Chrome OS Site

Yes folks…we believe it’s finally happened; the last nail in the coffin for Adobe’s Flash. It seems as if our lengthy love affair (better put; love and hate) with Adobe’s once successful software platform may be coming to an end in 2010. Many blogs have been touting the phrase; “2010 is the year for HTML5″ and indeed, this week’s events seem to lend support to this claim.

Microsoft (through is ‘IE Blog‘) has released a statement, heaping praise on HTML5 claiming that it will be the standard for future web developers. Already Apple (quite loudly) has voiced its support for HTML5 as a future web standard with Google also weighing in with a similar outlook. Now Microsoft seems to be coming in quite late in it’s endorsement of HTML5. Here’s what they had to say:

The future of the web is HTML5. Microsoft is deeply engaged in the HTML5 process with the W3C. HTML5 will be very important in advancing rich, interactive web applications and site design.

And do you remember good old Steve Jobs’ jabs at Flash’s lackluster security features and reliability? Well, Microsoft seems to have the same sentiments:

Today, video on the web is predominantly Flash-based. While video may be available in other formats, the ease of accessing video using just a browser on a particular website without using Flash is a challenge for typical consumers. Flash does have some issues, particularly around reliability, security, and performance.

Also, in a less publicized bombshell to Flash, the next release of Internet explorer (the most used browser) will be geared towards HTML5. This therefore means that 2010 will see a general move away from flash hence giving the rise to HTML5 dominance (almost like the HD DVD and Blu-ray wars back in the day). Already websites owned by Google and many other major players such as Vimeo are already equipped with this new technology. It doesn’t take a genius to realize that Adobe Flash is already one foot into the grave. All this and we haven’t even began to talk about Google’s upcoming Chrome OS (which will have HTML5 powered web Apps).

Nevertheless, it’s not all horror for Adobe. Microsoft seemed to extend an olive branch in it’s statement in contrast to Steve Job’s vehement and unmitigated attacks of the beleaguered software vendor:

We work closely with engineers at Adobe, sharing information about the issues we know of in ongoing technical discussions. Despite these issues, Flash remains an important part of delivering a good consumer experience on today’s web.