Adobe Flash Player will phase out in 2020.

Adobe will end the life of its Flash Player by the end of 2020. At that time will stop updating and distributing the software.

Adobe said in a blog that "open standards like HTML5, WebGL and WebAssembly have matured over the past several years" and have replicated most features that were in Flash. Adobe noted that Flash and Shockwave were created because the web lacked interactive formats.

Adobe said it will work with tech partners to encourage content creators to migrate to open formats.

Industries like gaming, education and video will be most affected. Enterprises that also still have Flash content will have to start migrating soon. 

Google started phasing out Adobe Flash Player a year ago in Chrome 53 in favor of HTML5.

Microsoft said it will continue to ask permission to run Flash into 2018 and require permission for each session. Internet Explorer will allow Flash for all sites in 2018 and disable it in mid to late 2019. Mozilla said Flash will be disabled in 2019 and users will choose what sites can run Flash in 2018.

Facebook also outlined migration plans for its game developers.

So now the Flash player will end of life Dec 31st, 2020, quickly followed by Microsoft Silverlight Support in October, 2021. If your firm still has Flash content or enterprise applications that use Flex, make no mistake - the clock is ticking.

Former Apple CEO Steve Jobs famously declared Flash obsolete in 2010. 

ZDNET