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submitted 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago) by pnutzh4x0r@lemmy.ndlug.org to c/firefox@lemmy.ml

Mozilla Corp., which manages the open-source Firefox browser, announced today that Mitchell Baker is stepping down as CEO to focus on AI and internet safety as chair of the nonprofit foundation. Laura Chambers, a Mozilla board member and entrepreneur with experience at Airbnb, PayPal, and eBay, will step in as interim CEO to run operations until a permanent replacement is found.

https://archive.is/rmMEb

Official Blog Post: A New Chapter for Mozilla: Focused Execution and an Expanded Role in Charting the Internet’s Future

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[-] Caravaggio@feddit.nl 134 points 9 months ago

"Mozilla now makes most of its almost $600 million in annual revenue from promoting Chrome as the default search engine on its home page."

Proofreading FTW.

[-] wreckedcarzz@lemmy.world 49 points 9 months ago

Chrome is just the internet, duh. Do you not support the internet? I have two internets on my computer, in case the first goes down or something. But the one internet hasn't had any issues, I just keep the second as a backup.

-- anyone in US govt

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[-] ferralcat@monyet.cc 89 points 9 months ago

Reading this new CEOs job history on linkedin is kinda infuriating. She goes from intern to head of consumer products at Skype in less than a year. Just... Frustrating to read that while I am and manage really good people who struggle for decades in the trenches to get even paltry job opportunities.

But she got her MBA from Stanford so nepotism ahoy I guess.

[-] anarchist@lemmy.ml 78 points 9 months ago

Yeah. "Airbnb, Paypal, and ebay" doesn't inspire confidance either

[-] Joker@discuss.tchncs.de 24 points 9 months ago

How is getting an MBA from Stanford nepotism? She probably worked her ass off not only to earn the degree but to be accepted to the university in the first place. Without knowing anything about her, I’m going to assume she’s a total rockstar until there’s a good reason to believe otherwise.

[-] density@kbin.social 48 points 9 months ago

working hard and nepotism aren't mutually exclusive

[-] Snapz@lemmy.world 16 points 9 months ago

Biggest predictor of future success is the zip code you're born into.

To your specific point, the preponderance of PERCEIVED hard work in the nepotism community is definitely worth mentioning. Hard work, as an objective measure, would be the exception in this camp.

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[-] PriorityMotif@lemmy.world 8 points 9 months ago

Buddy, if you told me you had an MBA from Stanford, I would give you a box of crayons and take bets on how long you could go without eating them.

[-] dditty@lemm.ee 7 points 9 months ago

The MBA would immediately toss 5 crayons from the box and announce they're only going to color with the remaining 10, collect a bonus, and then take a vacation after a hard days work.

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[-] Iapar@feddit.de 5 points 9 months ago

Without knowing anything about her you shouldn't assume anything about her.

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[-] Carighan@lemmy.world 70 points 9 months ago

pivots to data privacy

Should have not named Laura then, just to highlight the point. 😛

[-] LodeMike@lemmy.today 21 points 9 months ago
[-] MajorHavoc@programming.dev 55 points 9 months ago

For Laura's Privacy!

Sorry, it's a dumb recurring joke among Privacy nerds.

[-] Carighan@lemmy.world 17 points 9 months ago

Yeah it was just a silly joke based on how specifically the title was worded. 😅

[-] bilb@lem.monster 17 points 9 months ago

To protect her privacy, of course

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[-] selokichtli@lemmy.ml 58 points 9 months ago

They should focus more on their mobile browser. At this point the desktop browser is on par with Chrome. People who use Chrome does it because they don't care enough about privacy, but on mobile there is a noticeable difference between their performances.

[-] 4am@lemm.ee 20 points 9 months ago

Apple needs to allow 3rd party browser engines.

[-] WetBeardHairs@lemmy.ml 19 points 9 months ago

They will in the EU. Hopefully it's easy to game the system and sideload a non-safari browser in the future.

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[-] sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 13 points 9 months ago

I think they need to integrate better with their paid offerings to build additional revenue streams. For example, Mozilla VPN works with Container Tabs, but I had to look for it; that's a pretty killer feature IMO. Make it work on mobile too and a lot of people would be interested. Maybe they could white label a password manager (Bitwarden?) as an alternative to their built-in PW manager service, and make the experience really good. Throw in Relay as well.

There's a lot they could do with opt-in, privacy-centric features that I would be totally interested in.

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[-] dantheclamman@lemmy.world 46 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

I am a big fan of Firefox+Thunderbird and subscribe to Pocket, Mozilla VPN and Firefox Relay. I don't think she was the right CEO for the job, coming into the job because she was needed after the Eich debacle, not because she was the best choice. When I listened or read interviews with her I sensed a lack of focus, which I think came through with the lack of focus and commitment I sense in Firefox's products. She seems like a better fit for chair of the foundation, pursuing pie in the sky ideas rather than in the trenches trying to rebuild Mozilla's presence and diversify their revenues. Pocket has stagnated under their care, and actually grown less useful to the point I am considering switching. The Android browser is stuck in time. I don't think it's a coincidence that Thunderbird has flourished after pursuing a semi-independent structure: they finally had people who actually cared about the product calling the shots.

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[-] possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 24 points 9 months ago

That's honestly a good move. They are a sinking ship and they need to start to swim

[-] wreckedcarzz@lemmy.world 9 points 9 months ago

That's silly, ships can't swim, they're inanimate objects!

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[-] kbal@fedia.io 24 points 9 months ago

Congratulations to Mozilla Corp on escaping its CEO. Another one will inevitably move in, but perhaps it will be someone easier to bear.

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[-] delirious_owl@discuss.online 19 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

Mozilla is a for-proifit company!?!

[-] kilgore_trout@feddit.it 51 points 9 months ago

Mozilla Corporation is a corporation, and subsidiary to the Mozilla Foundation.

[-] jackpot@lemmy.ml 10 points 9 months ago

waif can a non-profit run a for a profit??

[-] Tyfud@lemmy.world 26 points 9 months ago

Yes. People got to eat.

They're legit companies, but they do not operate with the goal of profit. Profit is something they may make, and in many cases it's good so they can survive losses of funding or the like.

It also means they get certain tax advantages because they are not solely focused on profit

[-] kilgore_trout@feddit.it 9 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

Yesm It is weird, but it would be impossible for a foundation to develop complex software like a Web browser. Engineers cost.

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[-] delirious_owl@discuss.online 14 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

Pivots to data privacy? What was their focus before?

[-] brlemworld@lemmy.world 31 points 9 months ago
[-] Canadian_Cabinet@lemmy.ca 6 points 9 months ago

That's so messed up. Going to donate all of my money to Opera GX now

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[-] books@lemmy.world 10 points 9 months ago

Mozilla is pivoting to privacy or the old CEO is?

[-] Bitrot@lemmy.sdf.org 28 points 9 months ago

The new CEO of the corporation.

Chambers says she plans to focus on building out new products that address growing privacy concerns while actively looking for a full-time CEO.

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[-] ilinamorato@lemmy.world 13 points 9 months ago

Mozilla. They just launched a "delete me" service, and apparently they want to do more of that.

[-] wreckedcarzz@lemmy.world 6 points 9 months ago
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this post was submitted on 08 Feb 2024
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