Include FireFox Browser in Web Site Compatibility Testing, Advises Web Analysis Company

Nielsen//NetRatings reported on Wednesday that escalating interest in the FireFox browser garnered a 237 percent spike in unique visitors to the Web site from nine months ago when the site first met Nielsen//NetRatings' minimum reporting levels in June 2004.

More than 2.6 million people visited the FireFox site (www.mozilla.org/products/firefox) during March 2005 to download the browser and obtain more information.

"The search for an alternative browser has grown in recent years, as the Internet's early adopters have begun to think of the browser as something other than a commodity," said Ken Cassar, director of strategic analytics, Nielsen//NetRatings. "FireFox gives Web surfers a simple tool that blocks unsolicited windows, is less susceptible to virus attacks and offers a unique means of navigating multiple sites within a single browser."

Traffic to Mozilla.org, the site for the Mozilla Foundation credited with developing the FireFox browser, saw a 284 percent year-over-year growth to 4.1 million unique visitors (see table). When the latest version of FireFox launched in November 2004, Mozilla.org drew its second largest audience with 3.4 million unique visitors.

Year Over Year Growth at Mozilla.org (U.S., Home & Work)

Site	March 2004 Unique Audience (000)	March 2005 Unique Audience (000)	Growth
Mozilla.org	1,079	4,143	284%

Source: Nielsen//NetRatings, April 2005


Cassar warns that, with Firefox's penetration growing as quickly as it is, publishers need to be certain that their sites are compatible with the upstart browser.

"It was looking as though Microsoft Explorer was in the process of establishing itself as the standard browser, which was great news for site developers. With Firefox on the rise, they have to grudgingly accept that they don't live in a one browser world."