Now That Even Microsoft Supports HTML5, Will Developers Still Use Flash?

With Apple’ Steve Jobs preaching to the anti-Flash choir last week, even Microsoft had to get their word in the Flash vs. HTML5 debate. Microsoft has already announced its support of HTML5 in upcoming versions of Internet Exporer, and many web developers are starting to utilize the up-and-coming standard instead of proprietary Flash technology.

General Manager of Internet Explorer, Dean Hachamovitch blogged that “Microsoft is deeply engaged in the HTML5 process with the W3C. HTML5 will be very important in advancing rich, interactive web applications and site design.” Hachamovitch doesn’t believe that developers will stop using Flash any time soon, as he says “Today, video on the web is predominantly Flash-based. While video may be available in other formats, the ease of accessing video using just a browser on a particular website without using Flash is a challenge for typical consumers.”

Developers are likely to be the only ones who notice the eventual shift from Flash to HTML5 video. End users may notice that their web browser doesn’t suffer from performance issues, or crash as often, say proponents of the still-emerging HTML5 standard.