Mobile comfort in the cold: Opera Mini™ beta now available free in the Nordics

Oslo, Norway - October 20, 2005

Opera Software, world leader in cross-platform browser technologies, today released the beta version of the Opera Mini™ Web browser, free of charge, in Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland. Opera Mini™ is a Java-based (J2ME) Web browser that enables full Web access on the majority of today's low- and mid-range phones that are normally incapable of running a full Web browser. With Opera Mini™, you can start surfing the Web on the handset you have today.

Opera Mini™ allows users to access the full Web on the 700+ million Java-enabled mobile phones around the world. That includes the vast majority of today's WAP- enabled phones. Instead of requiring the phone to process Web pages, it uses a remote server to pre-process the page before sending it to the phone.

"Opera Mini™ is simple to use, free, and easily installed on nearly all mobile phones," says Jon S. von Tetzchner, CEO, Opera Software. "With Opera Mini™ we are really bringing mobile Internet browsing into the mainstream by opening up for mobile Internet access for everyone."

The Opera Mini™ browser was introduced as a pilot project in Norway on August 10, 2005, to spearhead Norwegian TV station TV2's mobile services. Following the success in Norway, Opera Software is now extending the availibility of Opera Mini™ to include all the Scandinavian countries as a first step towards full global launch.

Opera offers full customization of Opera Mini™ to companies, for example operators, broadcasters, mobile content providers, handset manufacturers and the Internet industry. With Opera Mini™ operators can dramatically increase the average revenue per user (ARPU) across their entire customer base by stimulating the usage of compelling mobile Web services; Mobile content providers can reach the mass market quickly and affordably without having to worry about operator requirements; and handset manufacturers can differentiate their low- and midrange phones to make them more attractive to operators and end-users.

Availability

Opera Mini™ is currently available for download at http://mini.opera.com/ , for users in Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland. A full global launch is planned soon. Opera Software also offers Opera Mini™ to operators and companies that want a fully customizable and branded Web browser included in their offerings to customers.

For more information about Opera Mini™, visit http://www.opera.com/mini/.

About Opera Software ASA

Opera Software ASA has redefined Web browsing for PCs, mobile phones and other networked devices. Opera's cross-platform Web browser technology is renowned for its performance, standards compliance and small size, while giving users a faster, safer and more dynamic online experience. Opera Software is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, with offices around the world. The company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol OPERA. Learn more about Opera at http://www.opera.com.

PR Contacts

Norway:
Tor Odland
Communications Director
Tel: +47 2416 4242
Email: toro[at]opera.com

United States:
Michelle Valdivia Lien
Communications Manager
Tel: +1 786 208 6072
Email: michelle[at]opera.com

Japan:
Kaori Kotobuki
Communications Manager
Tel: +81 3 57 68 82 24
Email: kaorik[at]opera.com

Contact us at press08@opera.com