Adobe just announced its roadmap to stop supporting Flash at the end of 2020. This is not surprising since Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Facebook, Apple and others have already started to switch to HTML5 as default. Adobe said that it is encouraging web developers to migrate any existing Flash content to open standards.
“Today, most browser vendors are integrating capabilities once provided by plugins directly into browsers and deprecating plugins,” said Adobe.
Adobe has teamed up with Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Mozilla for the transition
- Mozilla Firefox – Starting next month, users will choose which websites are able to run the Flash plugin. Flash will be disabled by default for most users in 2019, and only users running the Firefox Extended Support Release (ESR) will be able to continue using Flash through the final end-of-life at the end of 2020. In order to preserve user security, once Flash is no longer supported by Adobe security patches, no version of Firefox will load the plugin.
- Google Chrome- Will continue phasing out Flash over the next few years, first by asking for your permission to run Flash in more situations, and eventually disabling it by default. Google will remove Flash completely from Chrome toward the end of 2020.
- Microsoft Windows – Will phase out Flash from Microsoft Edge and Internet Explorer, culminating in the removal of Flash from Windows entirely by the end of 2020. This process began already for Microsoft Edge with Click-to-Run for Flash in the Windows 10 Creators Update. The process will continue in phases, as mentioned on Windows Blog.
- Apple – iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch never supported Flash. For the Mac, the transition from Flash began in 2010 when Flash was no longer pre-installed. Today, if users install Flash, it remains off by default. Safari requires explicit approval on each website before running the Flash plugin.
Adobe said that several industries and businesses have been built around Flash technology – including gaming, education and video will support Flash through 2020, as customers and partners put their migration plans into place.
It also said that it will continue to support Flash on a number of major OSs and browsers that currently support Flash content through the planned EOL. This will include issuing regular security patches, maintaining OS and browser compatibility and adding features and capabilities as needed. In addition, it plans to move more aggressively to EOL Flash in certain geographies where unlicensed and outdated versions of Flash Player are being distributed.