Oslo, Norway - April 20, 2006 - Opera Software today announced the first public Beta of Opera 9. This version includes Widgets, small Web programs running in their own windows that are fun, easy-to-use and live on users’ desktops. The Opera 9 Beta also features support for BitTorrent, a popular file downloading technolog. Instead of having to use a separate BitTorrent application for downloading large files, users can now simply click a torrent file and start the download in addition to an easy-to-use content blocker and thumbnail previews of tabbed sites. “We’re proud to release this Beta of Opera 9 to Web users around the world,” said Jon S. von Tetzchner, CEO, Opera Software. “Opera 9 brings powerful new features to enhance the Web browsing experience and empower Web 2.0 developers. Opera 9 unlocks new levels of productivity for the Internet ecosystem.”