When washed-up entertainers attempt to revive their careers in painstakingly obvious ways, public support often fades as well. In the tech world, Adobe Flash is like the out-of-touch singer who tries to keep up with the latest trends, but just ends up falling short of expectations. Several big-name corporations recently withdrew their support of the multimedia platform, setting the Internet abuzz over the possibility that this could really be the end of Adobe Flash.
Why All the Hate?
Web developers — including the team at The Web Guys — know all too well that Adobe Flash slows down computers. Frequent crashing doesn’t help the waning technology’s case either. The program also contains more security gaps than there were plot holes in the last installment of The Dark Knight franchise.
Online giants like Amazon, Mozilla Firefox, and Facebook have already taken a stance against Adobe Flash. And on Sept. 1, industry behemoth Google announced it would be blocking Flash ads in its Chrome browser. Legendary tech guru Steve Jobs wouldn’t even allow Flash to operate on Apple’s mobile devices due to the security risks and its impact on battery life.
HTML5: The Emerging Winner
Since certain browsers and websites are no longer supporting Flash, HTML5 has risen as the replacement for rich media content, including ads. This format is the default option on YouTube, and others platforms are gaining appreciation for it as well. HTML5 supports embedded animation, video clips, and other multimedia tools similar to Flash, but it delivers higher performance and compatibility across all desktop and mobile devices. HTML5 content also runs up to 58 percent faster than Flash. So yes, HTML5 will most likely reign supreme.
The Future of Online Advertising
Advertisers who relied on Flash ad products will need to find other ways to get their message across to consumers. Money that was budgeted for Flash ads could be directed to ads that have the potential to run on all networks. User-friendly options, such as Google AdWords and Facebook Ads, seem like the leading choices for online advertising.
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