Opera Mini and Mdundo Partner to Provide Free Downloadable Music to 9 African Countries

Opera looks to be building a super app with their famous browser – Opera Mini. Apart from news, and other features, they’re now introducing free music. Personally, I am not a fan of their apps because of the numerous annoying ads and I’ve written and shared about that a couple of times. All the same, Opera Mini still remains the leading mobile browser in Kenya, and this partnership with Mdundo could be great news for the millions who use it.

Opera Mini users can now, for free, listen to and download music from the most recognized artists in the following countries: Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Tanzania, South Africa, Uganda, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Users can start listening to their favorite music as soon as they open the browser. Mdundo will be displaying the 100 most popular songs in the country according to the geographical location of the user. Users will be able to switch between news and music.

Through this partnership Opera seeks to expand the functionalities of Opera Mini and bring African music fans closer to their favorite songs. 

Users will be able to decide between streaming or downloading their favorite songs, and thanks to the hybrid advertising model of Mdundo, downloads are free. Those who choose to download music through Opera Mini, will also benefit from the file sharing feature capabilities of the browser, as they will be able to share music at no data cost. 

Mdundo claims a large catalogue of independent African artists, who can easily upload their songs to the platform, manage and commercialize their music themselves.

“With the inclusion of Mdundo’s music catalog in Opera Mini, African artists will also increase their chances of being discovered among the massive Opera Mini user base in Africa,” continued Martin Nielsen, CEO Mdundo. “This will bring them more streams, more downloads, and the opportunity to get new fans”. 

The two companies in the official release say that users who choose to listen to their favorite music through Mdundo’s music catalog, can be sure that they will be supporting their favorite artists. This means that songwriters, recording artists, producers, and publishers, will be able to continue working and producing the music that people love the most.