Competitors are mad that Microsoft has hidden away the easy browser swap update in a patch that users have to manually download.
A little while, Microsoft came under fire from competitors after the company made it difficult to change the default browser from Edge. The company then announced it would make things easier… only to fall back into trouble after making the update optional.
Microsoft’s Mistake With Windows 11’s Browser Update
As you might expect, owners of competitor browsers aren’t happy that Microsoft has made the update optional. It means that, unless they were educated about the update beforehand, Windows 11 users would be blissfully unaware that they need to manually install the update to get better default browser controls.
The owner of Vivaldi, Jon von Tetzchner, had some stern words for Microsoft on The Register:
“It has always been our stance that Microsoft, and others like them, should make it easy for users to choose to use the products that suit them.
“This should apply to all users, not just the ones who are technically competent enough to realize that they need to install an optional update, and know how to actually do so. It should be installed for all users.
“While they have made an attempt, the fact that it has been done the way it has leads to the assumption that it is only being done to avoid being prosecuted for anticompetitive behavior, not to actually solve the underlying problem.”
Mozilla also stepped forward to say that, while it appreciates that Microsoft made a step in the right direction, it wants Microsoft to make it easier for people to change browsers without needing to install optional updates.
Microsoft In Hot Water
Microsoft really wants people to use Edge, but it has to be careful as to whose toes it treads on in the process. If it makes itself too anti-competitor, its rivals are bound to step up their own tactics to keep themselves relevant.
As The Register notes in the article above, Mozilla has already implemented its own one-click browser default option. And if Microsoft continues to refuse to play ball, it may find that rival developers will find their own ways to work around its restrictions in ways it may not like.
Microsoft May Lose Its Edge
As much as Microsoft really wants you to use Edge, its rivals believe that the tech giant is being too strict about letting their products on Windows 11. As for if Microsoft will back down or not, we’ll have to see.
