30th May 2003
Another Nail In The Netscape Coffin
Microsoft is going to pay AOL $750 Million to settle a long-running spat, and AOL is going to use MSIE for the next 7 years.
Damn.
I used to work for AOL (’95-’98, web, not online service) At the time, when I was working on AOL.Com, I was hoping we would use the Netscape web server for the site, or Apache. My reasoning was that both of them had a bigger user community than AOLServer (nee NaviServer, which had a mere handful of people inside the company working on it), and so it would it be better to work with a product that much better understood. It would have been a great high profile site for Netscape.
I remember when Microsoft swooped in to become the built-in browser for the AOL service. It was a lost opportunity for Netscape.
I see how Apache (rightfully) commands most of the web server market, and a huge amount of mindset. Netscape could not compete against that in the server space. I see how Mozilla took forever to get off the ground, but is now a wonderful browser on a variety of platforms, and is free. Why bother with the Netscape browser?
I look at Netscape.com. and what I see is a pale shadow of its former self. A tech company completely emasculated. A fluffy site that is not CNN.Com, that is not CNNSI.com, and that is not People.com. It taps into these and other AOLTW properties, but at such a least common denominator level, that I have to wonder “what is the point of the site?”. I will say that it is a level up from my alma mater (1998), AOL.Com, which has clearly withered to the point of embarassment.
So, what is the point of Netscape now?
Browser? Mozilla and company, or Safari.
Server? Apache.
Web Portal? Not Netscape.com. Yahoo.com is much better in this area.
I understand the financial incentive for AOL to accept $750 Million from Microsoft, and would not be surprised to hear of some “but you have to use MSIE” arm-twisting in the deal.
Rest in Peace, Netscape. It’s been a long journey from Mosaic, to some pretty cool buildings in Mountain View and all of the assorted history, but there’s nothing obvious left for you folks to do. And for that, I’m sad.
