Adobe has announced it will be ceasing its efforts to bring Flash-based applications to the iPhone. The move came after Apple put out a new draft of its iPhone developer program license, which banned developers from using cross-platform compilers like the one Adobe just so happened to introduce in Creative Suite 5, and instead required apps to be written in Objective-C, C, C++, or JavaScript as executed by the iPhone OS WebKit engine.
Although this was largely interpreted as a shot directly across Adobe's bow, it could also affect other middleware tools such as Titanium, MonoTouch, or Unity – not to mention that being forced to use tools that target a single platform makes life harder for developers who want to leverage as many platforms as possible to justify costs and increase margins. Adobe believes that Apple may selectively enforce the terms and let a few non-abiding apps trickle to their store, but speculates it will likely enforce them to select content created with Flash CS5 to send a clear message.
This is just the latest in the escalating confrontation between Apple and Adobe. The Cupertino-based company has repeatedly claimed that letting Flash on its iPhone platform would degrade battery life and performance.
Adobe will still provide the ability to target the iPhone and iPad in Flash CS5, but warns that they are not currently planning any additional investments in that feature, and that developers should be prepared to have their apps rejected. In a blog post yesterday, Adobe principal product manager Mike Chambers also criticized Apple's somewhat haphazard policies regarding applications and said they are now focusing on Google's Android platform.