Chrome Browser Usage Artificially Boosted

[Motoko.]

Tech blogs were abuzz yesterday over the news that Google Chrome had topped Internet Explorer in global browser market share. But the source for this story was StatCounter, which Microsoft has accused of using a somewhat flawed methodology. The other major traffic measurement site, Net Applications, reports IE as having a comfortable 54 percent of browser usage this month, with Firefox in second place with 20.20 percent and Chrome in third with 18.85 percent.

How can the results be so different? While StatCounter reported Chrome as being on top last week, even that traffic measuring site has IE back on top this week. But the real problem is just what StatCounter counts: pre-rendered Web pages that the user never saw. When a Chrome user types in a Google search, Chrome pre-loads an invisible tab in the background. StatCounter still counts this as a page view. By comparison, Net Applications removes these artificial results, as the company explained on its site.

pcmag

[torrentthief]

if chrome wasn't advertised on google.com homepage which a exit box that never remembers that you don't want chrome their browser usage would be a lot lower.

[still1]

if chrome wasn't advertised on google.com homepage which a exit box that never remembers that you don't want chrome their browser usage would be a lot lower.

If IE was not pre installed with windows OS. IE share would be a lot lower too... Your point?

[-Alex-]

Ah, there's the reason! Knew IE wouldn't be beaten that quickly!

[Growled Member]

Ah, it all makes more sense now.

[Jose_49]

If IE was not pre installed with windows OS. IE share would be a lot lower too... Your point?

Would be worse than Opera, and that is a given.

[Rigby]

Would be worse than Opera, and that is a given.

I seriously doubt that.

[remixedcat]

nahhh MS is just butthurt that Chrome beat em!

[Scorpus Veteran]

I highly doubt that is the case considering the Instant option is disabled by default in Chrome, and if you click through to the article they say that StatCounter actually do remove pre-rendered pages.

StatCounter has the largest scope in gathering statistical data (over 3 million websites for 15 billion hits per month), whereas Net Applications (which also weights their results) only counts around 40,000 sites.

StatCounter also lines up with Wikimedia, which for April reported Chrome and IE within 0.4% of eachother. Also, using pageviews as a method for usage share sort of makes sense, because more clicks from Chrome = more website resources devoted to serving Chrome = more developer time focusing on getting things working in Chrome

[(Spork)]

Would be worse than Opera, and that is a given.

roflmao wut

[firey]

Would be worse than Opera, and that is a given.

That is sarcasm right? Like the whole Opera thinking the only reason they are low is because of IE right?