safari on OEM boxes, just their own Macs and iPhones.

Any company with the reach and potential for abuse that Google has ought to make people nervous. When someone says 'Don't think of a monkey' what's the first thing most people think of? So if a company's motto is 'Don't be evil', what's the first thing you think of? wink

Nov 22, 08 - 10:29 pm Comment from: MFfan310

@qka:

If you think IE7 mangles a website, wait until you use "standards-complaint" (ha!) IE8 Beta 2. It's a mess on websites designed for IE6/7. But on websites where the browser sniffers have been updated for IE8's default standards mode, it renders OK. The only problem: Most websites, even W3C-compliant sites, are the former. And IE8 will create a mess of the Web.

When M$ starts forcing it down people's throats through automatic updates and Windows 7, people will start looking for alternate browsers. Google (and others) have a lot to gain... watch for IE market share to drop below 60% after IE8 and Windows 7 come out and the Google Chrome marketing push.

Nov 23, 08 - 05:53 am Comment from: montex

Oh yippee. Another browser. Yawn.

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