Opera and Google partner on mobile search

Oslo, Norway - February 27, 2007 – Opera Software today announced that it has made Google the default search option in Opera's mobile Web browsers. Under the two-year agreement, anyone using Opera Mobile or Opera Mini can access Google's powerful mobile search directly from the browser start page, meaning they'll be able to quickly and easily get the information they need, whenever and wherever they need it.

Google has been the default search option on Opera's desktop browser for seven years. Previously, Google has also been the default search option on Opera's mobile browsers. This new mobile collaboration covers all global territories except Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States, and includes all of Opera's standard mobile Web browsers.

Opera Mini's ongoing success is a proof of the mobile Web's adoption by mainstream consumers. Because Opera Mini targets feature phones that have traditionally possessed limited browsing capabilities, more than 35 million people have made the personal choice to download, install and use Opera Mini on their phones. These consumers tend to use the mobile Web more frequently and actively than consumers with more static, less dynamic mobile Web browsers. Every month, Opera Mini users browse more than 1.7 billion pages, with much of that traffic generated through the search function in the browser.

Opera Mobile has been repeatedly selected by leading carriers and manufacturers that want to deliver the best Web experience to their customers. Opera Mobile has shipped on more than 100 million mobile phones so far. In 2007, more than 55 new phone models were launched with Opera Mobile pre-installed as the default Web browser.