14 DAY TRIAL // Concomitantly with the Microsoft Support Lifecycle Update for April 2007, Microsoft has reinstated support for Internet Explorer 6. As Microsoft Lead Program Manager, Christopher Vaughan stated even before Microsoft had made available IE7, back at the end of August 2006, the lifecycle for Internet Explorer 6 Service Pack 1 has not been impacted by the release of IE7.
"With the debut of Windows Internet Explorer 7, Microsoft wants to make sure that you understand that support for Internet Explorer 6 will continue, based on the Microsoft Support Lifecycle policy. Under the Microsoft Support Lifecycle, Internet Explorer is supported as a component of the product with which it shipped. The support timelines for Internet Explorer will be inherited from the shipping product and its service packs," revealed Joseph Lumia, Account Technology Specialist with the Microsoft Enterprise Education.
This translates into support for all versions of Microsoft's browser in accordance with the operating systems it has shipped with. And in addition to sharing the support lifecycle with the operating system it was bundled with, IE updates will be delivered as an integer part of the service packs for the platform.
"There will be no change to how Internet Explorer 6 is supported. The following operating systems have Internet Explorer 6 installed and will follow the lifecycle of the operating system: Windows XP Service Pack 2, Windows 2000 Service Pack 4, Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1. Versions of Internet Explorer 6 that shipped as a part of the operating system or its associated service packs will continue to follow the support lifecycle of the operating system," Lumia added.
Currently, IE6 still accounts for 47.99% of the browser market while IE7 only managed to get a hold of 29.99% since October 2006, according to data made available by Market Share by Net Applications.