JamieG Analysis

Recently I saw a blog post shouting out how HTML5 is going to be our savior and that the ability to simply “VIEW SOURCE”, like on any HTML website, will bring never before seen leaps in innovation because you cannot hide the code.  This idea is of course completely one sided and very misguided, but really, this “Feature” if you want to call it that, of HTML has far reaching ramifications.

HTML5 pitfalls for Apps

The freedome of “View Source” has done the internet well with the “Web 2.0″ look spreading fast.  With no real way to protect your code, others can leverage of your code for their own ends with little effort.  As a web designer, this could be considered a good thing, a good opportunity.  As an applications developer, an end game.

Lets look at the reasons.

Web developers build sites as fast and cheaply as they can.  The HTML code is not considered a key to this as the site in question is only really of value to the person wanting the site make.  The unprotected code is an issues but not a project end game.

As a Application developer, having the code free available is a non-starter.  Imagine if Adobe had to give away the source code to Photoshop (Which cost them 10′s to 100′s of millions of dollars to develop) with every $1000 purchase of Photoshop.  Of course, there would be competative COPIES based but not directly copied of Photoshop on the market in months.  Adobe competitors could knock this code up and with an investment of $100,000 have a product on the self for $200 and 90% of the functionality of Photoshop.  Adobe would be finished.

So where does this leave us?

In real terms, nothing more then simply crappy RIA (Rich Internet pplications) are likely to even materialise under HTML5.  Products that depend on the back end, such as google etc, are likely to be ok as the “investment” is in the back end and not the application itself.

Any REAL application will have to go the way of the “APP” as it is not called.  Ie the “Apps” sold for iPhone and iPad.

As a App developer, HTML5 greatly reduces any possibility of making  money from selling them.  If you cannot protect the code.  Why would you bother.

So, in the end, who benefits? (OR why do they push HTML5)

• Apple, who gets 30% cut of any App sold, and is one of the only platforms that you can put compiled, difficult to reverse engineer applications on.
• Google, who bases its apps on its back end infrastructure which no one else can compete with.

In effect, Apple and Googles adoption of HTML5 is a form of protectionism under the guise of “Look how cool we are supporting open standards”.

HTML5 is a great open standard, but it is not a App sustainable one.  For the small Application developer, HTML5, if the only plaform available, is “VERY BAD NEWS”.

We need more then 1 standard to rule them all.  Flash.Silverlight, Javan DOT.NET.  Apple and Google locking them out for said reasons is disingenuous.

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