Microsoft goes where Apple won’t, licenses Flash

Microsoft today said it is licensing Adobe’s Flash Lite and Reader technology to run in future versions of Microsoft’s Windows Mobile phones.

Both moves are significant, though building Flash into Windows Mobile has a broader impact. Microsoft has a number of competing technologies, including Windows Media Player and (more directly) Silverlight, which enables the same kind of interactive content and streaming video as Flash.

Apple recently said it would not be including Flash natively on its iPhone, claiming video quality on Flash Lite is too low. Apple does support Flash in a roundabout way by enabling YouTube videos to be displayed on the iPhone, though the approach converts the video before sending it to the phone.

Users will access Flash content via a new Flash Lite browser plug-in running on Internet Explorer Mobile on Windows Mobile. Flash Lite already runs on many popular mobile platforms, including Symbian and BREW.

Flash Lite gained video capabilities last fall with its 3.0 release. Microsoft’s Silverlight debuted last fall as well.

A number of emerging mobile browsers, including Firefox Mobile, plan to support Flash in the browser while some proxy-based approaches, such as SkyFire, deliver Flash content as well.

Flash support in mobile browsers is important because it enables Web sites designed for viewing on the desktop to be viewed on mobile phones with the same fidelity, a major new trend in mobile browsers.