The Drum Awards for Marketing - Extended Deadline

-d -h -min -sec

Google

With Chrome laptops out today, Facebook samples the browser business with Rockmelt

Author

By The Drum Team, Editorial

June 14, 2011 | 2 min read

Browsers are big business, and as Google gets set to launch its Chrome laptops today, Facebook gets much closer to its browser partner Rockmelt.

The Facebook-Rockmelt business partnership just announced led to the latest update to the Facebook-driven Web browser, which RockMelt introduced late last year. New features ensure RockMelt's Web browser will never truly leave Facebook, even if its users dally on other sites.

The browser's top panel in its latest version gives easy access to Facebook friend requests, messages and notifications . Users can follow what's happening on their Facebook pages wherever they are on the Web.

The upgrade also makes it easier for RockMelt users to keep track of their Facebook friends and chat with them from within the browser.

Tim Howes, RockMelt's chief technology officer, said, "We view these features as a down payment on our partnership.

"Facebook has put no money into RockMelt. The company got $10 million from a group that included a fund managed by Marc Andreessen, co-founder of Web browser pioneer Netscape ."

It all started when a staffer of CEO Mark Zuckerberg became an early tester of Rockmelt. The RockMelt link could give Facebook a springboard into the Web browser market. Google joined the field three years ago with its Chrome browser, which now has 160 million active users. Chrome is of course at the heart of a new operating system for computer notebooks being released today in the UK and US, as well as France, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands. RockMelt's goal is one million active users, and it has still to get there. However, the under-25 group makes up 56 percent of RockMelt's audience and that is encouraging the men at the top.
Google

More from Google

View all

Trending

Industry insights

View all
Add your own content +