Microsoft Internet Explorer has really entered the countdown to retirement. At 0:00 yesterday (May 16), Microsoft edge browser officially announced that Microsoft IE browser was officially retired on June 16, and its functions will be taken over by edge browser. So far, the 27 year old browser, which was born in 1995, has come to an end.
"Ie will officially say goodbye"
"Finally, after being hacked for so many years, ie will officially say goodbye to you." The official microblog of Microsoft edge browser issued an official announcement at 0:00 on May 16. The microblog mentioned the 27 year journey of ie. from now on, this route edge will continue to go for ie.
It is reported that Microsoft has given a specific "retirement plan" for IE browser desktop applications: from August 17, 2021, Microsoft 365, outlook and other apps will stop supporting ie11 and ie11 desktop applications on June 15, 2002.
Under this official announcement, many netizens commented that "an era is over." Another netizen said, "we will always love him, just like ourselves in childhood."
At the peak of IE browser, it once steadily ranked first in the global market share. According to the official microblog, in August 1995, one of the most successful operating systems in Microsoft's history - windows 95 was officially released. As the default browser of Windows 95, ie quickly occupied the market. Three years later, it successfully became the browser with the largest market share in the world, and reached the peak in 2003, accounting for 95% of the global market share. That is the golden age of IE browser. IE browser carries the youth of many post-80s and post-90s. It is their "enlightenment browser".
Since then, with the development of the times and the changing needs of consumers, Microsoft's update of IE browser has not kept pace with the times. Gradually, this browser has been criticized. Users often roast about its single function, slow response, poor compatibility and so on. At the same time, Firefox, chrome, Safari and other faster and safer browsers have come out one after another, taking a large market share. By 2015, the market share of IE browser had fallen below 20%, only 15.71%, and it was still declining gradually.
As early as March 2015, Microsoft confirmed that it would abandon the IE brand. Since then, Microsoft has gradually abandoned its support for IE browser and turned to Microsoft edge browser. On May 19, 2021, Microsoft announced that Internet Explorer would withdraw from the market in 2022. According to the data previously released by StatCounter, as of April 2021, the global market share of IE browser was less than 1%.
What about examination registration and online banking
With the end of IE browser, a series of problems have also been derived.
Some netizens in the microblog comments said that at present, the online registration system of some examination websites still stipulates that Internet Explorer must be used. For some company systems, bank online banking can only use Internet Explorer.
In a comment on "what to do with the company's online banking", the official microblog of Microsoft edge browser commented that the edge browser has ie mode.
It is understood that some domestic browsers have maintained compatibility with the IE kernel. The technical director of 360 browser told Zhongxin finance and economics that 360 browser will continue to maintain dual kernel support for a long time, that is, it supports both chrome kernel and IE kernel, and can automatically switch to a more appropriate kernel according to the website adaptation.
In addition, even if IE browser is retired, Microsoft will still bring continuous improvement to the "ie compatibility mode" of edge browser. Even after IE browser is disabled, ie mode in edge can expand the use of old applications. Some media believe that Microsoft still has to play a game on the "cake" of the browser. "Not long ago, the desktop market share of edge browser finally exceeded 10%," said the microblog announcing the retirement of IE browser.
So is there a security vulnerability for users who can still use IE browser? If the rights and interests of users are damaged, does Microsoft need to bear the responsibility?
After Microsoft announced that it would no longer provide patch service to IE after it retired. In this regard, Hu Gang, Deputy Secretary General of the legal work committee of the China Internet association, said that at present, almost all software services have similar exemption clauses, that is, software service providers will not be liable if they stop their services at any time due to various force majeure factors, technological development and cyber attacks. However, from the perspective of China's consumer protection law, the exemption clauses unilaterally stipulated by operators and the clauses that increase consumers' responsibility may be deemed invalid. The extent to which the exemption clauses of operators can be exempted needs to be judged according to specific cases.
At the same time, Hu Gang also said that according to historical experience, users do not have to worry too much about the retirement of IE browser. "From the experience of Microsoft's operating system upgrading, although the original software is no longer upgraded, the products used to replace are relatively mature and can still cope with most situations."
Microsoft reported a year-on-year increase of $49.2 billion in the third quarter of fiscal year 2024. According to GAAP, Microsoft's net profit in the quarter was US $16.7 billion, an increase of 8% year-on-year; Under non GAAP, Microsoft's net profit for the quarter was $16.7 billion, a year-on-year increase of 13%. At the earnings conference, Microsoft attributed the growth in the quarter to cloud computing related businesses to a large extent. The revenue of its server and cloud services sector increased by 29%, while Microsoft cloud increased by 32%, reaching a total of $23.4 billion.
From the perspective of Microsoft's share price, although it has fallen by nearly 30% this year, the share price has shown an upward trend as a whole for more than 30 years. The latest market value is nearly $2 trillion.
