Accessing the internet over mobile devices in some countries in Southeast Asia is replacing other types of connectivity, according to the latest monthly report from Opera.
"Demand for the mobile web exists not because it complements existing means of access, but rather because it replaces them," said Opera's chief executive Jon S. von Tetzchner, in its latest State of the Mobile Web report.
Opera also said that use of its mobile browser has increased by 330 per cent in Southeast Asia over this time last year, with a massive 827 per cent page view growth.
He notes that page view per user in Indonesia and the Philippines are much higher than the average worldwide numbers, with 1,120 per cent page growth in the Philippines in 2008.
Worldwide, data sent via Opera's servers to its browser increased by 12.9 per cent over September, while data traffic is up 490 per cent since this time last year. Opera Mini was used by approximately 21 million users, a 10.6 per cent increase from September 2008 and over 311 per cent more compared to October 2007.
Google and social networking sites continue to dominate, with Nokia handsets remaining the most common handsets used with Opera Mini worldwide.
Opera recently released a beta versionof Opera Mini 4.2, its Java based browser, and added a server farm in the US for increased performance for local users.
