skyfire

Opera Software is acquiring Skyfire Labs and its technology for squeezing video onto congested mobile-phone networks in a deal worth up to $155 million, the Norwegian browser maker said tonight.

Opera, the fifth-ranked browser maker in terms of global usage, gets paid for adapting its browser for mobile network operators and for driving searches to sites like Yandex and Google. It's been gradually expanding its business into domains such as advertising, though, and the Skyfire deal adds a new dimension to its business selling technology to operators.

"Both companies have evolved far beyond their browser roots," said … Read more

Though Web sites are more mobile-friendly than ever, some folks still want the full computer experience on their phones and tablets. Skyfire Browser offers all of that with a customizable toolbar on the top and bottom of all of your Web pages. Sadly, it doesn't give you any extra speed over the default Android browser and the toolbars take up too much screen space.

Skyfire seems like it's better built for tablets than it is for smartphones. If you use it on a 4-inch-or-less Android gadget, the toolbars are just in the way. They take up too much … Read more

Some Android browsers deliver all the content, while others cut back for faster browsing. Choosing the correct browser for your connection type each time can become tedious--but there's a quick fix.

With Smart Browser Chooser, a free app on the Android Market, you can decide which browser is used based on your connection speed. All it takes is a couple minutes of setup and whether you're on Wi-Fi, 3G, or 2G, your Android device will know which browser to load for the best user experience.

Note: In order to use this app, you need … Read more

Skyfire VideoQ ($1.99 for a limited time), a new video app launched this morning from the makers of the Skyfire browser, offers a fairly simple process to play Flash videos on your iOS device. While any added steps are a pain, if you need to watch a Flash video on the iPhone, VideoQ is one of the only options.

Skyfire says it doesn't matter which iOS browser you use. Once you've registered your iPhone's e-mail adress in the VideoQ app, when you find a Flash video that refuses to play in your preferred Web browser, just … Read more

Skyfire is the latest app to board the Groupon gravy train, as the alternative mobile browser announced this morning that Skyfire for Android 4.0 integrates Groupon's daily deal service. 

Now when you open the Groupon module on Skyfire's "SkyBar," to toolbar running across the bottom of the screen, you'll be able to view local deals.

Groupon integration is just one of eight new features that the Silicon Valley-based browser maker added to its app. Our other favorites include Twitter and Google Reader making an appearance on the SkyBar, and the toolbar's … Read more

If you enjoy watching Flash video on your iPhone browser, you'll want to check out Skyfire 3.0 for iPhone, updated today.

Skyfire is a WebKit-based alternative to the iPhone's default Safari browser that uses Skyfire Labs' servers to render pages more speedily by first compressing data before delivering it--up to 85 percent, the company claims.

However, the app's most significant draw, and the reason the company is charging $3 per download, is its ability to work around Apple's blocking of Flash video content.

Version 3.0 remains largely the same as Skyfire's inaugural iPhone app, … Read more

Flash video on an iPad browser? You betcha. Skyfire has spent months creating browsers for iPhone and iPad that play back Flash video on the notoriously Flash-blocking devices. Skyfire for iPad is now available in the App Store for $4.99.

The app follows the same path as its iPhone cousin in being able to play Flash video. The company uses a workaround that routes video requests through their own servers. They then push those videos through the browser. It's not elegant, but it is usually successful.

Apart from Flash playback, which operates the same way on smaller iOS … Read more

In titles we didn't use because they're not SEO-friendly, topics today include the fact that it's on like Brian Tong (tm), Jessica Simpson's tooth fur, gold does grow on trees, and tiny fists of rage. We interview RockMelt's CEO and ask him to explain that name, and we preview the latest TRON trailer MST3K style. Did we mention the tooth fur? Ew. --Molly

Mobile browser-maker Skyfire may have had a disastrous launch day of Skyfire for iPhone due to shaky bandwidth, but now that the Silicon Valley company is disclosing some numbers, there are several tidbits we can glean about the Flash video-streaming browser.

1. Skyfire grossed almost $1 million: Skyfire sold about 100,000 copies of Skyfire for iPhone during the first five hours of release last Wednesday, plus more than 200,000 more during the weekend since the company quietly reinstated the app on Friday, according to a Skyfire statement. At $2.99 each for about 300,000 sales total, that'… Read more