Google’s Chrome Browser Moves Up in the Ranks

For the first time, new figures for browser share show that Google’s Chrome browser has taken the fourth spot from Apple’s Safari. It has been 16 months since Google Chrome was released to the public for official use. Google Chrome’s rise in popularity increased substantially during the month of December. Google Chrome’s percentage points have increased by 0.7 percent during the month of December—The largest since Google launched since September of 2008.

The current market share statistics show Chrome’s market share at 4.63%, ahead of Safari’s 4.46% share of the total pie. Internet Explorer continues to lead the race with 62.69% share, although Firefox stands second with a 24.61% market share. More users seen to be using mobile applications. This means significant growth of mobile browsing. Mobile browsing now accounts for 1.3 percent of all browsing.

Chrome’s significant jump can primarly be attributed to the release of Chrome for Mac (beta) and the addition of official extensions for Windows users and continued delays by the Mozilla team.

The 2009 final report published byNetApplications also showed buoyant growth in iPhone sales, which increased by 50 % during the latest quarter gone by.