Microsoft Explorer Is New Browser Leader

Microsoft’s Internet Explorer browser has passed Netscape’s Navigator and now commands half of the combined corporate and household market for the crucial Web-surfing tool, according to a study to be released today.

Explorer was installed on 33.8 million personal computers by January 1999, almost twice the number from a year earlier, according to Ziff-Davis research group InfoBeads, which conducted 11,000 interviews with computer users. Netscape was on 32 million computers, or 47% of the market, the study found.

“Almost 60% of those with five or more years of Internet experience use a Netscape browser, while only 42% of those with one year and 51% of those with two years of experience use Netscape,” said InfoBeads analyst Miran Chun.

Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft’s conduct in the browser war is a major focus of the antitrust trial now pending against it in Washington. A spokeswoman for Netscape, which has been purchased by America Online, could not be reached for comment.