Adobe: iPhone Flash player coming, if Apple wants it

The developers behind Flash confirm that a player for the iPhone is on the way, although it's still up to Apple to OK the app—and as we've seen in recent weeks, that isn't exactly a foregone conclusion.

The news came out of a recent Flash development conference (as reported by Flashmagazine.com), where a senior Adobe staffer confirmed that a Flash player for the iPhone is, indeed, in the works. However, the staffer noted that the iPhone is a "closed platform," and that Apple would have to rubber-stamp the player before releasing it on the iTunes app store.

Of course, Flash is one the of the key missing links in the iPhone's otherwise top-notch Web browser. As it stands, animated and/or interactive Flash modules on the Web show up as little blue question marks on the iPhone, rendering many sites useless. An iPhone Flash player could also let you view embedded, Flash-enabled videos on the Web; for now, we have to make do with dedicated apps like the iPhone's YouTube player (which, actually, works pretty well).

But a Flash player for the iPhone faces several hurdles—most importantly, Steve Jobs' lack of enthusiasm for mobile Flash, a.k.a. Flash Lite (which he slammed back in March as "not capable of being used with the Web") as well as the idea of using the desktop Flash player (which, he said, "performs too slow to be useful" on the iPhone).

And as TechCrunch notes, Jobs has a point. A Flash player on the iPhone could turn out to be a serious CPU and battery hog, slowing Web browsing to a crawl and slashing the iPhone's already skimpy battery life.

Also, don't forget Apple's now-notorious, willy-nilly attitude toward iPhone apps, as more and more developers complain that their programs are being arbitrarily rejected (and, adding insult to injury, iPhone coders can't even publish their rejection letters).

So, where does that leave us? Hard to say—it's not like Apple's paranoid PR department has anything to say on the subject, after all.

On the bright side, it's worth nothing that Jobs hasn't slammed the door on Flash for the iPhone entirely. Back in March, he did say that there's a "missing product in the middle" between Flash Lite and the Flash desktop player—and that's the key. If Adobe happens to crank out that missing product (or, at least, one that meets Jobs' capricious satisfaction), Apple might come around.

If not, well ... those little blue question marks might not be going anywhere.

So, iPhone users, what do you think: How badly do you want Flash on the iPhone? Would you tolerate a performance hit? Think Apple will co-operate? Sound off below.

Related:
Flash for the iPhone confirmed at FOTB [Flashmagazine.com]