Apple aims another blow at Adobe

As part of its growing war against Flash, Apple has banned developers from using Adobe's recently released export option that makes Flash content iPhone friendly.

With Adobe's Creative Suite 5 release early this week, the company announced a new feature that would allow developers to build content in Flash and then export it for the iPhone and iPad, due to Apple's vendetta against Flash-based content.

But Apple’s iPhone 4.0 software development kit (SDK) has blocked content created in cross-platform programs, including Adobe’s Flash new export option, among many others.  The new SDK agreement specifically prohibits the development of apps using “an intermediary translation or compatibility layer tool”.

When a developer emailed Apple CEO Steve Jobs to ask about the new restrictions, Jobs replied, “We’ve been there before, and intermediate layers between the platform and the developer ultimately produces sub-standard apps and hinders the progress of the platform.”

Understandably Adobe isn’t fond of the move, and there are rumours that the company plans to sue Apple because of the new SDK requirements.

This is the latest battle in the war between Adobe and Apple, with the tension residing almost entirely over the lack of Flash capability on the iPhone and iPad. Responding to critics earlier this year, Jobs said that Flash would drain the iPad’s battery and was a “CPU hog”. He also compared Flash to antiquated technology such as the floppy disk, and said it was on its way out.