Adobe Flash coming to your TV

Adobe is driving its Flash technology much more into the mainstream with an announcement that the software platform will soon be supported by “set-top boxes, Blu-ray players and “other devices in the digital living room.”

According to the company, Flash will be integrated directly into the hardware and will be used by “major System on Chips (SoC) vendors,” OEMs, cable operators and content providers including Atlantic Records, Broadcom, Comcast, Disney Interactive Media Group, Intel, Netflix, STMicroelectronics, The New York Times Company, NXP Semiconductors, Sigma Designs – all of which announced support for Adobe Flash today. SoCs with embedded Flash technology are expected to ship in the second half of 2009.

Adobe said that its Flash technology will allow consumers to watch HD Web videos via the Flash Video (FLV) file format on their TVs, without the need for a web browser.

“Adobe Flash Platform for the Digital Home will dramatically change the way we view content on televisions,” said David Wadhwani, general manager and vice president, Platform Business Unit at Adobe. “Consumers are looking to access their favorite Flash technology-based videos, applications, services and other rich Web content across screens.”

From a hardware view, the most significant announcement may be Intel’s note that the Media Processor CE 3100, one of the firm’s first SoCs for consumer electronics will come with integrated Flash support. The chip primarily targets set-top boxes, high-definition digital televisions and Blu-ray Disc players.