Sunday, November 14, 2004

Opera Facing Losses While Firefox Usage Grows

Slashdot | Opera Facing Losses While Firefox Usage Grows: "'Opera, the sometimes forgotten #3 web browser, reported a third quarter loss that tripled that of last year's third quarter despite a seven-fold increase in revenue. Opera is blaming a weaker dollar for the losses, and say they're spending money on marketing and new ventures like teaming with IBM to use their ViaVoice technology. Opera's future seems uncertain as Firefox's growing popularity may hurt Opera by stealing potential customers. With Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Safari all free, is there room for a non-free browser in the market?'"

Interesting thought - I personally never moved to Opera because its free version includes banner ads built into the browser, and I wasn't about to pay for a web browser when there are so many free alternatives. With Firefox going gangbusters right now, not only drawing people away from Internet Explorer but biting into the population made up of people who would support an IE-alternative browser, can Opera survive? My opinion: I don't think so.

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