IE9 hits 2 million downloads in first 48 hours

IE9 - tapping into the 'beauty of the web'
IE9 - tapping into the 'beauty of the web'

Microsoft has announced that it had over 2 million downloads of Internet Explorer 9 in the first two days of its release, a huge increase on those that trialled IE8 at the same stage.

Microsoft has been 'overwhelmed' by the critical acclaim that IE9 has reaped since it arrived last week, and is looking forward to more websites being built that take advantage of what it is terming 'the beauty of the web'.

"Last week on the 15th, we released Internet Explorer 9 Beta," blogged Microsoft's Roger Capriotti. "The initial reaction has been pretty overwhelming, and we are very humbled by the response our customers have had.

"2 million"

"In first two days, over 2 million people worldwide downloaded IE9 Beta," he continued. "By comparison, when Internet Explorer 8 Beta launched in August 2008, we had 1.3 million downloads over the first five days."

Capriotti went on to outline his hope that the early response would translate into people taking advantage of Windows and IE9 to bring greater functionality to their websites.

"All in all, we are encouraged about the very early response to the IE9 release this past week, namely because it signals that the emphasis on making websites shine through Windows is resonating," he added.

"We are looking forward to more and more partners building great experiences through Internet Explorer 9 to deliver a more beautiful web."

Patrick Goss

Patrick Goss is the ex-Editor in Chief of TechRadar. Patrick was a passionate and experienced journalist, and he has been lucky enough to work on some of the finest online properties on the planet, building audiences everywhere and establishing himself at the forefront of digital content.  After a long stint as the boss at TechRadar, Patrick has now moved on to a role with Apple, where he is the Managing Editor for the App Store in the UK.