Opera is expanding its current messaging portfolio after acquiring Web-based email provider FastMail.

Opera will deliver cross-platform messaging to a wide range of devices, including computers, mobile phones, TVs and gaming consoles. Opera will be able to offer a consistent email experience across all products.

?We see messaging as an essential component of the Internet experience, regardless of the device people use,? said Thomas Ford, senior communications manager at Opera Software, Los Angeles.

?Because many people will first experience the Web on a mobile device, it makes sense to extend our messaging capabilities to all devices.?

Opera Software is a cross-platform Web browser.

FastMail offers advanced Web-based email platforms for consumers and small businesses.

You?ve Got Mail
Opera currently has more than 50 million users of its desktop browser and more than 55 million users of Opera Mini, a mobile Web browser that works on almost all handsets.

?Opera is paying approximately $2 million for the main assets of the company,? Mr. Ford said. ?An additional $2 million is tied to an earn-out model that combines technical deliveries with certain results.?

The reason for this acquisition was to enhance the value Opera provides to consumers.

?I would add that messaging is equally valuable to our carrier partners, as it helps to reduce customer churn,? Mr. Ford said. ?So we see this as quite strategic from both desktop and mobile perspectives.?

The newest generation of Opera will let users discover the Web via mobile, which has not been done before.

Here is a screen grab of the various smart phone devices that features the Opera software:

Since the release of Opera 4 in 2000, the desktop browser has included its own email client.

?For more than a decade, Opera has championed email as an essential ingredient of online activity,? Mr. Ford said.