Think Apple Computers and Adobe Systems are two peas in a pod? They’ve certainly made billions of dollars from one another, so it’s easy to assume all is well in Silicon Valley between the two behemoths. Leave it to Steve Jobs, though, to pull the pin on a stink bomb and throw it in Adobe’s general direction.

Adobe Systems Inc.’s popular media player for cellphones simply isn’t good enough for Apple Inc.’s iPhone, Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs said Tuesday in the most substantive comments to date about why the iPhone can’t now be used to view a large percentage of videos on the Internet.

As Jobs put it Tuesday, Apple’s iPhone, with all its cutting-edge mobile Internet trickery, needs something much better than the current Flash player that Adobe makes for cellphones. The Flash Player option that fits the bill is made for devices like laptops that are larger than the iPhone; as a consequence, it performs too slowly on the iPhone, he said.

“There’s this missing product in the middle,” Jobs said.

An Adobe spokesman didn’t respond to a message seeking comment.

Steve Jobs sure knows how to win friends and influence people. Most people see him personally as a class “A” jerk, but marvel at his ability to create the most innovative products. Still, Steve knows how to get people motivated, and this public speech directed at Adobe might just be what it takes to create the software he desperately needs for the iPhone, and future Apple mobile computing products.

Technorati Tags:
Apple, iPhone, Steve Jobs, Adobe, Flash Player