Microsoft has announced that for Internet Explorer 9 (IE9), the company has a preference for HTML5 and the H.264 video codec. Flash plug-ins will continue to be supported, but IE9 will only have native support for H.264. This follows on the path blazed by Apple, which decided a while back not support Flash at all on the iPhone and iPod. The controversy has heated up with the release of the iPad, which continues the Apple strategy of no Flash support at all. With both Apple and Microsoft coming out against Flash, Flash is essentially dead, and Adobe has lost this battle. Some years ago, Adobe elected to "win" by buying up competitors and killing off their products rather than competing on price. As a result, professional graphics designers and Web designers have fewer pro-level tools to choose from and much higher prices. Adobe is now beginning to pay the price for its monopoly-style attempt to control the marketplace.