In its first-ever State of the Internet report, the Mozilla Foundation says that the Firefox browser has close to a 30 percent share of the browser market around the world, with usage growing most strongly in Russia. Firefox has been under increasing pressure from Google’s Chrome. Read more »
Mozilla is ceasing all work on Firefox for Windows Mobile and Windows Phone 7 devices, as Microsoft doesn’t offer an NDK. That doesn’t leave many mobile platform choices for the Mozilla team. What does this say about open source in the mobile marketplace? Read more »
Firefox Mobile for Maemo arrived last month, but without many devices to take advantage of it, people are wondering which platform will be the next one to see Mozilla’s browser. Microsoft’s clean break with Windows Phone 7 just might push Mozilla to Android first. Read more »
Mozilla, which recently released its Weave Sync add-on for Firefox has released a set-of APIs that will allow developers to use Weave Sync services in new products independent of the browser. Weave services offer an opportunity to build new apps that leverage browsing/browser specific data. Read more »
Good news for HTML5 proponents: MPEG LA has announced that it will extend its royalty-free license of the H.264 video streaming format for an additional five years. In doing so, the license holder has agreed not to charge for use of the near-ubiquitous H.264 encoding format […] Read more »
Mozilla’s new Firefox for Maemo is an impressive new mobile browser designed to provide a seamless experience for users across phones and PCs. But in an era built on smartphone apps and app stores, can a browser-based strategy win? Read more »
Has Mozilla truly brought a desktop browser to the small screen? The not-so-easy answer is yes and no. But this first version of Firefox for Maemo looks promising for an initial release. And Weave brings desktop data to your phone — even open tabs. Read more »
After spending years in beta, Mozilla’s Weave synchronization tool is finally out in a new version 1.0. Firefox users who tote multiple devices will especially take to the extension, which is slated to eventually track and sync all your Firefox preferences. Read more »
Mozilla’s Firefox for Maemo isn’t quite ready for its already expected debut. A third Release Candidate just hit for Nokia tablets and while performance is marginally better, plug-ins were pulled out. That means no Adobe Flash just yet for this otherwise solid web browsing client. Read more »
Mozilla today released Firefox 3.6, which, as I reported back in November when the popular open-source browser was released in beta, sports improved performance, personas (the ability to easily switch between different skins for your browser), and updated support for web standards, including for the Web Open […] Read more »
Even as Mozilla rolls out Release Candidate 2 of its Firefox 3.6 browser update, and is only days from official release, some are convinced that the upstart open source browser is doomed. However, Mozilla’s Director of Firefox, Mike Beltzner, provides some good reasons why it isn’t. Read more »
Mozilla’s Raindrop messaging project holds a lot of promise. Like many early-stage, open-source Mozilla projects, the design of Raindrop isn’t being widely publicized, but there are now more interface clues as to why it could be important. Read more »
After many promises to deliver the next version of the Firefox browser — version 3.6 — this year, it turns out Mozilla won’t be able to deliver. According to a blog post, it won’t arrive until the first quarter, and Firefox 4.0 may also be delayed. Read more »
Microsoft is closing in on sealing a far-reaching agreement with the European Commission that would end an antitrust battle that’s been simmering for more than 10 years. “We believe this is an answer,” European Union Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes, who has taken a hard line with […] Read more »
This week brings several pieces of significant news on the browser front, about Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) 8. As covered on the OStatic blog, Google has announced a new, stable version 3.0 of Chrome. It’s downloadable here, and if you’re already […] Read more »
You’d be more than forgiven for thinking there must be something better out there than either Microsoft’s Outlook or than Apple’s Mail.app for desktop email management. You’d be right, too, especially if you’re looking for something that plays nicely with most major webmail service providers. I’m […] Read more »
Thunderbird, Mozilla’s email client, is a favorite of many web workers because it’s free, open source and feels faster, lighter and more efficient than Microsoft Outlook. But did you know that, like Firefox, Thunderbird has a wide range of free add-ons available that can enhance your […] Read more »
Mozilla, the open-source browser maker, has posted mockup screenshots of its upcoming 4.0 and 3.7 browsers for Microsoft Windows, and the company is encouraging people to give feedback on new, highlighted features it may incorporate into the products. One of the proposed updates for 4.0, called […] Read more »
Google’s recent announcement that it’s to start working on a new lightweight open source operating system, Google Chrome OS — Chrome running on top of the Linux kernel, with the browser basically becoming the OS — has garnered plenty of attention in the media recently ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
In recent years, virtual worlds (also known as massively multiplayer online games, or MMOs) have shown tremendous growth in terms of user numbers and revenue. However, the market for them is currently in tremendous flux, with the most well-known sub-genre — the subscriber-based fantasy role playing games (MMORPGs) — suffering a growth plateau, due to the dominating success of World of Warcraft. At the same time, user activity in “freemium” virtual worlds continues to explode, most especially in the tween/adolescent market, which is likely to reach a market saturation point soon, though monetization prospects for all but the established players remain uncertain. The explosion of social networks, which share numerous traits with virtual worlds, have created a new potential audience for this genre, while the mass adoption of web plug-ins and smartphones like the iPhone have opened up new markets for the genre.
In this transitional period, many of the best investment and growth opportunities to watch are not the worlds themselves, but the solution providers offering developers the means to better monetize their existing MMOs. Opportunities also exist in niche MMOs that appeal to consumers seeking entertainment outside the established fantasy and kids social MMO space. However, new players that would enter this already crowded market must foster a community of users by rewarding user-created content and continued engagement, while also being architected with multiple revenue streams and play platforms. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
For much of this decade, Mozilla and its Firefox browser were the upstarts, out to beat the big, bad Microsoft and its Internet Explorer browser. Firefox, the descendant of Netscape, the browser that helped jump-start the web revolution, was nimble and it was secure — something […] Read more »
Mozilla has just released the final version of Firefox 3.5. The JavaScript performance — critical for many web apps — is massively improved thanks to the new TraceMonkey engine, making 3.5 feel very fast indeed. In addition to improved performance and standards compliance, Firefox 3.5 features new […] Read more »
Mozilla has just released the final version of Firefox 3.5. As I noted in my review of the release candidate, JavaScript performance — critical for many web apps — is massively improved thanks to the new TraceMonkey engine, making 3.5 feel very fast indeed. I tried […] Read more »
