Opera browser makers, Opera Software, have announced a new service called Opera Unite which allows users to share files, images and music directly with other Opera Unite users.

While Opera lacks the market share to cause any major waves with such an innovation, it could lead to other browser developers creating similar features.

The real power of such a feature lies in its distributed computing model- with none of your files being hosted on sharing websites. This means that users are not restricted by terms of use that apply to sites like Facebook or Flickr and no longer need to give up certain ownership rights to files. Thus every user’s computer essentially becomes a server.

The service is currently available in beta for pre-release versions of the Opera 10 browser. Find out more at: http://unite.opera.com/