Exitlog | Leaving Impressions

.NET hasn’t quite lifted off as Microsoft takes another attack…

Adobe want to bring the power of the Internet to the desktop and they intend to do so with Apollo; released this week from its Adobe Labs website.

Apollo is the code name for a cross-platform runtime being developed by Adobe that allows developers to use their existing back-catalogue of skills to quickly build Internet applications users can install locally.

Apollo applications run as regular applications, just like any you might find on everyday users’ desktop – from games to office productivity apps. Firefox and IE are not required. These new applications don’t need web browser or even a shell to run. And when users aren’t connected to the Internet they still work. This may yet be another great advance. Adobe’s technology has even been tipped to threaten the popularity of Java and Microsoft’s .NET.

Microsoft does have its own strategy. They too want to give developers tools for building Web applications. But their strategy is about tying developers to using applications within the Windows desktop and development environment. This could be the weak point in the .NET plan.

Open source systems and other, paid-for, serious opportunities in the market are eroding the dominance of Windows. Apollo is cross platform and uses standard Internet development technologies such as Flash, HTML, JavaScript and AJAX. Ubiquity and code for all – Adobe wants to court developers with Apollo, but unlike .NET, without persuading them to choose their flavour of desktop.

One of the great strengths of Flash, acquired by Adobe from Macromedia last year, is its ubiquity. Flash enjoys a unique position in that for a proprietary format, it is an important, welcomed part of the web-based landscape. Windows may be prevalent, some would say pervasive, in homes and offices around the world, but it is not universal.

Good luck, Mr. Gorsky.

Soda Plus? Reaction to the news that soft drinks, fizzy pop, are up for reinvention.

Coca-Cola and PepsiCo often battle head-to-head for the soft drinks market. Now, with obesity very much on the agenda both companies are to introduce health-targeted pop. These new carbonated drinks, Coca-Cola’s Diet Coke Plus and PepsiCo’s Tava, are fortified with vitamins and minerals.

In this country we have only just seen the launch of Coke Zero, low sugar/great taste (an opinion not universally shared). There are also many varieties of Diet Coke including Lemon and Vanilla (briefly). There is also the outsider, Cherry Coke. Beyond Pepsi there is the much-hyped contender, Pepsi Max. Some would argue Coke would win in a penalty shoot-out. Still, the soft drinks market is profitable.

The industry is worth an estimated $68 billion in the US alone. In the UK and European drinks market the market is also large and competitive. With obesity increasingly an issue, these plus drinks just might make an impact. But, convincing the consumers is the real trick.

Reducing the calories, sugar content and upping the “health factor” can be seen as a cynical measure to widen the consumer drinks category. There are many opinions that diet drinks aren’t really healthy anyway — and that Diet Coke Plus and Tava are more marketing than sense. Waistlines, time and interest are sure to tell.