“…processing is actually done on a proxy server and not on the iOS device”

Aug 6, 2012 11:53 GMT  ·  By

Opera Software, the Norwegian software company behind one of the world’s most popular web browsers, has released comments regarding the mobile implementation of its services, and how Apple is limiting their functionality, “artificially.”

As numerous Apple fans already know, Apple requires that all third-party browsers aimed at its iOS platforms use a web-kit supplied by the company to process web browsing.

However, Opera has found that it’s slower than the one used in Safari, Apple’s default web browser on iOS and OS X.

Opera believes this problem puts third-party web browsers at a disadvantage, according to the Times of India. The report also points out that iOS doesn’t allow customers to change their default web browser.

“Opera believes the web is best when consumers can freely choose the browser they use. We wish that the rules are changed in the future to allow Opera Mobile (our full-fledged mobile browser) in iOS store, just as it is possible on other platforms like Android,” Shwetank Dixit, web evangelist at Opera Software, told the paper.

“Right now we offer Opera Mini on the iOS platform. The way Opera Mini gets around this issue is that all the processing is actually done on a proxy server and not on the iOS device. If we had not used a proxy based solution in Opera Mini then we would have been required to use the native browser engine,” said Dixit.

Opera wants Apple to change several of its policies related to third-party web-browsers, but it also wants to keep a good relationship with the company.

They’ll continue to do business with Apple even if they don’t get their wish, according to Sunil Kamath, Opera's sales director for India and SAARC.

“It is not a great environment to be in. Users should have choice,” said Kamath. “They should be able to select which browsers they want to use and there should not be any artificial limitations in how these browsers can be used or not used.”

“Of course, we want to be part of the new ecosystem. So we abide by the rules set by platform owners,” he added.