Initial Version of IP Communications RockMelt Browser Is Launched

By Ed Silverstein, TMCnet Contributor

RockMelt has launched access to an early version of RockMelt, a new browser. RockMelt does more than just navigate Web pages. The company said it makes it easy for users to do daily things on the Web: share and keep up with friends, stay up-to-date on news and information, and search.

RockMelt is built on Chromium, the open source project behind Google’s (News - Alert) Chrome browser.

RockMelt is built sharing directly into the browser, right next to the URL bar. Users can use it on any site to post to Facebook or tweet about it on Twitter. 

RockMelt said it is also the first browser to be fully backed by the cloud. This means users can access browsing from anywhere, and they will get quick updates from the people and sites that are important to them.

RockMelt makes searching faster. With RockMelt, users employ a keyboard to flip through Google search results and pick the one they want.

The Wall Street Journal reported that RockMelt Inc., is backed by investors that include Marc Andreessen, who helped develop and popularize the first widely used browser, and William Campbell, a veteran technology executive who is chairman of Intuit (News - Alert), Inc., and a board member of Apple, Inc.

RockMelt is entering a market dominated by Microsoft Corp.'s Internet Explorer, Mozilla Foundation's Firefox, Google Inc.'s Chrome browser and Apple's (News - Alert) Safari, The Journal reported.

Here how it is different:

• RockMelt isn't only software. It comes with an Internet service that will funnel updated information to users.
• Users log into the software, using their credentials from Facebook (News - Alert), Inc. The design allows information about friends to appear without having to keep returning to Facebook.
• A selection of a user's Facebook friends remains on one edge of the browser, making it easier to send instant messages to them or share videos or other items by dragging it to that portion of the screen.
• Updates from news sites are pushed constantly to the browser, so users don't have to keep visiting those sites for the latest information.
• The Journal reports that Andreessen Horowitz is the lead investor in RockMelt, which has raised $10 million. Other investors, besides Campbell, include Diane Greene, former chief executive of software maker VMWare, Inc., and Ron Conway, a Silicon Valley investor.
• RockMelt plans to give away the browser, according to The Journal. Future options include receiving payments for referrals from search engines, an income source for other browser makers.

(source: http://ipcommunications.tmcnet.com/topics/ip-communications/articles/115203-initial-version-ip-communications-rockmelt-browser-launched.htm)