Adobe Flash Is Coming To a TV Set Near You

Adobe's Flash technology, omnipresent in virtually every computer and rapidly moving throughout mobile devices, is now rolling into digital home devices, including televisions and set-top boxes.

The San Jose, Calif.-based company announced Monday that Flash will be extended to Internet-connected televisions, set-top boxes, Blu-ray players, and other home devices. Various "major system on chips" vendors, OEMs and content providers have signed on to support the optimized Flash technology, including Atlantic Records, Broadcom, Comcast, Disney Interactive Media Group, Intel, Netflix, STMicroelectronics, The New York Times, and NXP Semiconductors.

'Will Dramatically Change' TV

Adobe said "Flash technology-based applications will allow users to quickly switch between television programming and Web content outside the Web browser." It also said that cable operators and device manufacturers will be able to "develop new services and powerful user interfaces that deliver immersive experiences." The first wave on new TV sets is expected to roll out early next year.

David Wadhwani, general manager and vice president of Adobe's Platform Business Unit, told news media that the Flash platform, which includes the delivery of high-definition Web videos as well as interactive experiences, "will dramatically change the way we view content on televisions."

The company said the expanded rollout builds on the Open Screen Project, an initiative announced last May that uses Flash as a runtime environment across televisions, desktop computers, mobile devices, and other consumer devices.

It also builds on Flash's ubiquity. Adobe said the Flash player resides on more than 98 percent of computers with Net access, the runtime has delivered content on nearly 40 percent of all mobile devices, and the technology is the most used on the Web for video.

'Next Step' for Flash

The platform consists of integrated tools, frameworks, clients and servers for development and delivery, providing a consistent runtime across devices. At the same time it announced...