Cross-Platform, Cross-Device Netscape Gecko Extends Web Convenience to Wide
Range of Devices
Breakthrough Next-Generation Browser Netscape 6 - Powered by Open Source Gecko
Browser Engine - to Be Released for Beta Testing in Next 25 Days
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., March 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Netscape Communications, a
subsidiary of America Online (NYSE: AOL), today announced that Netscape Gecko
-- its revolutionary smaller, faster, and more powerful browser engine
technology -- will be used by technology industry leaders IBM, Intel,
Liberate, NetObjects, Nokia, Red Hat, and Sun Microsystems. These companies
will use the cross-platform Netscape Gecko browser engine to extend the
convenience and power of the Web from the traditional desktop computer to a
wide range of Internet devices such as set-top boxes and browsing appliances.
Designed to power Internet devices across many platforms and devices, Gecko is
a key component of the "AOL Anywhere" strategy.
Netscape Gecko is revolutionary because it gives Web developers maximum
power to create more powerful Web content and Web applications. It is open
source, allowing individual developers to tailor it to their own use, and is
designed to operate across multiple platforms, so that it can be deployed on
the widest possible range of devices. In addition, Gecko is considerably
smaller than the engines of traditional browsers. Netscape Gecko is the first
software product from Netscape based on contributions from mozilla.org, the
organization chartered with managing Netscape's open source initiative on
behalf of thousands of Internet developers and Netscape.
In another major announcement, Netscape also said that Netscape 6, its new
Gecko-driven Internet browser would be available to the public within the next
25 days. Netscape also announced the availability of XUL (pronounced "zool"),
the XML based User interface Language, an innovative new XML application that
makes it easier than ever to develop a cross-platform user interface.
Today's announcements are the latest in a series of positive milestones
for Netscape. The Netscape Netcenter service recently surpassed 27.5 million
registered users. Daily page views have recently topped 65 million per day
-- a 45% increase since last year -- and search page views average 4 million
per day -- an increase of 1177% since last year. Netcenter is currently ranked
as the fourth most-visited site by at-work Internet users according to Media
Metrix, ahead of such competitors as Go.com, Lycos and Excite. Additionally,
Netscape's Open Directory Project recently became the largest search directory
in Cyberspace.
Barry Schuler, President of AOL Interactive Services, said: "Netscape is
once again starting an Internet revolution. As these partnerships demonstrate,
Gecko is the browser engine of choice for creating the kind of convenient
devices that will shape the future of the Web. Gecko is at the heart both of
our AOL Anywhere strategy, giving consumers the power to access all of the
online convenience they desire from wherever they happen to be, and of the
exciting new Netscape 6 that will redefine the browsing experience."
Jim Martin, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Netscape
Netcenter, said: "Everyone from Intel to Nokia is using Gecko because they
can tailor it to the needs of their own platforms, and rely on its leading Web
functionality for key technologies such as XML. The groundswell of support
from this diverse catalog of industry leaders is a sign of what Gecko's
remarkable power will bring."
Wide Range of Partnerships Demonstrates Gecko's Flexibility
Industry leaders are taking advantage of Gecko's speed and flexibility to
power a wide range of hardware and software products. Liberate, Intel, Nokia,
Red Hat, Sun Microsystems and NetObjects are all using Gecko as the Internet
browsing engine in software applications or hardware products, turbocharging
the growth of companion devices.
Martin Frid-Nielsen, Vice President of Engineering at NetObjects, said:
"Mozilla and Gecko provide NetObjects with the performance and flexibility we
need to develop products that enable our customers to effectively integrate
their enterprise applications and information infrastructure into a single Web
interface. We support mozilla and Gecko because we have found its open,
modular, standards-based approach gives us the browsing engine we need to
effectively integrate design with development."
Mitchell Kertzman, President and CEO of Liberate Technologies, said:
"Netscape Gecko fits well as a key component of our software, helping us
create a better interactive TV experience and resulting in greater success for
AOL TV and other partners using the Liberate platform. By supporting open
standards and working closely with leaders like Netscape and AOL, Liberate can
build on technology advances like Gecko to deliver TV and interactivity at its
best."
To fulfill the vision of enabling the Internet on the television, Nokia
and Intel are jointly developing a standards-based Internet-enhanced
television solution that will allow broadcasters to provide consumers with
access to new, Internet-enhanced broadcast services, as well as to an
extensive range of services already available on the Internet. Based on open
source technologies such as Netscape Gecko and Linux, these products can
evolve at the speed of the Internet and allow for greater innovation and
flexibility.
IBM will be contributing to the mozilla community and Gecko in specific
areas that concern its enterprise and e-business global customers. These areas
will include internationalization support, accessibility, enterprise support
and other areas to meet the needs of its customers.
Netscape Gecko will also be used across the AOL family of brands. AOL is
building Gecko support into future instant messaging clients. AOLTV, which
will run on the Liberate platform, will include Gecko to offer users a Web
experience similar to that found on a PC with the added multimedia richness of
the TV. CompuServe, AOL@School, Spinner, Winamp and ICQ will also make use of
Gecko technology.
Next Generation Browser - Netscape 6 - Powered by Netscape Gecko
Netscape 6, the Company's next generation browser and email software, is
built on the Gecko engine, resulting in a browser that enables a new
generation of powerful Web applications. The new browser -- scheduled for Beta
release within the next 25 days -- will take advantage of Gecko's
unprecedented power and flexibility to feature:
-- Small Size and Speed: Netscape is reversing the trend of software
bloat by developing a browser that is small in size and excels in
performance. Customers benefit from a small download and a fast
browser, while third-party developers benefit from a compact browser
engine that can be easily embedded in myriad network-ready devices.
-- Services on the Net: The most interesting applications being developed
today are free, Web-based services. The goal is to harness the Web for
the benefit of users, and Netscape 6 will expose those services through
the browser. The best recent example is Smart Browsing, which continues
to improve on one simple goal: helping users to find the information
they want quickly.
-- Same-Time Messaging: Instant messaging with buddy lists is emerging as
the next killer application on the Web. Instant messaging is popular
and powerful because it enables people to communicate quickly from any
distance, and notifies them when friends, family, and colleagues are
online. In many cases, instant messaging is becoming a low-cost
alternative to the telephone. It also brings same-time community to the
Web by enabling people with common interests to participate in their
own chat sessions.
-- Standards Compliance: Users insist on a full-functionality Web
browsing experience. Because of its full support for existing browser
technologies and industry-leading support for the latest Web standards,
Netscape 6 will give users access to all the power of the Web today and
will unleash the potential of Web standards to build the Web
applications of tomorrow.
Gecko Now Includes XUL, for More Powerful Web Applications
Gecko also provides industry-leading XML support and supports XUL for
rich, powerful Web applications. Netscape leads the industry in XML browser
support by providing the most standards-compliant XML implementation across a
variety of desktop and device platforms. Gecko now also supports XUL, an
innovative open source XML technology that enables Netscape and other
developers to provide a powerful and easily customizable application interface
across multiple desktop platforms and devices.
XUL, the XML-based User Interface Language, uses XML to describe the
features, objects, and layout of a traditional desktop application user
interface. XUL lays out the user interface elements across all platforms by
using these common Web standards: HTML, XML, CSS, the W3C DOM, and
JavaScript.
Gecko's industry-leading implementation of Web standards provides, for the
first time, enough power to build an entire software application user
interface. Using these Web standards alone, developers can recreate within a
Web application the entire user interface of a traditional desktop
application, including pull-down menus, pop-up menus, toolbars, icons and
scroll bars. XUL makes this even easier by using the standards to provide a
pre-built implementation of each UI object and a compact markup for laying out
the interface.
About Gecko
Gecko is a small, speedy, standards-compliant, open source embeddable
browser engine, which is being developed in the open via mozilla.org by
Netscape and other developers. Because of its cross-platform, cross device
design, Gecko is ideally suited for desktop computers as well as a new class
of devices that demand a rich, full featured Web experience, such as TV set
top boxes, home Internet appliances, and Web kiosks. This browsing technology
of the future will form the foundation of Netscape's next generation browser,
a beta of which will be delivered within 25 days.
More information about Netscape Gecko and its innovative technologies,
such as XML and XUL can be found at:
http://home.netscape.com/browsers/gecko/whitepaper.pdf.
About Netscape
Netscape is a leading provider of software and services for businesses
that want to transform the way they create and keep customers in the emerging
Net Economy. A division of America Online, Inc., Netscape is based in Mountain
View, California. Additional information on Netscape is available on the
Internet at http://home.netscape.com, by sending email to info@netscape.com,
or by calling corporate sales at 650-937-2555.
NOTE: Netscape, Netscape Navigator and the Communicator logos are
registered trademarks of Netscape in the United States and other countries.
Other Netscape logos, product names, and service names are also trademarks of
Netscape Communications, which may be registered in other countries. Other
product and brand names are trademarks of their respective owners.
SOURCE Netscape Communications Corporation
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CONTACT:
Catherine Corre of Netscape Communications
Corporation, 650-937-4046, or corre@netscape.com
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