While the popularity of the Firefox browser on the desktop continues to wane, it doesn’t look like Mozilla plans to throw in the towel on mobile platforms, as a new survey site discovered by TechCrunch indicates the firm is looking for beta testers for a Firefox browser to run on iOS devices.
Firefox’s plans for iOS comes in the face of a dwindling market share for the browser, as users spends more and more time on mobile devices. Firefox’s desktop share has dwindled to an 18.27% share, behind IE’s 19.85%, and far below Chrome’s 52.96% share, according to StatCounter.
Mobile is even worse for Firefox, (the company has an Android browser), with just a 0.58% share, compared with Chrome’s 30.06% share and Safari’s 39.49% share. (Data from NetApplications.)
A Mozilla manager indicated back in December that the company would be bringing their browser to iOS, but this is the first we’ve heard about the project bearing any fruit.
Anyone can sign up for the beta, but it isn’t clear how many testers will be needed. You’ll need to answer a few questions about the iOS devices you own, and your experience with iOS apps, and supply your email address, but it just takes a few moments to complete the survey.
If you’d like to beta test a Firefox browser for iOS, visit the Firefox iOS beta questionnaire site and fill out the survey.