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Jon S. von Tetzchner

Dear friends,

If you have been reading these reports, you know that Russia and Ukraine always rank high on the list of countries with the most Opera Mini users. We feel this is due to several factors, chief among them being that Russia, Ukraine and the other countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States have always embraced Opera.

Several years ago, we began to notice a large percentage of our desktop users were, in fact, from Russia and the other CIS countries. Today, Opera on the desktop holds more than a 35% market share in Russia and also enjoys high penetration throughout the CIS countries. So, perhaps on one level, it is not surprising to assume Opera Mini would have similar success.

However, I believe software is only as good as the problems it solves. Opera and Opera Mini have had great success in this region because we had features that helped solve real problems--such as network speed, Internet access costs, and more--that people faced. As we solved those problems for more people, they began spreading the word.

So we felt it was time to give this fast-growing region its due. There are more Opera Mini users combined here than in any other region on the planet. These users also tend to use popular and local services such as Yandex for search, VKontakte for social networking and Mail.ru as both e-mail and content portal.

As you know, I am a big fan of our page-view numbers, as they indicate how much the service is actually used. Uzbekistan was the big winner here with more than 2600% growth in the past year.

Nokia was also a big winner, as the Finnish giant had more handsets in the top 10 devices for each country than any other manufacturer.

I enjoy seeing the mobile Web take off in every region, but as these reports have proven consistently, it succeeds for different reasons in different regions. Next month, I will be back from CTIA and look forward to seeing how the mobile Web is progressing in the United States. I wish you all continued success and hope to meet many of you and see how the mobile Web is evolving where you live.

Kind Regards,
Jon S. von Tetzchner
CEO, Opera Software

Highlights

  • February 2009 saw an increase in both Opera Mini users and data consumed and a slight decrease in the number of total page views. The numbers for this month were generally positive, but a little more modest than usual--due to the fact that February has only 28 days.
  • This month, we looked at countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The top 10 countries using Opera Mini in the CIS are: Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Uzbekistan, Moldova, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan.
  • Nokia is by far the most popular handset brand chosen by Opera Mini users in the CIS, followed by Sony Ericsson--which boasts the number 1 handset in Armenia.
  • Facebook, which is popular in so many other regions covered in previous installments of this report, is nowhere to be found in the top 10 lists of the CIS countries. Instead, Vkontakte takes the crown.
  • Within the CIS countries, Yandex is the preferred search engine, followed by Google and Yahoo! except in the countries at the bottom of the top 10 list (Moldova, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan) where Google is slightly ahead of Yandex.
  • Mail.ru is is ranked first or second in each of the CIS countries reported on.

Part 1: Growth

Number of users

In February 2009, Opera Mini had over 20.5 million users, a 2.9% increase from January 2009 and more than 160% compared to February 2008.

Pages transcoded

Opera Mini users viewed over 7.3 billion pages in February 2009. Since January, page views have gone down 3.2%. Since February 2008, page views have increased 290%.

MonthPage views
March 2007632,313,886
April 2007705,063,025
May 2007767,107,863
June 2007788,283,659
July 2007867,208,160
August 2007907,690,600
September 2007872,028,768
October 20071,192,916,658
November 20071,414,205,703
December 20071,558,566,188
January 20081,787,235,674
February 20081,883,751,325
March 20082,429,200,080
April 20082,491,451,387
May 20082,947,979,866
June 20083,224,286,622
July 20083,736,244,111
August 20084,172,941,429
September 20084,533,894,901
October 20085,088,923,679
November 20085,703,580,103
December 20086,418,665,392
January 20097,592,623,125
February 20097,347,728,912

Data consumed

In February 2009, Opera Mini users generated more than 124 million MB of data for operators worldwide. Since January, the data consumed went up by 2.3%. Data in Opera Mini is compressed up to 90% on average. If this data were uncompressed, Opera Mini users would have viewed nearly 1.2 PB of data in February. Since February 2008, data traffic is up 338%.

Note: This year, February had 28 days.

MonthData transfer (MB)
March 20077,011,251
April 20077,800,104
May 20078,690,087
June 20078,573,444
July 200710,447,285
August 200711,145,396
September 200710,654,061
October 200713,412,789
November 200715,818,999
December 200721,613,966
January 200825,437,344
February 200828,477,270
March 200835,536,969
April 200838,264,066
May 200846,273,165
June 200850,181,823
July 200857,824,328
August 200864,853,884
September 200870,095,676
October 200879,167,872
November 200891,084,753
December 2008103,144,185
January 2009122,005,065
February 2009124,835,298

Part 2: Country snapshots for February 2009

Snapshot: Russia

  • Vkontakte continues to dominate while Yandex and mail.ru jostle for the number 2 position in Russia.
  • After a few months of downward movement, Wapos.ru has gone up one position, displacing Wikipedia.

Top 10 sites in Russia (# of unique users)

Russia
  1. vkontakte.ru
  2. mail.ru (up from 3)
  3. yandex.ru (down from 2)
  4. odnoklassniki.ru
  5. rambler.ru
  6. google.com
  7. my.opera.com
  8. wapos.ru (up from 9)
  9. wikipedia.org (down from 8)
  10. seclub.org

Snapshot: Indonesia

  • Wikipedia and waptrick are back on the list after short absences (2 months for Wikipedia and 1 month for waptrick).

Top 10 sites in Indonesia (# of unique users)

Indonesia
  1. friendster.com
  2. google.com
  3. facebook.com
  4. yahoo.com
  5. waptrick.com (back on the list)
  6. peperonity.com (down from 5)
  7. gamejump.com (down from 6)
  8. getjar.com
  9. wikipedia.org (back on the list)
  10. digg.com

Snapshot: Ukraine

  • Yandex made a big jump to the number 3 position at the expense of Wikipedia, which dropped to position 7 (Yandex's ranking in January).
  • The Ukrainian version of Google, which debuted last month at position 4 (lower than the usual number 2 rank for Google) dropped all the way to position 8 in February.
  • Ukraine is the lone CIS country where Odnoklassniki.ru is not in the top 10.

Top 10 sites in Ukraine (# of unique users)

Ukraine
  1. vkontakte.ru
  2. mail.ru
  3. yandex.ru (up from 7)
  4. rambler.ru (back on the list)
  5. wapos.ru (up from 6)
  6. my.opera.com (down from 5)
  7. wikipedia.org (down from 3)
  8. google.com.ua (down from 4)
  9. yahoo.com
  10. seclub.org

Snapshot: China

  • Opera China, which debuted last month at position 9, moved up slightly.
  • After a 3-month absence, Paojiao.com is back on the list.

Top 10 sites in China (# of unique users)

China
  1. kong.net
  2. baidu.com
  3. google.cn
  4. sina.com.cn
  5. xiaonei.com
  6. qq.com
  7. hao123.com
  8. operachina.com (up from 9)
  9. taobao.com (back on the list)
  10. paojiao.com (back on the list)

Snapshot: India

  • For the second month in a row, the top half of India's top 10 list showed no change, with Google Web properties taking 3 of the top 4 spots.

Top 10 sites in India (# of unique users)

India
  1. google.com
  2. orkut.com
  3. yahoo.com
  4. gmail.com
  5. gamejump.com
  6. rediff.com (up from 7)
  7. songs.pk (down from 6)
  8. wikipedia.org (up from 9)
  9. peperonity.com (down from 8)
  10. my.opera.com

Snapshot: South Africa

  • Yahoo! dropped a bit in February (position 3 to position 5).
  • Gmail is back on the list after a 3-month absence, while webmail.co.za has not been on the list since November 2008.

Top 10 sites in South Africa (# of unique users)

South Africa
  1. facebook.com
  2. google.com
  3. wikipedia.org (up from 4)
  4. gamejump.com (up from 5)
  5. yahoo.com (down from 3)
  6. zamob.com
  7. my.opera.com (up from 8)
  8. gmail.com (back on the list)
  9. waptrick.com (back on the list)
  10. live.com (down from 9)

Snapshot: United States

  • As usual, the US top 10 list is pretty stable, with the exception of Yahoo! dropping two places (from position 5 to position 7).

Top 10 sites in the U.S. (# of unique users)

United States
  1. google.com
  2. facebook.com
  3. myspace.com
  4. wikipedia.org
  5. nytimes.com (up from 6)
  6. youtube.com (up from 7)
  7. yahoo.com (down from 5)
  8. gamejump.com
  9. accuweather.com
  10. my.opera.com (back on the list)

Snapshot: United Kingdom

  • MSN is back on the list after a 4-month absence, displacing My Opera (which debuted last month). Other than that, February's list is exactly the same as January's.

Top 10 sites in the U.K. (# of unique users)

United Kingdom
  1. google.com
  2. facebook.com
  3. yahoo.com
  4. bbc.co.uk
  5. live.com
  6. wikipedia.org
  7. bebo.com
  8. youtube.com
  9. gamejump.com
  10. msn.com (back on the list)

Snapshot: Poland

  • Sciaga.pl is back on the list after a 2-month absence.

Top 10 sites in Poland (# of unique users)

Poland
  1. nasza-klasa.pl
  2. google.com
  3. lajt.onet.pl
  4. allegro.pl
  5. wikipedia.org
  6. fotka.pl (up from 7)
  7. wp.pl (down from 6)
  8. youtube.com
  9. gamejump.com
  10. sciaga.pl (back on the list)

Snapshot: Germany

  • Yahoo! had a good month in Germany, jumping from position 8 to position 4, whereas SPIEGEL ONLINE dropped from position 5 to position 9.

Top 10 sites in Germany (# of unique users)

Germany
  1. google.com
  2. wikipedia.org
  3. studivz.net
  4. yahoo.com (up from 8)
  5. web.de (down from 4)
  6. youtube.com (up from 7)
  7. gmx.de (down from 6)
  8. sport1.de (up from 9)
  9. spiegel.de (down from 5)
  10. ebay.de

Part 3: Spotlight on the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)

  • The top 10 countries using Opera Mini in the Commonwealth of Independent States are: Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Uzbekistan, Moldova, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan.
  • Nokia is by far the most popular handset brand chosen by Opera Mini users in the CIS, followed by Sony Ericsson--which boasts the number 1 handset in Armenia.
  • Facebook, which is popular in so many other regions covered in previous installments of this report, is nowhere to be found in the top 10 lists of the CIS countries. Instead, Vkontakte takes the crown.
  • Within the CIS countries, Yandex is the preferred search engine, followed by Google and Yahoo! except in the countries at the bottom of the top 10 list (Moldova, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan) where Google is slightly ahead of Yandex.
  • Mail.ru is is ranked first or second in each of the CIS countries reported on.

Top 10 countries snapshot

Snapshot: Russia

  • Page-view growth since February 2008: 269.5%
  • Vkontakte continues to dominate while Yandex and mail.ru jostle for the number 2 position in Russia.
  • After a few months of downward movement, Wapos.ru has gone up one position, displacing Wikipedia.

Top 10 sites in Russia (# of unique users)

  1. vkontakte.ru
  2. mail.ru
  3. yandex.ru
  4. odnoklassniki.ru
  5. rambler.ru
  6. google.com
  7. my.opera.com
  8. wapos.ru
  9. wikipedia.org
  10. seclub.org

Top handsets for February 2009

  1. Nokia 6300
  2. Nokia N73
  3. Nokia 6233
  4. Nokia N70
  5. Nokia 5310
  6. Nokia 3110c
  7. Nokia 6120c
  8. Sony Ericsson K750i
  9. Nokia N72
  10. Nokia 6500s

Snapshot: Ukraine

  • Page-view growth since February 2008: 393.5%
  • Yandex made a big jump to the number 3 position at the expense of Wikipedia, which dropped to position 7 (Yandex's ranking in January).
  • The Ukrainian version of Google, which debuted last month at position 4 (lower than the usual number 2 rank for Google) dropped all the way to position 8 in February.
  • Ukraine is the lone CIS country where Odnoklassniki.ru is not in the top 10.

Top 10 sites in Ukraine (# of unique users)

  1. vkontakte.ru
  2. mail.ru
  3. yandex.ru
  4. rambler.ru
  5. wapos.ru
  6. my.opera.com
  7. wikipedia.org
  8. google.com.ua
  9. yahoo.com
  10. seclub.org

Top handsets for February 2009

  1. Nokia 6300
  2. Nokia 6233
  3. Nokia N73
  4. Sony Ericsson K750i
  5. Nokia 5310
  6. Nokia N70
  7. Sony Ericsson K800i
  8. Sony Ericsson K550i
  9. Nokia 3250
  10. Nokia 6120c

Snapshot: Belarus

  • Page-view growth since February 2008: 343.7%
  • The top 4 sites in Belarus mirror the top 4 sites in Russia.
  • Compared to the other CIS top 10 lists, Belarus has some of the highest ranked local sites (at positions 6 and 7).

Top 10 sites in Belarus (# of unique users)

  1. vkontakte.ru
  2. mail.ru
  3. yandex.ru
  4. odnoklassniki.ru
  5. google.com
  6. tut.by
  7. onliner.by
  8. wikipedia.org
  9. wapos.ru
  10. av.by

Top handsets for February 2009

  1. Nokia 6300
  2. Sony Ericsson K750i
  3. Sony Ericsson K800i
  4. Nokia 6233
  5. Nokia 5310
  6. Nokia N73
  7. Sony Ericsson K550i
  8. Sony Ericsson w810i
  9. Nokia 3110c
  10. Sony Ericsson K600i

Snapshot: Kazakhstan

  • Page-view growth since February 2008: 756.6%
  • Kazakhstan is the single Middle-Asian country where Vkontakte is ranked higher than Odnoklassniki.ru.

Top 10 sites in Kazakhstan (# of unique users)

  1. mail.ru
  2. vkontakte.ru
  3. odnoklassniki.ru
  4. yandex.ru
  5. google.com
  6. wapos.ru
  7. rambler.ru
  8. yahoo.com
  9. wikipedia.org
  10. lenta.ru

Top handsets for February 2009

  1. Nokia 6300
  2. Nokia 5310
  3. Nokia N73
  4. Nokia 6233
  5. Nokia 6500s
  6. Nokia 5610
  7. Nokia N70
  8. Nokia 3250
  9. Sony Ericsson K750i
  10. Nokia N72

Snapshot: Armenia

  • Page-view growth since February 2008: 389.4%
  • Armenian Opera Mini users prefer Odnoklassniki.ru over Vkontakte.ru.
  • My Opera ranks higher in Armenia than in any other CIS country.

Top 10 sites in Armenia (# of unique users)

  1. odnoklassniki.ru
  2. mail.ru
  3. my.opera.com
  4. yandex.ru
  5. wapos.ru
  6. google.com
  7. vkontakte.ru
  8. rambler.ru
  9. yahoo.com
  10. waplog.net

Top handsets for February 2009

  1. Sony Ericsson K750i
  2. Nokia 6300
  3. Nokia 6600
  4. Siemens C75
  5. Nokia N73
  6. Sony Ericsson K810i
  7. Sony Ericsson K800i
  8. Sony Ericsson K700i
  9. Nokia 6233
  10. Nokia 3250

Snapshot: Uzbekistan

  • Page-view growth since February 2008: 2642.4%
  • Odnoklassniki.ru ranks higher in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, compared to other Middle-Asian countries.
  • My Opera ranks higher in Uzbekistan than in any other Middle-Asian country.

Top 10 sites in Uzbekistan (# of unique users)

  1. mail.ru
  2. odnoklassniki.ru
  3. yandex.ru
  4. google.com
  5. my.opera.com
  6. rambler.ru
  7. vkontakte.ru
  8. gamejump.com
  9. wapos.ru
  10. yahoo.com

Top handsets for February 2009

  1. Nokia 6300
  2. Nokia 6233
  3. Nokia N73
  4. Sony Ericsson K750i
  5. Nokia 6500s
  6. Nokia 3110c
  7. Sony Ericsson K800i
  8. Nokia 5310
  9. Nokia 3250
  10. Nokia E51

Snapshot: Moldova

  • Page-view growth since February 2008: 918.5%
  • As in Armenia, Odnoklassniki.ru takes the number 1 position.
  • Of the CIS countries, Moldova has the highest ranking local site (Faces.md).

Top 10 sites in Moldova (# of unique users)

  1. odnoklassniki.ru
  2. mail.ru
  3. google.com
  4. faces.md
  5. yandex.ru
  6. my.opera.com
  7. vkontakte.ru
  8. 999.md
  9. rambler.ru
  10. wapos.ru

Top handsets for February 2009

  1. Nokia 6300
  2. Nokia N73
  3. Nokia 6233
  4. Sony Ericsson K750i
  5. Nokia N70
  6. Sony Ericsson K800i
  7. Nokia 5310
  8. Sony Ericsson K550i
  9. Nokia 3120b
  10. Nokia 6120c

Snapshot: Georgia

  • Page-view growth since February 2008: 780.0%
  • Georgia is the lone CIS country where Vkontakte.ru is not in the top 10.
  • Georgian Opera Mini users appear to like sports. Georgia is the only CIS country where LiveScore.com is in the top 10.

Top 10 sites in Georgia (# of unique users)

  1. odnoklassniki.ru
  2. mail.ru
  3. google.com
  4. my.opera.com
  5. livescore.com
  6. yandex.ru
  7. gamejump.com
  8. yahoo.com
  9. wapos.ru
  10. bans.ru

Top handsets for February 2009

  1. Nokia N73
  2. Nokia N70
  3. Sony Ericsson K800i
  4. Sony Ericsson K750i
  5. Nokia 6300
  6. Sony Ericsson K810i
  7. Sony Ericsson K850i
  8. Nokia N95
  9. Nokia 6120c
  10. Sony Ericsson K610i

Snapshot: Azerbaijan

  • Page-view growth since February 2008: 654.2%
  • Azerbaijan is the only Caucasian country where Mail.ru is in first place instead of Odnoklassniki.ru.
  • Azerbaijan is the only Caucasian country with three local sites in the top 10.

Top 10 sites in Azerbaijan (# of unique users)

  1. mail.ru
  2. odnoklassniki.ru
  3. google.com
  4. yandex.ru
  5. my.opera.com
  6. vkontakte.ru
  7. gamejump.com
  8. wapfiles.az
  9. hit.az
  10. day.az

Top handsets for February 2009

  1. Nokia N73
  2. Nokia N70
  3. Sony Ericsson K750i
  4. Nokia N72
  5. Sony Ericsson W810i
  6. Nokia 6630
  7. Nokia 3250
  8. Nokia 6233
  9. Sony Ericsson W700i
  10. Nokia 6300

Snapshot: Kyrgyzstan

  • Page-view growth since February 2008: 282.1%
  • Kyrgyzstan is the only Middle-Asian country where Google is ahead of Yandex.

Top 10 sites in Kyrgyzstan (# of unique users)

  1. mail.ru
  2. odnoklassniki.ru
  3. google.com
  4. yandex.ru
  5. wapos.ru
  6. rambler.ru
  7. vkontakte.ru
  8. my.opera.com
  9. wikipedia.org
  10. yahoo.com

Top handsets for February 2009

  1. Nokia 6300
  2. Nokia N73
  3. Nokia 6233
  4. Nokia N70
  5. Nokia 5310
  6. Nokia 3110c
  7. Nokia 6120c
  8. Sony Ericsson K750i
  9. Nokia N72
  10. Nokia 6500s

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