NTT DoCoMo to put Flash support in phones

NTT DoCoMo will make support for Macromedia’s Flash content standard in its next range of cellular telephones, Macromedia said on Monday.

The deal is the first between Macromedia and a cellular network operator and part of the company’s strategy to get Flash support into a broad range of portable and consumer electronics devices in addition to personal computers.

The first handsets that will have Flash support as a result of the agreement will be NTT DoCoMo’s 505i line-up that is due to be launched sometime during 2003.

Macromedia has been talking to NTT DoCoMo, which is Japan’s largest cellular operator, for some time. In late 2001, company Executive Vice President Stephen Elop told a Japanese magazine his company was in talks with both NTT DoCoMo and J-Phone over adoption of Flash technology for cell phones. Those discussions picked up pace in the middle of 2002 and resulted in the deal announced Monday, Macromedia said.

The 505i line will replace the operator’s current high-end 504i line of handsets and Flash support will add to a growing line of features that includes Internet e-mail, mobile Web browsing, a built-in digital still camera, basic JPEG graphics, SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) encryption, and the ability to run Java applets.

Macromedia expects Flash will be used by mobile content developers in a similar way as it is used on the wired Web, namely to produce games and animations. The maximum size of the Flash file will be limited by the memory of each handset and phones with support for over-the-air provisioning will also be able to download new versions of the player when they become available.

In late 2002, Macromedia signed a deal with Sony to get Flash support into the company’s line of Palm operating system-based Clie personal digital assistants (PDAs) and some Pocket PC-based PDAs also include Flash support. Also, Sony Computer Entertainment has agreed to add Flash support to its PlayStation 2 and Macromedia said it has similar deals with set-top box makers and some cellular handset makers, such as Nokia.