“Mozilla Is Gaining On Godzilla”

How’s this for a mismatch? On one side, you have Microsoft (MSFT

), the world’s largest software company, with $37 billion in revenues

and 57,000 employees. On the other is the Mozilla Foundation, a

nonprofit with a $2 million budget and just 16 employees wedged into a

single room in a Mountain View (Calif.) office park.

It’s Godzilla vs. Mozilla, and Mozilla is a midget. Yet the pipsqueak

is pulling off a feat that would have seemed preposterous a year ago.

It’s taking chunks of share from Microsoft in the Internet browsing

market. According to a survey released Jan. 12 by Web site analytics

firm WebSideStory, Mozilla’s free Firefox browser has grabbed a 4.6%

share over the past six months and seems well on the way to its stated

goal of 10%.

Yup, it won’t be long before is right up there as the browser of choice.  I am curious what Microsoft is going to come up with when they release their new version of Internet Explorer in a couple years.  That will certainly raise the bar for all other browsers, including and that can only be good for the industry as a whole.

In case you didn’t notice, I am a dedicated Firefox fan!