Adobe opens up Flash

 

Gallery

By Stuart Turton

Posted on 1 May 2008 at 11:02

Adobe is dropping some of the restrictions on its Flash and AIR development platforms, as it attempts to speed adoption across mobile devices.

The new initiative, called the Open Screen Project, will remove the licensing fees on the next major releases of Flash Player and AIR, allowing developers to integrate the technology into devices and software without charge. As part of this, Adobe is opening up its porting layer APIs - which will allow developers to begin porting without needing to go through Adobe.

The company is also stripping the license restrictions on SWF and FLV file formats, allowing the creation of Flash player clones for the first time.

This doesn't mean Flash is going open-source, however. The move simply makes its easier for developers to read the code and create applications off the back of it.

The company has also drummed up some heavyweight backing from content providers including MTV, NBC and the BBC, which uses Flash to stream content on the iPlayer. Clearly, all of these companies have a vested interest in seeing Flash appear on more devices and by consequence their TV programmes.