Flash, Silverlight Fight for Dominance Over HTML5

Microsoft and Adobe have a lot to gain, or lose, in the battle for dominance over the emerging HTML 5 standard. Each company continues to refine its own rich web formats and weave their respective vision of the future for the web, hoping to come out on top in the battle for web dominance.

Microsoft’s Silverlight and Adobe’s Flash are the leading players in the multimedia web arena, but both are actively watching the emergence and acceptance of HTML5, which threatens to overtake both of their platforms.

Currently, Microsoft claims to have 45 percent market penetration for Silverlight worldwide, with Adobe dominating with 98 percent penetration worldwide. Adobe also boasts a huge developer base, without disclosing the official numbers. Microsoft, on the other hand, claims a user base of half a million developers.

The true threat of HTML5 is that it could end the need for proprietary standards entirely. Both companies are working to incorporate their own rich media into some HTML5 implementations, as well as the integration of some HTML5 features into their own technology, such as the ability to make their content more searchable.

Another player in the industry that hasn’t gone away is Sun’s JavaFX. It was first released in December of 2008, and continues to create a buzz among developers.