Forced by the EU, Microsoft will allow you to uninstall Edge and Bing on Windows

Windows will soon gain in personalization thanks to the European Union. Indeed, Microsoft’s star OS will make profound changes to comply with the constraints of Brussels.

Have you ever dreamed of being able to uninstall Microsoft Edge, Bing or Cortana on your Windows machine? If so, the European Commission has good news for you. Following the adoption of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), Microsoft will indeed offer Windows users greater possibilities for customizing their machines. From uninstalling some native apps to changing some system settings, the experience within Windows will soon change.

Windows opens up to competition

Labeled by Brussels as a “ access controller » to the digital market, Windows will therefore have to respect European law and open up more widely to competition. This will therefore involve decoupling in-house applications and the operating system.

Concretely, as explained in a Microsoft blog post posted on November 16, 2023, it will soon be possible to uninstall:

• Cortana, the Windows digital assistant
• The “Camera” application
• Microsoft Edge browser
• The “Gallery” app
• Bing integration within the system search bar

Beyond offering the uninstallation of native applications (as the DMA requires), Microsoft will also more clearly label the applications and features integrated into the system and those that can be replaced or uninstalled. A small “system” label will be displayed under the apps necessary for the operation of the OS.

Like a taste of déjà vu

The Bing search field integrated into the “Start” menu could also be replaced by Google, DuckDuckGo, Qwant or others, if companies take the trouble to develop a dedicated widget for Windows. Changing which application opens, by default, which file type (for example which browser is responsible for opening web links) will also be easier.

These changes will, a priori, be limited to versions of Windows deployed within the European Union. Machines outside the old continent will continue to operate as before. These new features will not arrive immediately within the OS. Microsoft is testing the operation of this new system on versionsRelease Previewof its system and will subsequently deploy all of this to the general public, with the assurance that all of this will be available no later than March 6, 2024, the date of entry into force of the DMA.

Older Internet users will undoubtedly remember that Windows had already been there 15 years ago with the “nerd screen» which allowed you to choose your default browser when you first configured Windows. Microsoft got rid of this system in 2014, once the legal obligation disappeared, but it seems that Brussels is still keeping an eye on things.

Source : Microsoft