7th May - Sony Ericsson announced plans to release a new technology that, for the first time, bridges the Abobe Flash Lite and Java ME development platforms. The new technology and tools, referred to as Project Capuchin, make it possible to combine the richness of Flash Lite and Java ME technologies allowing developers to utilize the best attributes of both software stacks to create content-rich mobile applications. Sony Ericsson has plans to make the technology available during the second half of 2008 and will demonstrate Project Capuchin enabled applications at the JavaOne Developer Event in San Francisco, May 6 – 9, booth 718 in the Pavilion.

“Sony Ericsson is excited to introduce our new bridging technology to the global developer community as it further strengthens our relationship with this community and underscores our ongoing commitment to support an open, healthy and thriving mobile ecosystem,” said Rikko Sakaguchi, SVP and Head of Portfolio and Proposition at Sony Ericsson. “We are dedicated to exploring opportunities that enable us to provide innovative and energized user experiences. To achieve this, we work with world class partners and technologies, on both platform and product development.”

Project Capuchin will provide developers with an intuitive tool to create applications with a cleaner user interface (UI) without sacrificing the strong, feature rich and widely deployed Java ME infrastructure, including secure, well-developed content distribution. Project Capuchin’s bridging software will empower two distinct developer communities to leverage their respective expertises to create the next generation of highly engaging and immersive mobile content.

“Adobe is pleased to support Sony Ericsson’s Project Capuchin. Using Adobe Flash technology as one part of this new bridging technology will ensure further innovation for mobile users when Flash developers gain access to the Java applications’ functionality and intelligence allowing them to create applications with the ultimate user experience,” said Gary Kovacs, general manager and vice president for Mobile and Devices at Adobe. “It is encouraging to see Sony Ericsson’s intention in making the technology available to the wider community.”

Project Capuchin will allow pure Flash Lite content to be encapsulated in Java ME applications with the help of Sony Ericsson Developer World tools, making content created by Adobe Flash technology appear as Java ME applications.

More advanced capabilities will allow Flash Lite technology to handle an entire presentation layer and make it possible to create Java ME applications where some or all UI components are defined in Flash.