Flash is still not alive on the iPhone

InfoWorld updates a long-running story with today’s post: “No Java, Flash for iPhone this Christmas.”

There is still a little time left, but it doesn't look like Apple iPhone users will see Adobe Systems and Sun Microsystems get Flash and Java up and running on Apple's handheld device by Christmas.

Although both Sun and Adobe have expressed a desire to back the iPhone for nearly a year, neither the Flash Player nor Java Virtual Machine run on the device. And it appears that little to no progress is being made. Sun and Adobe, the chief proponents of the Java and Flash platforms, respectively, repeat what they've said all year: that they are still working to get their software platforms running on the trendy phone.

Paul Krill chalks this up to technical difficulties, rather than a conspiracy by Apple to block competing platforms. (OTOH, Apple wasn’t willing to comment).

So various rumors (in Fall, Spring, Winter) that iPhone Flash was due Real Soon Now appear to have been premature, as were rumors of Java implementations.

It doesn’t make sense to introduce something like this in December anyway. Perhaps this is something Steve will announce at his keynote on Jan. 6.

NB: Although it would make for a better metaphor, it didn’t seem fair to say “iPhone Java is still dead” since it’s never been alive yet.