INQUISITR.COM / Science & Tech

Apple Tells Silverlight to Step Away From the iPhone

By JR
Published on: 00:07 PST, Oct 14, 2008

Microsoft’s new Silverlight 2.0, announced yesterday and available for the first time today, won’t be hitting the iPhone any time soon. The company tells Wired’s WebMonkey it has talked with Apple, but says:

“At the end of the day, Apple ultimately controls what software runs on the iPhone. To date, what they’ve said is that at this time, they’re not looking to enable browser plug-ins like Silverlight or Flash to run on top of it.”

The spokesperson goes on to say that the company would gladly offer up an iPhone-friendly version if Apple changed its mind, but as long as the third-party gate remains closed, it will remain locked out.

The upcoming G1 Android phone, in contrast, will likely see Silverlight before long. The reason? Its open source nature makes it easy for third-party utilities to come in. Microsoft’s rep said the company will “definitely keep [its] eyes out” as far as that possibility goes.