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Microsoft's Internet Explorer might have trounced the likes of Netscape Navigator, but the folks at Mozilla.org insist the browser wars aren't over.
That was the message coming from Mozilla.org's offices in Mountain View, California, on Tuesday when it announced it would split from America Online and form the independent Mozilla Foundation.
The move signals an effort by the developer of the open-source Mozilla Web browser to compete more directly with Microsoft's IE -- which currently controls nearly 96 percent of the market, according to Web analytics firm OneStat.com.
"People say there's no innovation in the browser space," said Mozilla Foundation president Mitchell Baker, "but that's only if you're using IE. We want people to know that there's a better product out there."
Although Netscape's decision in 1998 to launch the Mozilla project -- and therefore give away its browser code for free -- was widely considered to be a reluctant admission that Microsoft had won the battle for the prized browser market, Mozilla has since surpassed IE in terms of features and standards compliance. For example, the latest versions of Mozilla support tabbed browsing, pop-up blocking and junk-mail filtering -- none of which is provided by IE.
However, the project never has been able to regain the ground it lost to Microsoft during its initial four years of development, partly because the resulting browser always was marketed toward developers.
Currently, Mozilla owns only 1.2 percent of the browser market. Netscape has 2.9 percent, and IE controls 95.3 percent, according to OneStat.com.
"In the past, our geek flavor has been a barrier to general adoption," said Baker, referring to the technical nature of the organization's flagship Mozilla browser. "Now we plan to focus more on distribution."
Representatives from Microsoft did not immediately return calls for comment.
Neither Baker nor AOL would comment on what increased visibility for Mozilla would mean for AOL's own Netscape-branded browser, which uses Mozilla components at its core.
AOL spokesman Andrew Weinstein confirmed that the company had laid off 58 developers from its Netscape division, but noted that it "will continue to support the Netscape brand."
Additionally, AOL has said it will contribute $2 million and intellectual property rights to help the Mozilla Foundation with its transition -- an announcement that has puzzled some observers who see AOL's recent seven-year licensing agreement with Microsoft as the reason behind the spinoff of the Mozilla group.
"AOL doesn't really seem to have a motive for supporting Mozilla and Netscape anymore," said Jeff Howden, a Web applications developer and co-founder of evolt.org, a group of Web developers who have followed the browser wars over the years.
Regardless of how many new features Mozilla offers, most consumers are unlikely to switch from Internet Explorer, noted Howden. "Users will use what is on their computer already," he said. "If they want pop-up blocking, they're more likely to download a program for it or a plug-in for IE that does it rather than download an entirely new browser."
"Mozilla won't win with the general public by having a superior feature set," he added. "It won't win by rendering faster or being more standards-compliant. Heck, IE didn't do any of those things to get where it is today. It's on top because it's on every desktop."
Despite such skepticism, Baker and the team at the Mozilla Foundation say they are ready for a fight. "We've got the better browser," said Baker. "And that's what really matters."
