Microsoft beats back Mac and Firefox in July
- TAGS:Apple, Firefox, IE, mac osc, Microsoft, Safari
- IT TOPICS:Applications, Internet, Macintosh, Networking, Operating Systems, Windows
Microsoft halted a long loss of market share to both Firefox and Mac in July, as both Mac OS X and Firefox usage stalled or dropped. It's too soon to know whether this will stop Windows and Internet Explorer's long slide, but it's certainly good news for Microsoft.
Net Applications reports that the Mac share of the operating system market dropped .18 percentage points, to 7.75% in July, from 7.94% in June. Windows, meanwhile, gained .13%, going from 90.89% in June to 91.02% in July.
Windows gained in July because XP market share didn't drop as much as it had in previous months, and Vista continued its slow and steady gain.
Over on the browser side of things, Net Applications says that Firefox growth essentially stalled in July, with 19.2% market share, an increase of only .2% over June. Safari, meanwhile, dropped .2%, its largest drop since June, 2007. Internet Explorer usage held steady at 73%.
One month, of course, doesn't mean much over the long haul. But it's a bright spot for Microsoft, even if it turns out to be a brief one.
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