Adobe's flash forward
Company wants to make its Flash technology available everywhere — and that means penetrating mobile devices.
Flash is coming to most mobile phones - except the one that starts with "i." Image: Adobe
Flash is finally coming to your smartphone—and so is Adobe (ADBE). With today's launch of the newest version its software, Adobe Flash Player 10.1, the San Jose-based company is making an aggressive push to get its product onto any gadget that allows for web browsing–Blackberry devices, netbooks, increasingly even TVs.
Crucially, Adobe has signed on a number of key launch partners for the product including Google (GOOG) and Research in Motion (RIMM). By the first half of next year, consumers can expect Flash on nearly every smartphone operating system including Google’s Android, Nokia’s (NOK) Symbian, Palm’s (PALM) webOS and Microsoft’s (MSFT) Windows Mobile.
This is great for developers, who have long had to use different software to make their applications work on different devices. And it’s even better for consumers, for whom web browsing will get faster and more consistent regardless of the device.
Flash is the graphics-rich software responsible for many of our most alluring web experiences. Three-quarters of online videos are delivered in Flash. Nearly as many of the web games we play are created using it. And it’s also responsible for some of the best graphics online. One tech analyst who enjoys the Washington Redskins is constantly annoyed that he can’t read Washington Post coverage of the team on his ‘berry because parts of the paper's online version, washingtonpost.com, are delivered in Flash.
Until now, Adobe has offered separate products for the personal computers and mobiles. Developers had to rely on Adobe Lite, a dumbed down version that didn’t allow for the rich experience of the web.
The new version of Flash has been in the works since Adobe launched its Open Screen Project in May 2008. Started with 25 partners, the project now has more than 50 that include everyone from chipmakers like Qualcomm (QCOM) to content providers like MTV networks.
With this move, Adobe hopes to transform Flash from a simple developer’s tool to a platform in and of itself. “Instead of writing for tv or phone or computer, developers can write in Flash across multiple screens and locations,” says Michael Gartenberg, an analyst with market research firm Interpret.
But just because an application will run on any device doesn’t mean it will be optimized for every device. There is still much work to be done before developers can truly create and deliver one application for any platform. And there is one Flash holdout, a company that has managed to deliver great video experiences and superb graphics on its phones so far without Adobe’s help: Apple. (AAPL)
Doody, Doody!!! One of THE biggest security risks out there going mobile. While you're at it, don't forget to change your password to "password" and check out some more Russian Bride websites. A "rich" user experience? Yeah- you'd better be once your bank account is drained…
Some sites can slow my desktop to a crawl because of poorly written flash banners.
It would be nize to have a toggle to turn Flash on and off. Then I could turn it off when trying to read the news and some stupid banner ad jams the page.
Not so fast… The last line in this article is a joke. Apple holding out on Flash is just arrogant and is the cause of a terrible experience. Many times I have wanted to visit a Flash based site on my iPhone and was denied. Apple should allow Flash and let it live or die by its own merits.
The problem is that Flash is a horrible, processor-intensive, way of doing things. Some sites can slow my desktop to a crawl because of poorly written flash banners.
And you want that on your phone? Good luck with that!
Adobe is well poised to move forward. But what direction remains to be seen. As a platform will be a bit too ambitious. I would suggest it build upon its strengths as an addon and enhancements rather than go headon with the giants on platforms.
The notion that we need a proprietary solution to provide rich media is absurd. HTML 5 will do virtually anything Flash does, without a plugin and without paying royalties to anyone. And WebKit, at the heart of the iPhone's Safari browser, will do it beautifully already.
Flash will certainly try to extend its reach, as will Microsoft's Silverlight. But ultimately, both of these technologies are dead ends as some open standards catch up and provide the same functionality for free.
to JohnAnnArbor: if you were using Firefox, you could install a plugin named Flashblock that allows you not to run flash applets unless you allow for it