Wednesday, April 30,2008 @ 12:45pm
Sony Ericsson aims to merge Java, Flash
Swedish cellphone maker Sony Ericsson is hoping to encourage new kinds of applications through a new set of APIs, writes IDG News. The company has announced that it intends to allow developers to merge Flash Lite and Java ME into a single Java application, bypassing technical shortcomings. Specifically this refers to an absence of Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and secure payment hooks in Flash, and conversely, a lack of interface capabilities in Java. A game, for example, could be written mostly in Java, but use a Flash-based menu.
Sony Ericsson says it intends to release the APIs in the second part of the year, as a part of an updated SDK. First-party phones should begin using the technology around the same time, and thereafter it should be available in some form for third-party devices, though the company has not decided how or when. The public can however "anticipate standards or open source or a combination thereof," according to Christopher David, Sony Ericsson's director of long-term platform planning.