Apple had recently filed a patent with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to bring Windows Media content and Flash to the iPhone. Top iPhone News shows a webpage with Flash and Windows Media support. Apple may never bring the technology to the iPhone, but the methodology exists should the firm bring this support.

Apple may treat Windows Media streaming content and Flash in the same way it treats QuickTime content on a webpage by showing a screenshot of the movie or a direct link to the streaming audio content. With QuickTime, when users click on the screenshot of the video, the video will be played in a standalone QuickTime player. This way, iPhone Safari won’t be bogged down with the resources required to stream directly on the webpage. The same method could apply to Flash and Windows Media files on a webpage. This is speculation as details are scant on Apple’s filing.

Apple and Adobe have been at odds on the support of Flash on the iPhone. Adobe wants to bring the standard to the platform, but Apple had previously contended that Flash is a resource hog on mobile devices and Mobile Flash isn’t powerful enough. Apple had circumvented the need for Flash with its YouTube application on the iPhone, requiring Google, parent company of YouTube, to convert the videos into a mobile format playable by the iPhone.