Photo gallery: Adobe AIR launch is out of this world, eBay agrees

The AIR platform is designed to bridge the gap between the Internet and the desktop by combining web technology with desktop applications. According to Adobe, the benefits to web developers and businesses in general are extensive.

eBay, one of the early adopters of Adobe AIR, has been using the RIA to improve customer experience of its shopping website by expanding its services to include a desktop application.

Alan Lewis, product manager for eBay Desktop said: “Based on feedback from our customers, we have sought a desktop presence for a long time. Previously, our team agreed it was too expensive to build our own desktop application … then along came Adobe AIR.”

Lewis claimed that AIR allows eBay customers to better engage with the services on the website and features enhanced capabilities that standard web browsers do not have available.

“Our vision is to take eBay beyond a destination website and create an agnostic platform that extends to everyone anytime, anywhere,” he said.

Attendees of the event enjoyed a night of festivities and informative presentations about the features of Adobe AIR. Check out images from the night in the photo gallery.