Rumors are circulating that Microsoft is actually building a new web browser to compete with Google Chrome and Firefox, via this report from ZDNet.
The report cites unnamed sources as saying Microsoft’s browser project, code-named Spartan, will replace Internet Explorer and accompany Windows 10. There’s also this tweet from Thomas Nigro, a Microsoft Student Lead and and VLC developer:
Ok so Microsoft is about to launch a new browser that's not Internet Explorer and will be the default browser in Windows 10. Wow.
— Tina Debove Nigro ᯅ (@tina__nigro) December 18, 2014
If Spartan is indeed being built to compete with other, more popular browsers, it would make sense that it would be lightweight and support extensions like Chrome and Firefox. Doing that begs the question of whether such a browser would be ported to non-Windows devices, although recent Microsoft behavior indicated that it’s definitely a possibility.
Contacted about the rumor, Microsoft said that it had “nothing to share” regarding any rumors of a new browser.
Microsoft is expect to release Windows 10 sometime in the summer of 2015. A January 21 event designed to showcase Windows 10 features may shed more light on the Spartan browser rumor.
Update: We’ve clarified the headline to note that the rumored browser may have extensions like Google’s Chrome browser, not necessarily ones compatible with Chrome extensions.
Photo by Jorgan Kesseler
