The data
On the off-chance anyone still cares what’s happening on desktop PCs these days, a new report reveals that China’s most popular PC browser is Qihoo 360 Secure (never heard of it? Read this). IE takes a back seat . IE. 7.3%? What happened to you, man? You used to be a legend. You used to be a god. Web app developers beware: if you’re producing interfaces for mainland China, this is the browser set you should be testing for:
The source
iiMedia’s end-of-year report on the state of the Chinese browser market.
The Analysis
Why Qihoo 360?
Though relatively unknown outside of China, Qihoo dominates the Chinese market because it serves market needs in a way that no other browser is able to do:
- It has a split personality. Some websites in China, like old government and bank websites, work best with IE (or even worse, don’t work at all without it). More modern code works best with webkit browsers like Chrome. Qihoo 360 ships with two different layout engines – both Chrome’s Webkit and IE’s Trident – and automatically switches back and forth between the two engines depending on the requirements of the page being loaded. In other words, Qihoo 360 offers features of both IE and Chrome, so there’s little need for users to choose between one or the other.
- It integrates WeChat. Qihoo 360 offers browser plugins that interface with WeChat in a number of ways.
- It facilitates mobile browsing. A “bind to phone” feature lets users easily and quickly transfer desktop browsing experiences to their mobile devices.
Kendra Schaefer
