Google Invests In Maxthon

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Google Invests In Maxthon

By: Nathan Weinberg
2007-04-12

Google has reportedly made an investment in Maxthon, a web browser mod built on top of Microsofts Internet Explorer, somewhere in the neighborhood of one million dollars.

Details of the deal are not fully known, but Mike Arrington says it is part of a larger strategic deal. Maxthon has surprisingly large market share in China, with 30% of the browser market and 25% of all searches to competitor Baidu, so at the least Googles deal will be a blow to major rival, as it would likely become the new default search in the browser.

Long term, Google could push features in the browser that would benefit its web services, much like the web apps features planned for the next major release of Firefox. Google already holds a lot of sway in Firefox development, employing several key FF team members, and controlling an IE alternative could prove very useful. Richard MacManus notes that Maxthon is the only Chinese internet software company with a global presence, which would be beneficial for several other Google teams as well.

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About the Author:
Nathan Weinberg writes the popular InsideGoogle blog, offering the latest news and insights about Google and search engines.

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