Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) Going After Firefox, Chrome With New Browser (And It Won’t Be Called Internet Explorer)

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), maybe tiring of the now-old jokes about the equally old Internet Explorer, is reportedly aiming to heighten its battle against Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL)’s Chrome and Mozilla’s Firefox with a new browser.

And before you say that’s also old news, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is said to be releasing a browser that’s not named Internet Explorer.

According to the reliable Mary Jo Foley, ZDNet editor for the “All About Microsoft” blog, two sources point to Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) releasing a browser called Spartan. Spartan, she said, is not Internet Explorer 12.

Spartan, as the name suggests, will strip Internet Explorer of its clunky garb. In other words, the guys at the Redmond, Washington-based technology giant may have finally said that Internet Explorer needs to grow up and become just like Chrome and Firefox, conceding that the streamlined approach of the browser’s rivals is the way to go.

Foley said that Spartan is just a codename at the moment but who are we to say that Microsoft will not just stick with the catchy name in the long run.

The new Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) browser will be part of the company’s push for a better Windows 10 experience, Foley said. Her sources reportedly tell her that Spartan will run on the Chakra JavaScript Engine and Trident rendering engine (not WebKit).

A new and better browser in the marketplace is certainly welcome. At least, it’s more welcome than what Microsoft reportedly planned in the past which is as Foley described a renaming of the Internet Explorer browser to rid it of the infamy of its past versions.

According to Foley, the Windows maker may debut Spartan on January 21 in the event that’s intended to unveil new Windows 10 features.

Jeffrey Ubben’s ValueAct Capital is still the institutional investor with the biggest stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by the end of the third quarter. It owned about 74.24 million shares in the company by the end of September.