Vodafone, Opera Push Mobile Internet in Emerging Markets

From PC World: Vodafone is working with Opera Software to embed the company's Mini 5 browser on 20 low-cost phones designed for emerging markets.

The phones and browser will first be rolled out in India, South Africa, Turkey, Tanzania and Egypt. Other markets are expected to follow in the near future, Vodafone said.

Most of the phones that will come with the browser embedded are Vodafone branded products, but there are also some devices from Samsung and LG, according to a Vodafone spokesman, who wasn't able to provide more detail on the individual models.

Also, owners of over 250 GPRS (General Packet Radio Services) and Java-capable handsets will be able to download the browser, according to Vodafone. The browser lets Vodafone transform even basic handsets into very capable Internet browsing devices, it said.

The browser has been customized with support for widgets based on a specification from the Joint Innovation Lab, which was co-founded by Vodafone.

A key feature of Opera Mini 5 is its ability compress data, which means users in emerging markets will pay less for data and can still get Internet access under "more challenging [network] conditions," according to Vodafone. Opera Mini 5 uses a proxy server to compress and reformat Web pages before they are transmitted to the phone.

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