ZDNet: Adobe's no longer developing Flash for mobile devices (Updated)
According to a report from ZDNet, Adobe is no longer working on Flash for mobile devices. A statement released to developers claims Adobe will provide bug fixes and security updates for the current version of mobile Flash for Android and RIM's Playbook, but will halt further development. Adobe writes,
Our future work with Flash on mobile devices will be focused on enabling Flash developers to package native apps with Adobe AIR for all the major app stores. We will no longer adapt Flash Player for mobile devices to new browser, OS version or device configurations. Some of our source code licensees may opt to continue working on and releasing their own implementations. We will continue to support the current Android and PlayBook configurations with critical bug fixes and security updates.
This surprising move, if true, is a big blow to Android which touts Flash as a competitive advantage over iOS. It's also a small victory for Apple. In a scathing public statement released last year, Steve Jobs explained why Apple didn't add Flash support to iOS and attacked Adobe for its mediocrity in developing the Flash mobile plug-in.
Jobs was widely criticized for this decision, but it appears he was right. Flash never lived up to its potential and now Adobe may be killing it, leaving Google handset makers in the lurch. Companies like HTC will have to drop their support of Flash like Apple or follow Amazon's lead with the Kindle Fire and build their own plug-in if they want a working version of Flash on their future devices.
Update: Adobe confirmed in a blog post that Flash will continue to be supported on the PC, but not on mobile devices. Adobe will focus its efforts on HTML5 for mobile devices and will help Flash developers create Air applications for all the major App Stores.
