Why does Microsoft put so much effort into Internet Explorer?

Microsoft is a for-profit publicly traded company. What financial gain does it get by dominating the market for FREE web browsers? Mozilla/Firefox open source, collaboration, add-ons, etc browser makes sense to me. Google Chrome and delivering content-rich pages and web based apps makes sense to me. Microsoft's efforts to continue to dominate this market does not make sense to me. Seems like a waste of money. Anybody want to clue me in?Why does Microsoft put so much effort into Internet Explorer?
Since Internet Explorer is a Windows-only product, if more people use Internet Explorer, they will be more inclined to use Windows (which is sold for profit). The more people who use Internet Explorer, the more sites there will be that use IE-only technology like ActiveX, which will then drive more to use IE (in order to get the view and functionality of the website), which again drives people to use Windows.



One thing that came up in the DOJ trial against Microsoft ten years ago was that they actually bullied other companies (Netscape, IBM, Sun) to develop or not develop programs that might compete with IE and Windows. So yes they were thinking about this to be sure.
Since it s so tightly bundled in the OS that you can not remove it, everybody gets IE with the system. It is non-standard in the way it interprets web pages, so it means any web site needs at least 2 different sets of css in order to make all browsers work. They then provide their own web services in a way that requires their own browser. This is part of their policy of restricting people's use of the system to being dependent on themselves. Unfortunately in the rush to keep up with everyone else's developments, the also seem to rush releases of unfinished versions. If you look through the questions here a large percentage are about people installing IE8, their machines then running incorrectly, and a total failure to recover on removal. Exactly the same as the initial version of IE7.Why does Microsoft put so much effort into Internet Explorer?
Because they are KING of providing technology and software for computers. Most computers have a windows operating system. They are also the closest thing to internet policing, besides your internet service provider and anti-virus software. Besides, they NEED to put so much effort into Internet Explorer. They have to stay on top and keep up to date with the ever-expanding security threats. Go Microsoft/Windows...
Do you seriously expect the next generation of Windows to ship with IE7?

I think not. IE is a integral part of the windows operating system and always will be. It needs constant development to catch up with the rest of their products.



Microsoft still has a very large market share in that area and if they ceased development, they're also abandoning a very large user base. Take a good look at what computers at schools, libraries, government institutions are all using.Why does Microsoft put so much effort into Internet Explorer?
IE is not just a browser; it's an integral part of Windows. Many Windows tasks require or use IE. Also, IE still has the largest market share of any web-browser. Microsoft would be silly not to improve on their software.



Off topic: LMAO @ manmeet! You seem to forget that Apple would be bankrupt if it wasn't for Microsoft.
I think that the days of Microsoft are finished and if we buy a mac, It will be a better choice because it's speed is good and it is user's friendly!
If you've used Internet Explorer 8, you'll notice that they DIDN'T put much effort into it.