AdKnowledge: Microsoft Browser Eclipses Netscape

AdKnowledge said its tracking figures show that as of November, market share of the Microsoft Internet Explorer browser surpassed that of Netscape Navigator.

AdKnowledge’s browser data was derived from a daily sample taken in November of nearly 15 million ads served by the AdKnowledge System across more than 1,000 Web sites.

The statistics show that Explorer users in November accounted for 49.5 percent of the browser market, while Navigator users accounted for 45 percent. The data also reveals that Navigator’s share has steadily declined from 62 percent in January 1998 to 55 percent in April 1 to 51 percent in July. Conversely, Internet Explorer’s share has increased steadily from 36 percent in January.

The figures suggest that, for the first time since AdKnowledge began compiling Internet statistics in 1996, Microsoft has taken the lead in the browser battle with Netscape.

AdKnowledge supplies information from its Online Advertising Report (OAR) to interactive agencies and marketers to help them optimize their Web ad campaigns.

The report is a compilation of advertising statistics gathered from the AdKnowledge System, which includes five components that span planning, campaign buying and trafficking, ad serving and targeting, reporting and analysis.

“It’s clear that Microsoft has overtaken Netscape with respect to browser market share,” said David Zinman, co-founder and director of product management for AdKnowledge. “The relative market share for both companies remains close, however, so ad designers still need to develop ads with both browsers in mind. This is a trend we’ve tracked since January 1997 when Netscape was clearly dominant with nearly 80 percent market share. In just over a one-year period, there has been a dramatic shift to Microsoft.”