14 DAY TRIAL // Google has finally done it, its Chrome browser is now the second most popular in the world, topped only by Internet Explorer. According to the latest StatCounter numbers, Chrome has just edged past Firefox, last week, taking the number two spot.
The most interesting part is that Chrome actually lost a bit of market share coming from the previous week; however, Firefox lost even more in that time.
In fact, the only major browser to add market share in the past week is Internet Explorer, in a reversal of a very old trend.
Google Chrome had a 25.47 percent share of the market, in the week ending November 13. Firefox on the other hand ended the week with just 25.32 percent.
Chrome had a 25.5 percent market share in the week before that, while Firefox had 25.79 percent.
But both browsers lost market share in the last week, mostly to Internet Explorer which saw an uptick in usage. IE went from 40.32 percent market share in the first week of November to 40.78 percent in the following week.
At this point, Chrome and Firefox are too close, so things may change, Firefox may regain the second spot, if only temporarily.
However, the broader trends, as seen in Statcounter data, but also discovered by other players keeping an eye on the web browser market, shows Firefox slowly declining or stagnating, while Google Chrome keeps on growing.
While things may fluctuate from one week to the other for a while, Google Chrome will eventually overtake Firefox by a safe enough margin, in a matter of weeks based on Statcounter data, or months based on other data, such as NetApplications.
Of course, even though the large trends have been relatively stable, Internet Explorer is losing market share, Chrome is gaining, Firefox isn't going anywhere, nothing is set in stone.