Safari: It's about the money


In the wake of the release of Safari for Windows, many have asked, some derisively, "Why on earth would Apple make a Windows browser?"

Perhaps in answer to that question, MarketWatch is carrying a commentary by John Dvorak. In this piece, the pundit pulls together two lines of reasoning that may be the driving forces behind Apple's release--keeping the iPhone platform closed and tapping online revenue.

Of the former, much has already been written and only time will tell whether Apple's strategy will pay off.

However, Dvorak's notion that Safari's Windows release is about simply grabbing revenue in the here and now is worth a longer look:

Over the years, the browser market has become quite lucrative for unexpected reasons, the main one being search ... In the upper right-hand corner of a Firefox browser, for example, you'll find a little search box. Look at the Safari browser; it is there, too ... That little box brings the Mozilla organization, the developers and promoters of the Firefox browser, more than $50 million in income--free money.

Because Macs now run on Intel, the marginal cost of bringing Safari to Windows, even without the iPhone in the picture, is likely very low. Whatever the price, it certainly must be significantly less than the cash the company expects to pull in as a result.

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With Safari users (Mac) accounting for nearly 5 percent of those online, Apple is already drinking from the search cash stream and likely has a taste for more.

So, perhaps the question becomes, "Why on earth wouldn't Apple port Safari to Windows?" It is, after all, free money...

What's your take?