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Flash is 99% dead? 19 Mar 2008
Looks like Flash is going to find it really hard to establish itself in the mobile space. While Microsoft has agreed to license Flash Lite for Windows Mobile, this is only a stopgap measure intended to tie it over until it is ready to lauch its own "Flash replacement" Silverlight 2.0 (Note that Microsoft has also managed to convince Nokia to support Silverlight on its handsets - further strengthening its position).
It's not just Microsoft that's turning its back on Flash...Apple is too. Steve Jobs recently announced that Adobe's Flash technology simply isn't suitable for the iPhone. He believes that the desktop version of Flash runs too slowly on the iPhone and that the mobile version of Flash isn't functional enough - which leaves a huge gap in the middle that is yet to be filled. Who will fill it? Maybe Adobe will get its act together and deliver the goods, maybe Apple will develop its own Flash competitor...or maybe Apple will embrace Silverlight instead (although this seems highly improbable).
Whichever way you look at it, these are uncertain times for Adobe...Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
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5 comments so far
Brent 19 Mar 2008 10:48 AM
"although this seems highly improbable"...
It is improbable, but 3 months ago it was highly improbable that the iPhone would support exchange. As Microsoft is trying to push Silverlight they might be willing to meet Apple's demands to get a dominant position in the mobile market. We'll just have to wait and see. :-)
Zidge 19 Mar 2008 11:51 AM
As an iPhone user myself, I have to say that I haven't missed Flash one bit.
Fred Oliveira 19 Mar 2008 04:21 PM
Actually, Adobe announced they're working on a version of flash tailored to the iPhone today. Flash is all but 99% dead. It's still installed in 99% of PCs and Macs, and they've recently hit the 2 billion lite downloads. I don't think we're seeing the end to this story just yet.
Simon 20 Mar 2008 11:01 AM
@Brent: True - you can never tell what will happen in the world of IT :-S
@Zidge: Have to agree with you on that.
@Fred: Sounds like putting an iPhone-tailored version of Flash out may be a little more complicated than Adobe first thought. It seems that Apple won't allow Adobe to dig deep enough into Safari / the iPhone's OS to produce a fast and functional enough version of its Flash plug-in (This is the problem that is also preventing Sun from releasing Java for the iPhone). As you say though - I doubt we have seen the end of this story yet.
Tamlyn 20 Mar 2008 02:42 PM
The absence of Flash support on mobile devices has become the most compelling reason not to use it on websites. I've come across several sites which were completely unusable on my N73 due to the use of Flash for navigation.