Oslo, Norway and Beijing, China – May 24, 2011
Opera Software today announced that its mobile browser solutions will soon be available on all Spreadtrum mobile chipsets. Spreadtrum Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPRD; ‘Spreadtrum”), a leading fabless semiconductor provider in China with advanced technology in both 2G and 3G wireless communications standards, has chosen the Opera Mini and Opera Mobile web browsers for its mobile browsing offering.
The cooperation will place Opera Software and Spreadtrum in a solid position to enable mobile Internet for a larger number of users with middle to low end mobile phones in China and across the globe.
Opera Mini is the world’s most popular mobile browser, with more than 100 million monthly users and available on over 3000 different phone models, including basic feature phones. Opera Mini compresses web pages by up to 90 percent before sending them to the phone, resulting in faster page loading and lower browsing costs. Opera Mobile is a high-fidelity browser best suited to smart phones and has 20 million users worldwide. Opera Mini and Opera Mobile share many features with Opera’s browsers for computers, including tabbed browsing, password manager and Speed Dial.
“Every mobile phone user needs a smart browser, even without a smartphone,” said Dr. Leo Li, CEO, Spreadtrum. “With the newest addition of the Opera web browser to our mobile chipsets, we can offer our customers a low cost yet user-friendly mobile browsing solution, and enable mobile Internet for them.”
“The next billion people to access the Web for the first time will come online via their mobile phones,” said Lars Boilesen, CEO, Opera Software. “Plugging in to Spreadtrum’s enormous distribution network allows us to put the best mobile Internet experience into the pockets of hundreds of millions of web-goers around the world. We are excited to work with Spreadtrum, and power its platform with the world’s most popular mobile web browsers.”
About Spreadtrum Communications, Inc.
Spreadtrum Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: SPRD; ‘Spreadtrum”) is a fabless semiconductor company that develops baseband and RF processor solutions for the wireless communications market. Spreadtrum combines its semiconductor design expertise with its software development capabilities to deliver highly-integrated baseband processors with multimedia functionality and power management. Spreadtrum has developed its solutions based on an open development platform, enabling its customers to develop customized wireless products that are feature-rich to meet their cost and time-to-market requirements. For more information, please visit: http://www.spreadtrum.com
Spreadtrum Safe Harbor
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the effectiveness of the cooperation in placing Opera Software and Spreadtrum in a solid position to enable mobile internet for a larger number of users with middle to low end mobile phones in China and across the globe. Spreadtrum uses words like “believe”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “estimate”, “expect”, “project” and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. These statements are forward-looking in nature and involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual market trends and Spreadtrum’s actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these forward-looking statements for a variety of reasons. Potential risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, continuing competitive pressure in the semiconductor industry and the effect of such pressure on prices; unpredictable changes in technology and consumer demand for mobile phones; market acceptance of Spreadtrum’s products and solutions; uncertainty regarding the timing and pace of adoption of the mobile web browser solution by Spreadtrum’s customers; the state of and any change in the collaborative technical partnership between Spreadtrum and Opera Software; the state of and any change in Spreadtrum’s relationship with its customers and partners; and changes in political, economic, legal and social conditions in China and globally. For additional discussion of these risks and uncertainties and other factors, please consider the information contained in the Company’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and the annual report on Form 20-F filed on April 6, 2011, as amended, especially the section under “Risk Factors” and such other documents that the Company may file with the SEC from time to time, including on Form 6-K. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, which apply only as of the date of this press release, and does not intend to update any forward-looking statement whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise except as required by law.