Jobs Steps Up Attack on Adobe's Flash

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Adobe highlighted the risks of exclusion from Apple's iPhone and iPad devices for the first time in an April regulatory filing, signaling the snub could hurt sales.

Jobs' letter harms the reputation of Flash, said Hayes Roth, chief marketing officer for Landor Associates, a branding and design firm. "There's unquestionably damage to the brand—whether it's permanent damage is the question," he says. "This letter is now seen by untold millions around the world, who've been told—chapter and verse—what's superior about the technology that goes into Apple's products."

Flash is installed on about 98% of PCs connected to the Internet, according to Adobe. Flash also runs on more than 800 million mobile phones, manufactured by 19 of the top 20 handset makers—all except Apple.

Discussing a Decision

This latest "open letter" from Jobs is the third of its kind and the sort of communication reserved for when Jobs wants to discuss at length his thinking behind controversial corporate and technology decisions. In "Thoughts on Music," published on Feb. 6, 2007, Jobs announced his willingness to sell music on the iTunes Store without copy protection technology attached to it. A second, titled "A Greener Apple," was published on May 2, 2007, and addressed plans to eliminate toxic chemicals used in the manufacture of Apple computers.

By getting rejected from the iPhone, Apple's smartphone introduced in 2007, and iPad, a tablet-style computer that went on sale this month, Adobe is excluded from products that are embraced by consumers and developers. IPhone sales more than doubled last quarter and the iPad sold more than 500,000 units in its first week. Jobs on Apr. 29 said there are 200,000 programs for Apple's devices on its online App Store, proving that developers don't need Flash to create applications such as games.

This month, Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen released an overhaul of the company's most profitable products, called Creative Suite. Comprising up to 15 applications, the Creative Suite programs rely on Flash to create Web video and make sites more interactive.

Hesseldahl is a reporter for Bloomberg Businessweek. Rochelle Garner is a reporter for Bloomberg News.

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