IE9 via Windows Update available worldwide, except Japan

Just over a month after launching its Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) browser, software giant Microsoft has started rolling it out as a semi-automatic update to users of Windows 7 and Vista —but not yet in Japan. IE9, Microsoft's most advanced browser to date, was made available via Windows Update starting Monday, April 18, but its Japanese version will be available only starting April 25 —the day after Easter— so as not to overload the quake-damaged Internet infrastructure there. "Our sympathies go out to those affected by the continued earthquakes in Japan. We intentionally delayed the availability of the final Japanese language version of IE9 in an effort to avoid any burden to the local Internet infrastructure. The Japanese language version of IE9 will be released on April 25th, and Windows Update will be enabled for Japan at a later date," Roger Capriotti, Director of Internet Explorer Marketing, said in a blog post. Windows Update is Microsoft's automatic update mechanism that delivers patches and security fixes for the Windows operating system via the Internet. Japan is still recovering from the effects of a magnitude-9 quake and tsunami that hit last March 11. But elsewhere, Capriotti said that the rollout of IE9 to Windows 7 and Windows Vista customers should have started Monday, with the rollout completed by end-June. "We will offer IE9 to customers via a gradual rollout and expect the rollout to be largely complete by the end of June," he explained. On the other hand, Capriotti said they began upgrading existing IE9 Beta and RC users through Windows Update as early as March 28. User approval required Capriotti also said that IE9 via Windows Update will not install automatically on Windows 7 and Vista machines, and users "will have to agree to install IE 9." He added that IE9 will be made available on Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) in June, for business customers who require time to plan and test their deployments. WSUS allows use of management tools that make it easy for IT professionals to deploy IE9 in their environments in an automated fashion and at their own pace. He said business customers who do not rely on WSUS have the option to use the IE9 Blocker Toolkit to prevent IE9 rollout via Windows Update until they are ready. 'Strong customer, business demand' Also, he said that IE9 had been available for manual download since March 14, and they are "pleased by the early and continued enthusiasm for IE9." "We are seeing not only strong customer and business demand, but some of the highest web and application compatibility rates in IE history, not to mention all the sites that are taking advantage of HTML5 and IE9’s Windows 7 integration," he said. — TJD, GMA News