Google secures Sony computer deal for Chrome

by Stevie Smith - Sep 1 2009, 15:30

Bundling its Internet Explorer platform with the majority of new home computers means Microsoft Corp. has enjoyed an unrivalled dominance in the Web browser market for many, many years. However, could a new deal secured by Google be the prelude to a loosening of Microsoft’s vice-like grip?

While admittedly only a small dent in Internet Explorer’s dominance, the Financial Times reports that search titan Google Inc. has secured a deal that will see its speedily simple Chrome browser shipping with new Sony-made personal computers in the near future.

Concrete details regarding the deal, which was penned during the summer, have not yet been divulged by either Sony or Google – particularly with regard to which of Sony’s computers will roll off the production line with Chrome pre-installed as the browser of choice.

Adding Chrome to Sony’s PC hardware could potentially improve the positioning Google’s young platform, which launched during 2008 into a market where it trails significantly to browsers such as Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and also Mozilla’s open-source Firefox.

According to Google spokesperson Eitan Bencuya, the deal with Sony is only the first such carriage arrangement for Chrome, with the search specialist presently engaged in similar talks with other prominent PC manufacturers.

It remains to be seen whether the deal will boost Sony’s traction in the PC market, where it presently lags behind the likes of Hewlett-Packard and Dell and didn’t even make the top-five hardware makers list during 2009’s second quarter.

If the adoption of Chrome as a Web browser should suddenly surge (which we feel is unlikely given the saturation of IE), can we expect to see PC manufacturers similarly embracing Google's upcoming Chrome operating system?

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