Chrome is now the world's most popular browser

Search engine Google's Chrome browser has officially overtaken Microsoft's Internet Explorer as the most popular web browser in the US. According to Adobe Digital Index Chrome has 31.8 percent of the combined desktop and mobile internet market which means Google's freeware is up six percent year-over-year. Internet Explorer which once ruled the known world, now has 30.9 percent. The figures however are somewhat suspect as it listed Apple's Safari came in third with a market share of 25 percent and claims that Firefox held only eight percent of the market, something that would have most users think there was something wrong. According to ADI, this decline is likely due to its lack of mobile presence. Most of the reason for this is because the figures included mobile browsing and was focused on the US where Apple rules the smartphone market. Google Chrome was already a market leader worldwide, with StatCounter estimating its usage at 43 percent. Dominance: Apple's Safari browser has cornered the mobile market thanks to overwhelming popularity of the iPhone ADI technology analyst Tyler White said the results are likely due to the increased reliance of the mobile operating system. Internet Explorer had long held onto its dominance by being the default web browser on desktops. But mobile devices are not relying on Internet Explorer as a web portal, instead defaulting or embedding Chrome or Safari, predominantly. Chrome is likely to become the default browser on all Android devices soon and it has seen more success outside of the US where it took over the market share lead last year.