Opera Using Secret Sauce for Speed

Opera Software is struggling to gain ground on the browser front, so now the company is digging in, coughing up a chunk of "mystery code" in order to increase browser speed.

In the same manner that Ronald's "special sauce" makes the Big Mac super tasty, Opera Software's super secret mystery code - a server-side data compressor called Opera Turbo - will supposedly boost download speeds of its Opera browser by a hefty - if not doubly meaty - 80 percent. According to a press release issued today, the Opera Turbo technology is able to compress network traffic and reduce the size of the transferred page without actually transcoding the page. The company said that the compressor offers full support for dynamic Web technologies such as Ajax and Flash, and intends to offer Opera Turbo to ISPs and mobile operators soon.

Opera Software's Chief Strategy Officer Rolf Assev was reported saying that the turbo compressor will make its appearance in Q2 2009, slated for the Opera Desktop, Opera Mobile, and the Opera Devices SDK. The Opera Mini browser already benefits from a similar server-side compressor, and as shown on the company's whitepaper (PDF), apparently the new compressor will even boost laptop speeds by 71 percent on average.

"Web sites are becoming bigger and bigger, demanding more and more resources," Assev told The Register. "That's fine on fixed line in the Western World. But on mobile broadband and in other markets, that's a big problem. Things are getting too slow. So, we're speeding things up."

For Opera Software, things are definitely looking slow, especially its momentum in the current browser wars. As of January 2009, the company only racked in 2.3 percent of the browser market, overshadowed by big players consisting of Mozilla's Firefox (45.5 percent), Microsoft's Internet Explorer 7 (25.7 percent) and Internet Explorer 6 (18.5 percent). The Opera saw its largest numbers to date back in December 2008, winning over 2.4 percent of the browser market; the browser only achieved 1.6 percent the prior year. However, with the Opera browser built into Nintendo's Wii console, it would be easy to assume that console owners made up a marginal chunk of January 2009's percentage.

But if ISPs and mobile operators catch on to the Opera Turbo technology, Mozilla and Microsoft might have a run for their money. Currently consumers can download v9.63 of the Opera web browser for Windows; version 4.2 of Opera Mini is also available for download. Opera Software said that the Opera Turbo compressor will make an appearance at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona from February 16-19, 2009.

"As part of Opera's commitment to provide the best experience on any device, Opera has developed the Opera Turbo solution. The Mobile World Congress serves as a forum for us to educate others on the wonders of Web technology," said Jon von Tetzchner, CEO, Opera Software.