Microsoft has implemented changes to the way setting a default browser works in Windows 11. They are making it more difficult for users to move away from the default Microsoft Edge browser. Is this an anticompetitive move?
This article discusses what I discovered while testing the changes in Windows 11. Which lead me to believe the changes are anti-competitive.
Brief history of browser switching
Microsoft Windows has come with a browser for as long as I can remember. Firstly, Internet Explorer and, more recently, Edge. These Microsoft browsers are the default browser in a clean installation of Microsoft Windows.
As part of a case settlement with the European, Commission Microsoft agreed to add a screen to Windows for EU citizens by March 2010. This screen allowed the user to change their default browser with ease. You can read more from this press release from the European Commission.
Windows 11 browser switching
A couple of weeks ago, I read an interesting article published on the Verge website stating that Microsoft had changed how browser switching now worked in Windows 11. Firefox had developed a workaround, and other browser developers were, of course, unhappy. I decided to investigate further and publish my findings and thoughts, which you are now reading.
Using the Windows 11 I have installed on a virtual machine, I downloaded and installed both Firefox and Google Chrome on the Virtual machine.
When I tried to make Chrome my default browser, it took me to the specific settings screen to change the default application.
When I set Firefox as my default browser, Firefox could be the default browser for HTM and HTML documents. However, I did find that when I relaunched Firefox, it displayed the prompt to make it the default browser. As you can see, some of the file types are still defaulting to Edge browsers. Does Microsoft expect non-technical Windows users to change browsers by file types or protocols?
Conclusion
While it is still possible to change the default browser in Windows 11, you will need to have some technical understanding of file formats. Making it more challenging to switch browsers does seem to be a move by Microsoft to reduce the choice of Windows users. To see how significant a change Microsoft has made, compare the Windows 11 process to our guide in changing applications in Windows 10.
I will publish a guide on how to do this once Windows 11 has been released.
What do you think is Microsoft abusing their monopoly position with Windows?