Why a browser makes sense for Google?

Why a browser makes sense for Google?

We speculated about it in May, the online world went crazy about a possibility as soon as they came to know about Google registering GBrowser.com. However, recent development indicates that Google is not really developing a browser from scratch. The official word seems to be “Google does not want to reinvent the wheel”.

Seems like a decent reason not to start a browser from scratch. We already have 3-4 browsing engines around. It is not a bad thing to have more choices, but the fact remains none of these engines are perfect. Internet Explorer being the most used (though arguably the least standard compliant) gets most of the attention from web developers. It also uses certain proprietary technologies, which leads to many websites not to work on alternate browsers. Firefox has come out as a breadth of fresh air and would see the first final release launch next week. It is free and its engine is very well developed and is improving by the day.

Now, there are rumors out about a possible collaboration between Google and Mozilla. It is all a speculation currently. However, considering the popularity of Google Search Engine, I believe a Google Browser made on Mozilla Gecko technology can be an excellent idea. Not because Google needs a browser to compete with Internet Explorer, but because people surfing the web can do with a better browser than Internet Explorer. No matter how much Microsoft claims that Internet Explorer is more secure than ever, it will continue to be attacked and with security hazard technologies like ActiveX built in you never can be sure about it. A Google Browser based on Mozilla Engine would let Google to spend more time enhancing its outer shell to be more user friendly and feature package without worrying about the rendering engine which would be developed by Mozilla Community. They can integrate their other services like GMail and Desktop Searching along with of course Google’s own search engine. Another advantage would be the fact that Google’s brand value in the market is much better than Mozilla. People new to internet would be tempted to download and test a Google branded browser.

Mozilla could benefit a lot with such kind of a mutual arrangement with Google with more support from developers and users. For general public, it would mean a better and a more secure browser to surf the internet. And for the developers it gives them the flexibility to use advance web technologies, which are both standard compliant and accessibility friendly. A win-win situation for everyone. Except for maybe Microsoft of course…