diff --git a/Lib/webbrowser.py b/Lib/webbrowser.py
index 7b0f736..3735587 100644
--- a/Lib/webbrowser.py
+++ b/Lib/webbrowser.py
@@ -447,7 +447,7 @@
 
         # if successful, register it
         if retncode is None and commd:
-            register("gnome", None, BackgroundBrowser(commd))
+            register("gnome", None, BackgroundBrowser(commd.split()))
 
     # First, the Mozilla/Netscape browsers
     for browser in ("mozilla-firefox", "firefox",