Adobe Flash's demise has long been heralded, but concrete signs are starting to appear – none more significant than Google's new announcement on its AdWords blog that Google display ads will go entirely to HTML5 within a year.
What is the plan for Flash?
Google announced Tuesday that AdWords and related services will no longer accept new Flash-based ads after June 30; existing Flash ads will stop working on January 2 of next year.
As recently as last June, it was estimated that 84% of Internet banner ads were Flash-based. But Chrome and Firefox had already banned Flash ads due to security concerns, while iPhone has never supported Flash. Ad0be has responded to the shift toward HTML5 by scrapping the Flash Professional name for its animation platform, now calling the HTML5-friendly program Adobe Animate CC.
If your company produces animated advertisements, it's past time to say goodbye to Flash and embrace HTML5.