Is Google Going to the Opera?

[Nomad559]

http://blog.searchenginewatch.com/blog/051214-160133

I'm not one for spreading rumors but sometimes...? Feel like a hot one? OK, we've got one or should I say Dirson has one. What is it? Google is going to acquire Opera. That's right, the wonderful and powerful Opera browser from Norway (Opera Software ASA to be precise) might become Google's latest acquisition.

In addition to offering a traditional web browser, Opera also plays very hard in the mobile browser space. Might the acquisition be Google's holiday present to itself? I haven't heard anything other than what Dirson reports.

[alfredo]

1. I was wondering why they went free.

That makes sense. Going free gave Opera a quick bit of marketshare.

[RoyGBiv]

2. Also ...

For its impending war with Microsoft, Google really needs a browser, something standards-driven that can be offered as an alternative yet that they can muck around with for their own purposes, the latter leaving out Mozilla.

What would worry me if I were an Opera user, however, is what they might plan to do with it. If bloat begins to consume the Opera code, which I can too well imagine as Google adding "features" that link it to Google services, it'll lose some of its luster.

[alfredo]

3. They can do them as extensions so you don't have to use

it if you don't want to.

I'll stick with Safari.

[mainegreen]

5. They wen't banner free? I missed that.

Time to switch. I always like opera best, but couldn't stand the ads.

[ThingsGottaChange]

4. I thought for sure it was going to be Google + Firefox

Since Ben Goodger, Firefox's lead software engineer, jumped ship to Google earlier this year. It'll be interesting to see what develops!