Adobe Publishes Flash Specs, Promotes Mobile Devices

Whereas software vendors were previously required to pay licensing fees to Adobe for using Flash technology on mobile devices, this obstacle will be removed with the next Flash release.

Adobe has also facilitated access to the SWF and FLV specifications. Previously, Adobe required developers to sign a license agreement before releasing this information, developers now have unconditional access. Adobe will also be looking to open the Flash player API for porting to mobile devices in the scope of the Open Screen project.

Adobe's Open Screen project is targeted at the mobile device market. It is supported by vendors such as ARM, Intel and Motorola, but also by content providers such as the BBC, MTV and NBC. Shantanu Narayen, Adobe's CEO said he was convinced that this would provide a consistent, and more open platform for rapid development of innovations to the benefit of users. Stefan Weigl, Adobe's spokesperson in Germany emphasized that Adobe mainly made money on the Flash CS3 Professional developer environment.

Despite open specifications, the two formats are not under a free software license. The Gnash player on Linux gives developers a free alternative to the Flash player. Although it does not support the full feature scope of the Flash Player, it is under constant development.