Microsoft has announced that Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) will be released on Monday, March 14, 2011. However, both the date and the chosen venue for the official launch are a little surprising.

The final version of the new browser will be available to download from 9PM PST (Pacific Standard Time) March 14th. To mark the occasion, Microsoft is holding an official launch part in Austin, Texas as part of the SXSWi (South by Southwest Interactive) Festival. (Source: windowsteamblog.com)

The setting is a surprising choice. For one, the festival is a tech-based spinoff from a better-known independent music festival, and usually attracts the type of self-confessed geek that would be amongst the last people one would associate with mainstream Microsoft products.

IE9 Release Too Late for Hacking Contest

The Internet Explorer 9 release date is just three days after the annual CanSecWest security conference in Vancouver. The conference plays host to the Pwn2Own hacking challenge, where computer enthusiast contestants are required to breach the security on a computer running the latest editions (complete with security updates) of various operating systems and web browsers.

It certainly appears little coincidence that both Apple and Google have just released significant updates for their respective Safari and Chrome browsers, taking care of many of the security loopholes that might have been very publicly exploited in the contest.

Successful Attack on Internet Explorer 8

Microsoft didn't release any updates for Internet Explorer 8 in its scheduled monthly update this week.

That's not to say the browser was invulnerable: in fact, one winner at this year's Pwn2Own carried off a successful attack on a Windows 7 machine running IE8. The details of the successful attack are being kept quiet for the moment, so it's not possible to tell if it could have been carried out on IE9. (Source: zdnet.com)

Internet Explorer 9 Promises a 'More Beautiful Web'

According to Microsoft, there are still a "few surprises left" and "new amazing things to share", some of which will be unveiled at the launch event.

Speculation is that the launch will coincide with a redesign of the Bing search engine, designed specifically to take advantage of the support for HTML5 in the new browser, a technology Microsoft claims will lead to a "more beautiful web." (Source: msn.com)