AOL prepares for 'Browser Wars II'

NEWS AOL has launched the beta version of its AOL 7.0 software with new browser technology based on Mozilla, capping a week of speculation the company is preparing to ditch Microsoft's Internet Explorer. Yesterday AOL's cut-price brand Compuserve made the same move, offering the "Gecko" browser with its ISP software. The Gecko browser comes out of the same Mozilla open source development process set up by Netscape. AOL bought the alternative browser maker in 1998. However, despite owning the Netscape technology AOL has always used Microsoft's Internet Explorer as its default browser. But the increasingly bitter nature of the rivalry between the two firms, over issues such as instant messenger, the bundling of AOL software with XP and now web services, has put the firms on collision course. However AOL has refused to confirm if the browser will be in the finished version of the software, due out in the autumn. For related news, see:
MSN locks out non-Microsoft browsers
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