Google Launches Chrome – Will the Browser Turn Golden?

News out today that Google Inc. is releasing its very own Web browser, called Chrome. This is a long-anticipated move targeted directly at Microsoft Corp’s dominant browser, Internet Explorer. IE is used by about 75% of all Internet users.

This move by Google allows Chrome to facilitate Internet users easy access to its own market-leading search engine. Google’s lead in the lucrative Internet search market is also dominating. Their search engine processes nearly two-thirds of the Web’s queries.

Google is offering Chrome for free and will be available for downloading in more than 100 countries, but for computers running only Microsoft’s Windows operating system. Google says it is still developing versions compatible with Apple Inc.’s Mac computer and the Linux operating system.

This battle between two of hi-tech’s heavyweights – Google and Microsoft – has been going on for a while and will continue on for some time.

For the past several years, Google has been attempting to find ways of taking advantage of its search engine’s popularity,  trying to break Microsoft’s hold on how most people interact with personal computers.

To date, Google has concentrated on focusing on a bundle of computer programs, including word processing and spreadsheet applications, that Google offers as an alternate to one of Microsoft’s biggest money makers, the MS Office suite of products.