Netscape Communications Company was founded on the 4^th of Apri of 1993. This company has released a range of browsers Netscape. It the middle 90s its market share was more than 90%. As a result of tough competitive struggle with Microsoft, Netscape Communications lost its dominant positions and in 1998 was bought by AOL for 4.2 million dollars. AOL continued support and development of Netscape browsers till the 1st of May 2008. That was the end of the history of the first browser that gained worldwide fame and became in many ways an engine of the World Wide Web. But browser Firefox became a direct heir of Netscape and send a challenge to powerful Microsoft.

Background

In April 1993 two programmers, who worked for National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) — Marc Andreessen and Eric Bina finished their work on the first version of browser Mosaic. The development was a success. Although Mosaic was not the first browser, it became a real window to the World Wide Web for many users. Mosaic combined a number of ideas that had been already worked out by other programmers. Browser was developed as a multi-platform programme, i.e. user saw the same interface no matter what OS he had on his computer. Mosaic combined text and pictures, gave an opportunity to transfer by references. It was easy-to-use. After its release not only scientists and programmers but people who didn't know all ins and outs of a command prompt could now use the Web. Mosaic worked not only under UNIX, but also under Microsoft Windows. That could be the main reason for its fast-growing popularity. Wired magazine wrote an enthusiastic article about the browser that claimed about a new phase of internet-revolution after development of Mosaic.

Founding Fathers

James H. Clark was born in 1994. He didn't finish his studies at school and left for the navy where he served for 4 years. Later even without school graduation certificate he managed to enter the university and get the degree of PhD in Сomputer Science. Clark concerned himself with computer graphics and achieved impressive gains. In 1982 he founded a famous company Silicon Graphics that dealt with development of graphics software and graphic workstations. He was a success. Hollywood used Silicon Graphics' services — a lot of visual effects for movies were developed on Clark's computers. But in the early 90s Clark wanted to try something new. That time he met Marc Andreessen who had just graduated from the university, but already managed to become a co-author of Mosaic.

On 1st of April James  H. Clark and Marc Andreessen founded a company that initially had the name Mosaic Communications Corporation. NCSA didn't like the name as it reckoned that the brand Mosaic belonged only to it. The company was renamed. So Netscape Communications appeared. In autumn 1994 a new version of Netscape Navigator browser appeared. It was written with the help of Mosaic's code by NCSA's assent. So Netscape Navigator became the nearest heir of Mosaic. Netscape Navigator's popularity was rising with the spread of the Internet. When in 1995 Netscape Communications broke on the market, its founders became multimillionaires.

Marc Andreessen found himself on Time's cover. He became the most famous personality of the internet-boom generation: a 24-year programmer who became a very rich man just overnight.

Netscape was the first browser that had worldwide popularity. In Russia in the middle 90s if someone mentioned a browser, it was Netscape.

Netscape's share reached 90%. There were no competitors.

War of browsers

Then Microsoft started a set-piece attack. It had several important advantages. Microsoft could spent on the browser development money it received from selling of OSs. Netscape had nothing but the browser. Microsoft could spread its browser for free when Netscape had to sell. Microsoft provided Internet Explorer as browser by default with its OS. And this OS was set up on 90% of computers. The more internet users appeared, the fewer specialists who had a knack for software were among them. And users took that what was offered by Microsoft without thinking about possible alternative. Microsoft completed an agreement with Apple company that Mac computers would be provided with Internet Explorer.

Netscape fought. But trying to add more new opportunities it had to release not completely tested programmes on the market. The browser broke down and hung up and it undermined its authority.

Netscape Communications started to lose its revenues. In 1998 the board decided to sell the company. It was bought by AOL for 4.2 billion dollars. AOL hoped to fight with Microsoft. But it failed. By 2004 the share of Internet Explorer reached 96%. It was a clear and complete victory. The war was over.

During the war of browsers companies were constantly trying to add new opportunities even in prejudice of stability (Microsoft also had not very reliable programmes). But when Internet Explorer became actually the only browser, the standstill came.

Firefox -the heir of Netscape

During the last year of its independent existence Netscape Communications took the plunge. The company opened the code of its browser and founded Mozilla Foundation which started to develop a new browser but with an open code — FireFox. And this browser (with the support of Google) has started to make competition to the Microsoft's monopoly in the recent years. Nowadays this Mosaic's ‘grandfather' has taken away more than 20% of the market from the giant. FireFox is growing so quickly that a new war of browsers can become true.