Adobe is about to integrate Flash video for mobile phones

At the 3GSM Conference held in Barcelona on February 12, Adobe announced it would integrate video viewing features for Flash Lite 3, the next version of the Flash runtime environment for mobile phones.

It is expected that manufacturers will be licensed to deploy Flash Lite 3 in the second quarter of this year; and Adobe hopes that products that integrate this technology will be available by the end of 2007.

According to Adobe, the addition of the Flash Lite feature simplifies the process of creating and distributing videos over mobile networks. Currently, to do this, network operators must use a special package of tools.

Also related to mobile video, Time Warner announced last week an agreement to use Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson technology to distribute news and animation on mobile devices; And Ampd Mobile (USA) also signed an agreement with Hollywood partners to create "shows" on mobile phones.

With Flash Lite 3, network operators and content providers can use the same Flash server for mobile and Web video, as well as using the same streaming protocol and encryption tool. The videos will be downsized to fit the mobile device screen and need not be re-encoded. This will make the process of creating videos on mobile devices much easier and faster.

According to Adobe, Flash Lite videos will be played in a variety of formats, including video streaming, download clips, and standby screens .