Just to layout the reason and set the background for the new document Mozilla released yesterday.
In short FireFox was started a number of years ago as an alternative to Internet Explorer. IE used to have over 90% of the worlds Internet Users and had monopoly as it was installed by default on all computers. Over the years FireFox grew and ate away at IE's lead but now Google Chrome has over taken FireFox as the main challenger to IE and FireFox have continued to see it's numbers fall.

This presents a number of challenges. The main one is the reason FireFox was started is no longer needed as Google Chrome has taken it's job as the main challenger to IE.

So Mozilla needs a new reason to exist. A new global aim or challenge to make the web more open and that it believes is ecosystems.

Taking Apple first they have an app store where they sell apps for their iOS and iCloud that syncs it all together locking people in.
Google have a market place for their Android and a chrome app store for their Chrome OS along with Google accounts and the growing G+ Profiles. Amazon also have an app store and their Kindle with it's apps, music, books and ecommerce empire. Microsoft have an app store, live accounts, Office, Windows 7 OS which runs on desktops and its mobile phones.
Basically they all have ecosystems which try to lock users in making them sign in on multiple devices and buy products from their marketplace which is against an open source web.

This is a world FireFox can't survive.

The roadmap released yesterday outlines what they plan to do which is release a Windows Mobile version of FireFox, release a new OS and launch a new app store where you can find extensions and apps.

I don't know if this is too late though. Everyone thinks Microsoft left it late with Windows 7 Phones and it's now struggling to build up it's app store and take users from iOS and Android. I don't see how Mozilla can at this late stage. Mozilla get's most of it's money from Google by having it as the default search so it's relying on Google for money. As FireFox declines they won't have as much money to develop an OS unlike Google, Apple and Microsoft who have billions to invest in their OS's and ecosystems.


The other problem is they don't have their own phones to install their OS by default. Android is default on most phones. iOS on Apple Phones and Macs, Amazons modified version of Android on it's Kindle fire and Windows 7 on Window Phones and desktops. Mozilla doesn't have any phone to put it's products on by default so if people don't install it then it won't gain users and as a result developers won't develop apps or addons for it.



Any thoughts? What would you do if you were Mozilla to stop FireFox numbers decreasing and what would you do long term to challenge Apple, Google, Microsoft and Amazon?
Mr Happy Reviewed by Mr Happy on . The Future of FireFox and Mozilla Just to layout the reason and set the background for the new document Mozilla released yesterday. In short FireFox was started a number of years ago as an alternative to Internet Explorer. IE used to have over 90% of the worlds Internet Users and had monopoly as it was installed by default on all computers. Over the years FireFox grew and ate away at IE's lead but now Google Chrome has over taken FireFox as the main challenger to IE and FireFox have continued to see it's numbers fall. This Rating: 5