The web browser is not only important at home or in school. For business, the browser is a key tool for accessing line of business apps, connecting with customers and partners, modernizing employee desktops, and enabling employees the flexibility to work from anywhere. Choosing the right browser is critical for organizations, and a choice that has far-reaching impact on organizational security, productivity and application development costs.
Today we are happy to share the findings of Forrester Consulting, who evaluated considerations that IT managers weigh when deciding on a browser and whether to support or allow the use of nonstandard browsers. Forrester’s
Business Case for Standardizing on a Single Modern Browser in the Enterprise is
now available and reveals business priorities that reaffirm Internet Explorer’s choice as a great browser for business.
Forrester found that ninety-six percent of firms today standardize on a single browser for company-issued PCs, as there are increased costs associated with supporting or allowing nonstandard browsers within the enterprise. For example, Forrester found that firms spend an
extra $4,200 per web app annually to support multiple browsers. For a large corporation, that translates to almost $400,000 per year just for web apps. Any potential benefits were clearly outweighed by support, maintenance, and other costs - as
most firms with multiple browsers experienced cost increases in excess of 20% overall. This is in line with conventional wisdom, which says to pick one browser but develop sites to common web standards.
