Flash is dying a death by 1,000 cuts, and that’s a good thing

The end of Adobe’s video carrier is nigh as Amazon marks the first of the big-name advertisers to block Flash ads, while Google’s Chrome will ‘intelligently pause’ them

Adobe’s Flash, hated the world over for slowing down computers, containing more holes in security than swiss cheese and stubbornly being the video carrier of choice until recently, is dying.

Video players are migrating to other systems, even if Microsoft’s Silverlight isn’t much better. HTML5-based video and animations are becoming mainstream, and uploaders and other more advanced web-based features can now be replaced with code that doesn’t rely on Flash.

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Netflix links up with Softbank for Japanese launch

Partnership with telecoms firm is part of US streaming service’s plans to complete a global rollout by the end of 2016

Netflix has linked up with telecoms firm Softbank for the Japanese launch of its TV streaming service next month.

The deal will allow Japanese consumers to sign up to Netflix in SoftBank’s retail stores, large electrical retailers and via the company’s website and call centres by adding the cost of the service to their Softbank bill.

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