BEIJING: A Chinese consortium has bought the Opera Internet browser for US$600 million, its Norwegian developer said yesterday, after a public share offer for the company failed. The consortium led by Golden Brick Silk Road Investment (Shenzhen) LLP is to purchase the mobile and desktop versions of the Internet browser, plus performance and privacy apps and a stake in a Chinese joint venture, but not the advertising, games and television units, Opera Software said in a statement to the Oslo stock exchange. The transaction was announced simultaneously with the failure of the US$1.2 billion public offer to take over the entire company.
It gave no reason for the failure, but in a statement to the Oslo stock exchange last week Opera Software said the outcome of the offer was uncertain, as it had not yet received regulatory approvals by the deadline of Friday.
