In this article, Allaire argues that the HTML5 vs. Flash vs. native apps debate and the open vs. proprietary code debate won’t be solved any time soon. Instead, he believes the different technologies will be deployed in the situations where they make the most sense. For example, while HTML5 seems to be the best tool for Web productivity apps, Flash will probably continue to dominate rich media apps.
He also argues that the software companies have dominated these recent debates: “Most of the debate and discussion over HTML5 vs. Flash vs. Native Apps has little to do with what is the right technical approach, or whether something is open or closed, it has to do with the expressions of power and control that drive the businesses of the Internet’s dominant platform companies — Apple, Adobe, Google and Microsoft .”