HitChrome

Several computer vendors are exploring the possibility of including Google Chrome as the default Internet Web browser of choice. Most PCs and laptops traditionally come with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer installed.

Google Inc is talking with PC vendors to include its Chrome Web browser new desktop PCs, notebooks, and laptops. New PCs customarily come with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer as the default browser. The Microsoft operating system, such as Windows and Vista, include IE as the default.

Even so, top companies such as Dell, HP, Acer, and Toshiba are showing interest in a pre-install agreement with Google. The agreement would replace Internet Explorer as the default Internet Web browser with Google Chrome.

“We could work with an OEM and have them ship computers with Chrome pre-installed,” Sundar Pichai, Vice President of Product Management at Google, said in a statement.

The search engine giant wants to gain more acceptance for its latest project by pre-installing it on new PCs. Some vendors already like the idea.

Internet Explorer currently leads the market which critics say having the browser set as a default is the primary reason. In fact, IE has been the default Internet Web browser for over a decade.

Google Chrome recently came out of beta. New versions of the browser will be released in January 2009 for Linux and Mac computers.

A representative from Sohu.com (SOHU) has confirmed that the Chinese Internet company plans to launch its own Internet browser product, but the detailed schedule for making it available to users has not been released.

According to news posted on Sina.com that quoted the unnamed representative from Sohu.com, Wang Xiaochuan, senior vice president of Sohu.com, revealed during his recent lecture in Tsinghua University that Sohu.com plans to launch a browser software to compete with Opera, Google’s Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Maxthon. The most distinctive feature of this browser is that users on education networks will be able to visit international networks directly via this browser, which means the browser will have an embedded proxy function.

At present, Microsoft’s Internet Explorer dominates the browser market with other browser products, including Mozilla’s Firefox and Google’s Chrome, dividing the minor part of the market. Having launched many software products like Sogou’s Pinyin input method, Web applications and desktop applications, Sohu.com’s browser product is expected to further integrate its product line.

Earlier in 2008, Mozilla announced plans to cooperate with Sohu.com to launch a new Olympics-related special version of the Firefox browser. This was the second time for Firefox to launch a customized product in China. Its first special version was NKU Firefox 1.0, which was developed by the Firefox user group at Nankai University.