Adobe Bows in Apple Feud

Adobe Systems Inc. capitulated to partner-turned-rival Apple Inc. in a battle over technologies that are shaping the evolution of websites and mobile software.
Adobe on Wednesday said it will no longer push its Flash software format for use in the browser programs that come with smartphones and tablet computers. Instead, Adobe will increase its support for HTML5, a collection of technologies backed by Apple and others such as Google Inc. and Microsoft Corp.
Adobe's about-face came a day after it moved to cut 750 jobs and warned of weaker discount jerseys revenue growth, triggering shares in the company to drop 7.7% to $28.08. It comes in the wake of Steve Jobs's highly publicized strategy to keep Flash from Apple's hit iPhones and iPads. Mr. Jobs, who gave up the CEO post at Apple in August and died in early October, asserted a series of technical objections to using Flash on mobile devices in an unusual essay posted in April 2010.
But the fundamental dispute between the companies, which began collaborating in the 1980s, was who controls key technology standards.
In one Adobe ad, though titled "We Love Apple," the company asserted "what we cheap nhl jerseys don't love is anybody taking away your freedom to choose what you create, how you create it, and what you experience on the Web."
Mr. Jobs, in his essay, complained that Flash—which is widely used for animation and video on websites but requires users to install plug-in software for their browsers—would mean that future advancements of Apple products would partly be dependent on actions by Adobe.
Walter Isaacson's recent biography of Mr. Jobs recounts a 1999 incident in which Apple's nba jerseys cheap co-founder asked Adobe to make a new Macintosh version of a program called Adobe Premiere that was popular on computers running Microsoft's Windows operating system. Adobe turned him down, because at that time there were too few Mac users.
"My primary insight when we were screwed by Adobe in 1999 was that we shouldn't get into any business where we didn't control both the hardware and the software, otherwise we'd get our heads handed to us," Mr. Jobs said, according to the book.
Apple, though it relaxed some rules to let Flash-based applications run on its mobile devices, wouldn't support Flash in the Safari browser that comes with iPhones and iPads.
Flash is supported on devices running Google's Android operating system, which was jerseys usa used as a selling point by some hardware vendors. Adobe said Wednesday it will continue to support use of Flash in apps created for those and other mobile devices. It also plans to keep supporting both Flash and HTML5 in its development tools.
But Adobe plans to stop developing additional versions of its Flash player software to work with Web browsers in mobile devices. That is a costly process that requires testing its software against continual changes in microprocessor chips and operating systems.
The changes will allow Adobe to increase its investment in HTML5 and concentrate its Flash development on gaming and premium video services where Flash has more advanced content-protection mechanisms, the company said.
Danny Winokur, vice president and general manager for interactive development at Adobe, cheap nfl jerseys said the move reflects the fact that many developers want to use HTML5 to create apps for browsers that work across different platforms.
"Clearly there was a disagreement with Apple around Flash," Mr. Winokur said in an interview. "I think the decision we've made today puts that behind us."
An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment.
Adobe doesn't break out Flash in its earnings reports, but the Flash media player is woven throughout Adobe's programming tools, include its Adobe's Creative Suite software. Adobe late Tuesday said it would restructure its business to focus on digital media and marketing software, resulting in slower-than-expected revenue growth next year.
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"We now believe it's time to double down to accelerate growth in the two areas where we see the largest market opportunities, digital media and digital marketing," said Shantanu Narayen, Adobe's president and chief executive officer, at an analyst conference Wednesday.