Adobe AIR, Flash Installations Surge

Adobe Systems announced at its Adobe MAX Japan conference that the company’s Adobe AIR and Adobe Flash Player 10 software, key components of the Adobe Flash Platform, have been installed by record numbers of users and enterprises, to the tune of more than 100 million installations for Adobe AIR.

On the 29th January at the Adobe MAX Japan show, Adobe officials said that in less than a year after its initial release, there have been more than 100 million installations of Adobe AIR to date. Adobe officials had hoped to see the product reach 100 million downloads by the end of 2008, but it apparently took just a bit longer than that.

In addition, Adobe Flash Player 10 has been installed on more than 55 percent of computers worldwide in just the first two months of its release, and it is expected to surpass 80 percent by the second quarter of 2009, far outpacing the installation rate of past versions of the software, the company said.

Moreover, companies across a variety of industries have chosen Adobe AIR to deploy hundreds of applications that reach customers, partners and employees in new and engaging ways, Adobe officials said. The list of global brands using AIR includes the BBC, (RED)WIRE and The Nasdaq Stock Market. In addition, OEMs including Sony Japan are beginning to preinstall Adobe AIR on shipping computers, giving customers immediate access to the software.

And companies such as Comedy Central, MySpace, Toyota and the AOL Games site are using Adobe Flash Player 10 to deliver expressive and compelling user experiences, rich audio/video playback and virtually universal reach across operating systems, Adobe officials said.

“Adobe is the leader in enabling people to express themselves and connect with others globally, through the distribution of our world-class client software,” said Michele Turner, vice president of product marketing for the Platform Business Unit at Adobe. “The incredible traction we’re seeing with Adobe AIR and Adobe Flash Player 10 in such a short period of time is a clear indication that individuals and organisations across the globe rely on the Adobe Flash Platform for breakthrough interactive content, applications and video on the Web.”

The Adobe Flash Platform is a complete system of integrated tools, frameworks, clients and servers for the development of Web applications, content and video that runs consistently across operating systems and devices.

Adobe AIR enables developers to use proven Web technologies to quickly design and build compelling applications that extend outside the browser, the company said. And in the last 12 months, there have been more than 1 million downloads of the AIR software development kit, the free open-source Flex framework and Adobe Flex Builder by developers building Web applications using the Adobe Flash Platform, the company said.

Adobe Flash Player content reaches more than 98 percent of Internet-enabled desktops, and more than 80 percent of online videos worldwide are viewed using Adobe Flash technology, Adobe officials claimed.

Adobe AIR and Adobe Flash Player 10 are available for Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems as free downloads in 15 languages. For more information or to download, visit www.adobe.com/go/air and www.adobe.com/go/getflashplayer.