Swallowing its pride Opera has agreed to develop a smart phone browser for Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system. Not to long ago Opera announced that they would never come out with a browser for Microsoft Windows Mobile OS, so why did they change their minds?
It goes without saying that Windows is the world's most popular desktop operating system, but unfortunately the same cannot be said for the smart phone market. Ever since Microsoft introduced its own browser back in the day (browser wars), this Norwegian company and Microsoft have had their problems (still are). Early last year Opera's browser had "compatibility issues" when users visited Microsoft's MSN portal webpage, but since then Opera and Microsoft have reached an agreement worth $12.75 million. The reason for Operas change of heart is because of the demands from its customers. Customers who feel that Opera is the best browser no matter what platform you're using, and according to the vast majority of analyst Opera does in fact make the best browser for mobile devices such as smart phones.
It's good to see a company meet its customers needs, but don't expect Opera to be making a cash cow out of this market any time soon. As they aren't the only ones with a smart phone browser. Right now the smart phone market is dominated by Symbian operating systems, which accounts for 94% of all smart phones worldwide. Leaving Microsoft with 4% of the market, and the other 2% to lesser known smart phone operating systems. One has to wonder how long it will take until Opera calls foul, and we're back to bickering between Opera and Microsoft. Until then I look forward to seeing how Opera's smart phone browser performs against its competitors.
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