Opera Software’s Hakon Wium Lie Wins Prestigious Recognition

Named to the ‘TR-100’ by MIT

Oslo, Norway- Nov. 4, 1999

Opera Software’s Hakon Wium Lie has been chosen to be on Technology Review’s list of hundred exceptional entrepreneurs and young visionaries most likely to make significant technological contributions in the next century. The group, called ‘TR100’, was selected by a distinguished panel of judges, and the list of names was announced in a ceremony at Massachusetts Institute of Technolgy (MIT) in Boston today.

Lie is best known for proposing Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) in 1994.CSS is a technology that improves esthetics and performance of Webpages, while also making content accessible to non-visual users. “Weare proud on Hakon’s behalf” said Opera’s CEO, Jon Stephenson vonTetzchner. “His work on CSS has changed the face of the Web and therecognition shows that technological innovation indeed can take placefar from Silicon Valley and Redmond.” The Nordic countries are alsorepresented in the TR100 group by Linus Torvalds of Finland, known forhis work on the Linux operating system.

The panel of judges includes Nicholas Negroponte (Director, MIT MediaLaboratory), Robert Metcalfe (inventor of Ethernet, founder of 3Com),Kim Polese (President, CEO and founder of Marimba Inc.), John Doerr(venture capitalist, Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers) and DavidBaltimore (President, California Institute of Technology, NobelLaureate 1975). The judges concentrated on candidates in the areas ofbiotechnology, information technology, and chemistry/materialsscience. All candidates are under the age of 35.

Technology Review is the world’s oldest technology magazine. Itfocuses on innovation — the process by which humanity continuouslyupgrades its tools and techniques. In a statement, the magazine said:”If we had drawn up the TR100 list a century ago it might haveincluded names like Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Alexander Graham Belland Marie Curie.”

Hakon Wium Lie is currently Chief Technology Officer at OperaSoftware, creators of the Opera browser known for its small size andhigh speed. Lie’s role is to ensure that innovative features are addedto the browser while being more standards-complient than thecompetitors. He is uniquely qualified for this position having workedfor the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C, the organization coordinatingthe Web’s technical development) since its start. At W3C, Lie wasresponsible for the development of style sheets, a technology toimprove estethics and performance on the Web. Lie first proposed CSSin 1994 while at CERN, the European Laboratory for Particle Physicsand birthplace of the Web. Before the Web, Lie worked at TelenorResearch and at the MIT Media Laboratory, which awarded him an M.S. invisual studies in 1991.

About Opera Software

Opera Software ASA is an industry leader in the development of Webbrowsers for the desktop and embedded markets, partnering withcompanies such as IBM, AMD, Symbian, Canal+ Technologies, Ericsson,Sharp and Lineo (now a division of Embedix). The Opera browser hasreceived international recognition from end users and the industrypress for being faster, smaller and more standards-compliant than otherbrowsers. Opera is available on Windows, Mac, Linux/Solaris, OS/2,Symbian OS and QNX. Opera Software ASA is a privately held companyheadquartered in Oslo, Norway. Learn more about Opera at www.opera.com.