Of all the high-end capabilities Apple’s iPad will deliver, its inability to play simple Web-based Flash movies and games could be the stumbling block that sends users diving for another device.
When Steve Jobs plopped down on a carefully-placed chair to show off the new iPad’s “Internet in your hands” Web surfing capabilities on Wednesday, a white elephant barged onto stage with him very quickly. A large chunk of the New York Times’ site showed up as a blue brick plastered in question marks – a sign iPhone users will immediately recognize as the placeholder for missing Flash content.
Whoops. The iPad doesn’t support one of the most powerful and ubiquitous content formats on the Web.
Despite a hotrod 1GHz processor that should run Flash content with ease – especially considering many smartphones already can – Apple has intentionally snubbed the format to keep its app-like capabilities under lock and key. That means no It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia from Hulu.com, no streaming episodes of Matlock from CBS.com no tirades from Eric Cartman at SouthParkStudios.com and no Flash-based Web games for users at all.
“It looks like Apple is continuing to impose restrictions on their devices that limit both content publishers and consumers,” wrote Adobe’s Adrian Ludwig after the announcement. “Without Flash support, iPad users will not be able to access the full range of web content, including over 70% of games and 75% of video on the web.”
Even so, the company realizes the potential market it has been intentionally barred from, and has attempted to break in. In the wake of the announcement, Adobe was quick to point out that its Packager for iPhone software would allow Flash developers to slide their applications onto the iPad by repackaging them as apps, the same way it works for the iPhone. It’s a clever workaround, but since developers have to take the initiative to make the port – still not equivalent to Flash on the iPad.
Scott Alexander, senior editor at Playboy, believes the lack of Flash will be a major hurdle for the iPad. “One of the big things this device is predicated on is browsing the Internet.” he says. “You use Flash all the time as an Internet user. There are gaping holes in the Internet when you try to browse without it.”
Beyond games and applications, Alan Stoga,, CEO of publisher FLYP, believes the lack of Flash could also impinge on the iPad’s reputation as an e-reader. “The challenge is not simply to make magazines and newspapers accessible on mobile, digital platforms with decent screens, but to make their content available in true multimedia format,” he said. “That requires Flash or something like it.”
Although the initial wave of adopters might be willing to overlook Flash for the time being, the format’s continued growth in popularity – Steve Jobs couldn’t even avoid bumping into it in his demo –might make the Apple’s claim of putting “the Internet in your hands” a tough sell as time goes on.
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RSSOf course Steve is right, that all Apple Apps can be done with HTML 5 and standard tools. But for me, this is not a claim for Apple’s openness, but just an example of the de facto limitations of Apple Apps (and their users?).
For instance, when Steven Jobs honors HTML 5 fitness for the bunch of me-too video enriched web-gimmicks, called Apps, he might be right in his corner. But for serious business applications, that go beyond the personal entertainment click-clack-hurry ego-area (and so far have never made it onto the iPhone), he would prove himself hopelessly wrong.
Me as a certified web developer successfully working since nine years in 3 worlds - J2EE, .NET and Flash -, I think that I am qualified enough, to claim, that HTML 5 alone will simply NOT provide the technology nor the tools nor (skilled) people nor experiences to do really highly interactive real-time stuff EFFICIENTLY in an enterprise service context. Of course, for students and new-comers that just do not known anything else than what is free in the market, HTML 5 is a major improvement – but – that’s it! HTML 5 just does not qualify for high performing, highly interactive Rich Internet Applications the way they can be built with Flash, Silverlight or JavaFX.
And when you go for instance for iPhone-like point and slide programming, you will have, even with HTML 5, to build on the proprietary Apple OS features the same (in transparent) way you would have to do with Flash technology.
Listen, I am not talking games and social fun-stuff here, but have applications in mind, many other companies, people and finally people like you and me still create value and earn money with. So when we allow Apple to ban Flash from the iPhone, we will allow Apple to ban business apps from the iPhone as well. Then this is not just about technology, but about how we will integrate business in our daily life – or not.
And forget that Flash will go away, when it’s banned from the iPhones. Flash is not a HTML 5 competitor. They are different things. Flash has its niche and community already. Flash had never a stake or a real revenue stream on mobiles. So for Flash, mobile did not matter so far which means, that Adobe is does not need to have it on the iPhone either. Independent of the mobile market, the Flash framework has dramatically evolved into a real ecosystem that is MUCH, MUCH more than just the Flash Player we are currently talking about. The Flash Framework has earned money and market shares and still provides a platform where people can make money, where HTML 5 will have a long way to go (The team developing HTML5 doesn’t even expect it to receive the first level of recommendation from the World Wide Web Consortium (the group that governs international Web standards,) until 2012. According to them, the third and final maturity recommendation likely won’t occur until 2022....).
Besides this timeline constraint, HTML 5 it is not built for really sophisticated, complex and (bandwidth optimized) rich web-applications and will never be.
On the other side, I am personally convinced, that the Flash Framework (with Silverlight and JavaFX on its heels), is still the most professional, most stable, most shared, public accepted, reasonably priced rich internet application framework. This is especially true now, when corporations have to ensure continuity, performance and a most appealing user experience, when moving their core applications from the personal desktop to the virtual could. No doubt, the cloud will happen with home working and more mobility. But Business will not care about whether your iPhone might become incompatible with what the company needs.
So – in essence – fighting for Flash on the iPhone ensures your long-term business compatibility. Otherwise you will have either two devices, a non iPhone device or you will have to fit against your reputation of an iPhone decorated Fun boy and non-serious chatterbox or even worse, to be compared with one of those “creatives” that just own an iPhone for dressing themselves up with an decent aura of iPhone impersonated technology geekness, that in essence, is so reduced, that even your Grandma can join and fill her lonely hours with a choice of 50000 apps, that will make Steven rich, Grandma tired but will never earn her a dime in return.
With Flash on the iPhone, at least you, young guy will be enabled to do something really useful. When not – go and play.