Some people say that HTML 5, a next-generation standard Web technology being formulated by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), will compete against Adobe Systems Inc's Flash because of its functions to play movies and display graphics.
On this point, we interviewed Enrique Duvos, evangelist of Adobe Systems and group manager, EMEA Platform Evangelism of Adobe Systems Iberica S.L. in Barcelona, Spain.
Q: AIR (Adobe Integrated Runtime), one of Adobe's RIA (rich Internet application) technologies, incorporates WebKit, an open-source Web graphics engine. So, will Adobe support HTML 5?
Duvos: That's right. Every time the runtime of AIR is updated, the latest version of WebKit is incorporated. However, we will not update the runtime of AIR in accordance with the updates of HTML 5.
At this point, AIR 1.5.1, which was released in February 2009, has been installed on 200 million computers. So, it is steadily spreading. We do not have to keep in step with HTML 5 because we do not know when it will be released.
Q: Some people call HTML 5 "Flash killer." If it gains in popularity, will it be a menace to Flash?
Duvos: HTML 5 will bring innovation to the Web and eliminate functional differences among Web browsers. We love this idea and will basically continue to support it.
However, there are still many issues that HTML 5 has to solve. One of the major problems is the compatibility among Web browsers. Many companies are committed to HTML 5, so it is not easy to bring about an agreement. It is still unclear which part of HTML 5 will be commonly used by multiple Web browsers.
Probably, it will take a fair amount of time to finalize HTML 5. Meanwhile, Flash will continue to evolve. But we will provide any help for the formulation of HTML 5.
Q: But, in terms of compatibility, Flash has some varieties too.
Duvos: Right. That's why Adobe is planning to reorganize its corporate structure, replace Flash Lite, which is Flash for embedded devices, in principle and unite embedded software into Flash Player 10 from the next major versions.
Q: From the viewpoint of smartphones, Apple Inc's iPhone does not use Flash. On the other hand, HTML 5-compatible WebKit has been adopted for not only the iPhone but also Palm Inc's Palm Pre, Google Inc's Android, Nokia Corp's S60 and other platforms.
Duvos: I would like you to carefully check them. The versions of their WebKit are all different from one another. So, in terms of compatibility, the problem still exists.
Adobe is now promoting the Open Screen Project (OSP), which uses Flash Player 10 as a common platform. So, we will be able to provide compatibility among mobile phones, TVs and so forth in addition to PCs.
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