This chart was issued by Microsoft today as part of a report assessing Internet Explorer 8, the next version of its Web browser, against two of its rivals, Firefox and Chrome. The tests were conducted by Microsoft itself, so it's appropriate to look at the data skeptically.

But taken at face value, the results may help Microsoft overcome Internet Explorer's sluggish reputation. The company says the point isn't to argue over which browser is hundredths of seconds faster than another. Instead, Microsoft says it's trying to get people to stop worrying about page-load time, and focus on other things, when deciding which browser to use.

"The moral that we take from this is, all browsers are fast, and the difference between the speed is generally not significant enough to make any difference," said Amy Barzdukas, an Internet Explorer senior director, in an interview. "But even if you want to talk about the differences, IE doesn't suffer by those comparisons. So, to the extent people want to talk about performance, we really believe it's an issue that is off the table in terms of page loading."

Access the full report on this Microsoft page.

Update: Also see Emil Protalinski's report yesterday on Ars Technica, which says the comparison "is bound to stir up a lot of controversy."