Azingo announced that its LiMo-based browser now integrates the Adobe Flash Lite 3.1 web multimedia technology. The integration of Flash Lite into Azingo Mobile will enable a million Flash developers to write animated web and video applications on a mobile Linux platform, says the company.

(Click for larger view of Azingo Mobile screen)

The integration was facilitated by Adobe's May announcement of an "Open Screen Project" intended to remove restrictions on Flash file formats, open Flash server protocols, and give away the player along with the APIs (application programming interfaces) needed to port it to new devices. Although versions of the Flash Player for desktop operating systems have been free, until now handset manufacturers and other device makers have had to pay a license fee.


Different views of Azingo Mobile
(Click to enlarge)
Azingo, formerly Celunite, launched its Linux-based Azingo Mobile middleware and browser stack prior to February's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Azingo Mobile is positioned as a comprehensive software/services offering for mid-tier feature-phones compliant with LiMo (Linux Mobile Foundation) requirements. The company is contributing some high-level tools to LiMo's common integration environment (CIE). Based in Silicon Valley, Azingo has development offices throughout India, and employs about 250 engineers.

The Flash Lite integration enables customers of handsets that offer the Azingo Mobile browser to view "rich Flash-based content offering advanced browsing of most Flash-based websites" and display "animations and Flash Player compatible videos," says Azingo. The company has yet to announce any handset wins. However, in a July interview with the Economic Times, in conjunction with the formal launch of Azingo Mobile, Azingo CEO Mahesh Veerina was quoted as saying his company had "established relationships with six of the top base-band providers and four top global mobile operators."


Azingo Mobile architecture
(Click to enlarge)
Adobe Flash is still not a truly open-source product, as it contains technologies, such as audio and video codecs, that are licensed from others. In 2006, however, Adobe open-sourced a key ingredient of Flash, the ActionScript scripting engine. Open source alternatives to Flash include the Linux-compatible Gnash, an SWF (shockwave flash) player and browser plugin that was released in beta form earlier this year.

Specific elements of Adobe's Open Screen Project include:Removing licensing fees, making new releases of the Adobe Flash Player and AIR (Adobe Integrated Runtime) free
Removing restrictions on the use of the SWF and FLV (flash video) file formats
Publishing the device-layer APIs for porting Flash to new devices
Publishing Flash Cast and AMF (action message format), which let Flash applications receive information from remote databasesStated Gary Kovacs, Adobe VP and GM, Mobile and Devices, "Azingo has provided a fast and comprehensive integration of Flash Lite, opening the world of mobile Linux to Flash developers and enabling rich web browsing experiences for mobile phone users worldwide."


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