14 DAY TRIAL // Ever since Microsoft’s ballot screen in Windows started offering users the possibility to choose the web browser they want to set as default on their computers, Opera has registered an increase in the number of downloads all over Europe. One of the most impressive growth in downloads has been noticed in the UK, where the Norwegian company’s solution enjoyed a rise in downloads of 85 percent over the past three days.
The software company also stated that the increase showed almost a doubling from usual download numbers in average, and it also notes that the ballot’s impact in other markets has been even higher. Among the countries with the largest increase in download numbers we can count Poland, top of the list with a 328 percent growth, Spain on the second position with a rise of 215 percent, or Italy, where the increase was of 202 percent, according to Opera.
“This confirms that when users are given a real choice on how they choose the most important piece of software on their computer, the browser, they will try out alternatives,” said Hakon Wium Lie, CTO of Opera Software, TechRadar reports. “A multitude of browsers will make the web more standardised and easier to browse,” Opera’s CTO continued.
It’s a common fact that web browser providers have been arguing with Microsoft for a long time now on the inclusion of Internet Explorer as the default browsing solution for the Windows operating systems. Last year, Microsoft proposed the delivery of a ballot screen for European users, offering them the possibility to choose from a series of competitive applications the one that they consider to be the best suited.
The ballot screen, deployed across Europe via the Windows Update service, includes web browser options like Opera, Chrome, Safari or Firefox, along IE, and it seems that users have already started to show increased interest in Opera. According to the software company, data collected over three days shows that the number of downloads for Opera 10.5 has increased dramatically over the entire continent, much to the delight of Opera, that’s for sure, especially considering the threefold increase reported for Poland.
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