Web browsers: a brief history

As Windows Edge is revealed, take a look back over some of the key moments in the history of web browsing

The very first web browser, WorldWideWeb, pictured in 1990
The very first web browser, WorldWideWeb, pictured in 1990 Credit: Photo: CERN

Microsoft finally revealed the name of its new web browser as Microsoft Edge during the company’s annual Build developer conference, which it hopes will win back users from Mozilla and Google.

Microsoft Edge is the company’s first browser for two decades, as Internet Explorer nears its 20th anniversary in August. The new browser, previously codenamed Project Spartan, will be the default for all new Microsoft products shipped with latest operating system Windows 10, while some versions designed for enterprise customers will continue to feature Explorer as well.

Microsoft's corporate vice president of operating systems Joe Belfiore claimed that Edge is significantly faster than its predecessor, and includes a built-in annotation tool, further voice control integration with digital assistant Cortana to offer more personalised results and actions, and a stripped-back reading mode.

"For us, the name refers to the idea of being on the edge of consuming and creating," he added. "It refers to the developer notion of being closest to the modern capabilities of the web."

Edge will also be capable of supporting Chrome and Firefox extensions, allowing developers to carry their favourite plug-ins to the new browser in a user-friendly move.

Microsoft was at the forefront of the internet revolution with the launch of Internet Explorer in 1995, allowing users to surf the rudimentary world wide web. Between 2002 and 2003, around 95 per cent of web users used it as their primary means to access web pages as more of the world gained internet access.

In recent years it has struggled to compete with faster rivals Mozilla’s Firefox and Google’s Chrome browsers, launched in 2004 and 2008 respectively, as internet users increasingly began using operating systems which did not support Internet Explorer. The rise in internet browsing on Android and iOS smartphones led to greater adoption of rival browsers, while Microsoft was slow to adapt to the smartphone audience.

Chrome is now believed to hold around 51 per cent of web browser market share worldwide, according to web traffic analysis tool StatCounter. Internet Explorer’s usage had fallen to around 21 per cent, followed by Firefox with 18 per cent.

Microsoft hopes to encourage more software developers to write apps for the Windows phone system after announcing new tools to help transfer apps originally written for Android or iOS-running smartphones during the conference. Windows Phone currently only accounts for around 3pc of the global smartphone market, compared to Android’s 81pc and iOS’s 15pc, according to Strategy Analytics.

Microsoft is pinning its hopes on the successful launch of Windows 10, due in July. The company reported a 12pc fall in profits year-on-year to $5bn (£3.3bn) during the first three months of 2015, as sales of Windows systems and Office productivity suite fell. However, cloud-based business software sales rose by 106pc as the firm increasingly targets enterprise customers. Predecessor Windows 8 was roundly criticised for making what were perceived as extreme changes to the system, including now allowing users to boot into desktop mode and removing the Start button from the menu.

Web browsers through history
From WorldWideWeb to Microsoft Edge, here are some of the key moments in the long history of our portals online
1990
WorldWideWeb
The first ever web browser (later renamed Nexus to avoid confusion with the World Wide Web), WorldWideWeb was developed by Sir Tim Berners Lee and was the only way to view the web at the time.
1992
MidasWWW
MidasWWW was developed at the Standford Linear Accelerator Centre in 1992.
1992
Lynx
The text-based web browser Lynx cannot display images, video or other graphic-based content.
1993
NCSA Mosaic
Mosaic may have been discontinued for 18 years, but it's largely credited as the first browser to truly popularise web browsing by displaying images embedded within text.
1995
Internet Explorer
Released in 1995, Internet Explorer was Microsoft's first web browser, having previously used Cello or Mosaic browsers on Windows.
1996
Opera
Opera started life as a research project for Norwegian telecoms company Telenor before being publicly released in 1996.
2003
Safari
Apple's first web browser Safari was released in 2003, with Macintosh computers previously shipping with Netscape Navigator or Cyberdog.
2004
Mozilla Firefox
Firefox was launched as a free, open-source browser in 2004, in the wake of the demise of Netscape Navigator at the hands of Internet Explorer.
2008
Chrome
Google's Chrome browser was launched in 2008, and within six years has rapidly expanded to encompass the majority of the browser market.
2015
Microsoft Edge
Previously known as Project Spartan, Microsoft Edge is the company's new weapon in the war against Google's web dominance.