14 DAY TRIAL // Of the important things that any developer for the iPhone needs to know, the top two are: no Flash support and no Java support. Support for these technologies is currently missing from the device and it is a pretty big deal, especially when it comes to Flash, which is very widespread and powers a lot of web sites and applications.
Lack of Flash support is perhaps one of the most important downsides to the iPhone as a mobile Internet device. Considering its widespread adoption it came as a surprise to many when Apple simply said not to use it, as it is not supported, with no word on whether or not this might change. While Apple has not changed its stance, and has not issued any new information, a particularly tasty tidbit comes from a source that is just as good as an Apple announcement, Walter Mossberg.
In this week's question and answer session, Mossberg has so many iPhone inquiries that he dedicated the whole column to the device. Amongst the more interesting answers was the one related to Flash.
If the iPhone's Web browser is so good, why can't it play video on Web sites I visit? At launch, the iPhone version of the Safari browser is missing some plug-ins needed for playing common types of Web videos. The most important of these is the plug-in for Adobe's Flash technology. Apple says it plans to add that plug-in through an early software update, which I am guessing will occur within the next couple of months. However, a separate program included on the iPhone can play a limited selection of videos from YouTube, and the phone can play videos you purchase from Apple's iTunes store, and certain videos you create yourself.
If coming from other sources, such a statement would be considered a rumor, since Apple have made no mention whatsoever of this. Considering that this is Walt Mossberg, someone who is on first name terms with Steve jobs and who has shown from his reviews over the years that he has inside information form Apple, this is as good as a public statement. Such a statement would not have been published if Mossberg had been unsure about it.
So, the good news is that the iPhone is going to be getting Flash, the bad news is that we will probably have to wait a while yet for it.