Most people rely on Google for their web searches every day. So it wasn’t a surprise when we saw Nokia integrating Google Search in its Nokia Search app. Now, we have another “player” riding the “Google wave.” That’s Norway-based Opera Software which has been pushing Google as the default search engine on its desktop browser for years, and which now wants to do the same for their mobile web apps – Opera Mini and Opera Mobile.
Virtually all markets are covered with the new deal between the two companies with an exception of Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States.
Of course, in case you want to do that, you can always use other search engines with Opera’s mobile web browsers… Full release follows after the break.
PRESS RELEASE – Opera today made Google the default search engine in Opera’s mobile Web browsers. Now 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.
Opera Mini’s ongoing success is proof of the mobile Web’s adoption by mainstream consumers. Because Opera Mini targets feature phones that have traditionally possessed limited browsing capabilities, millions of people have made the personal choice to download and install Opera Mini to 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.
Google has been the default search option on Opera’s desktop browser for seven years. 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.
“Google and Opera have established a valuable relationship over the years and we look forward to continued collaboration on mobile products,” said Jon von Tetzchner, CEO, Opera. “With 2008 poised to be the year the mobile Web goes mainstream, Google and Opera are extending this collaboration to give our users immediate access to the quality and convenience of Google’s search results. We’re excited to extend this productive relationship and we hope that the nearly 100 million people using our mobile products will agree.”
Opera’s Mobile Web Portfolio
Opera’s two mobile products, Opera Mini and Opera Mobile, set the standard for mobile Web browsing on both feature phones and smartphones.
More than 35 million cumulative users have discovered how Opera Mini can revolutionize their mobile Web experience. Not only does Opera Mini deliver the Web faster to your phone, it also displays the page just as it looks in your desktop browser. Opera Zoom gracefully dives into the content for easy reading and interaction. Opera Mini now also includes Opera Link, a free service that synchronizes your bookmarks, Speed Dial and personal bar between all your Web browsers.
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.
Availability
Opera Mini is available completely free from http://www.operamini.com/. Opera Mobile is also available from http://www.opera.com/ in a free trial on select platforms. Google will appear as the default search engine for new and current users of Opera Mini as of March 1, 2008.