Khaberni - Recent tech reports revealed that Microsoft has launched a new update for the Windows system aimed at reducing the possibility of users downloading Google Chrome, and instead encourages them to use the company’s Edge browser.
This move reflects the ongoing long-term struggle between the software giants in the browser market, amid mixed reactions from users and experts.
What has changed?
According to the reports, the update includes changes in the Chrome download experience on Windows devices, where users now see warning messages or pop-ups during an attempt to download the browser from the official site or other sources through the system.
Through these notifications, Microsoft attempts to affirm that Edge is the recommended default browser on Windows, and that it offers security and a seamless experience on the computer.
This step is part of ongoing efforts from Microsoft to boost Edge's market share in the web browser market, which has been dominated by Google Chrome for many years with a market share exceeding 65% on computers, while Edge only has a 12% usage rate.
Widespread criticism
The update incorporates alerts or messages within the Windows system itself when users try to download Chrome, instead of allowing them to continue the download without intervention.
These messages might appear when clicking a Chrome download link, or upon reaching the download page, with suggestions and encouraging phrases to switch to Edge instead.
For regular users, these changes might appear as additional dialog boxes or messages in the Windows interface, urging them to think twice before downloading Chrome.
However, it does not appear that Microsoft has completely blocked the download, but rather made the process less seamless and strongly encourages the use of Edge instead.
These measures have sparked widespread criticism from the technology community, where some see it as going beyond the bounds of healthy competition and entering into controlling user experience.
Critics point out that using operating system messages to stop the downloading of a specific browser might raise legal and regulatory concerns, especially under antitrust laws enforced by regulatory bodies in the United States and Europe.
