Microsofts Edge bullying is now infecting iPhones as well as Windows 11

Date:
Fri, 17 Feb 2023 11:30:14 +0000

Description:
Microsofts desperation to get people to use Edge risks alienating Windows and iPhone users.

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Windows 11 users have been putting up with Microsoft desperately trying to
get them to use the built-in Edge web browser for years now (stretching back into Windows 10), and it looks like its now the turn of iPhone users to get bugged.

As Windows Latest reports , iPhone users who have Microsofts Outlook email app installed will begin to see pop-ups trying to convince them to open links and attachments using Microsoft Edge, rather than Safari or any other default browser, such as Chrome.

If you dont have Edge installed, which is probably the case for most iPhone users, then youll be shown a page to download and install Microsofts browser.

You can choose to open links and documents using your default choice, though having to select your default choice kind of negates the point of making something default. You can also set it to remember your choice so you dont have to do it again. However, you do need to do it for every file type. Risky methods

While any iPhone owner who uses Outlook rather than the default email app may already be predisposed to using Microsoft apps over Apples own, there will be plenty of people who get turned off by Microsofts pestering.

Windows users may be used to Microsofts heavy-handed attempts to get people
to use its less popular services and products, such as Edge and Bing, but I cant imagine many iPhone users being impressed.

It could end up having the opposite effect to the one intended, with users deliberately avoiding using Edge and perhaps even uninstalling Outlook in response.

One of the fundamental problems with Microsofts attempts is that, rather than building a product that captures peoples imaginations and makes them want to use it, it instead uses its other more popular products as trojan horses to try to boost its less popular products.

That may sound harsh, but to be honest, Im a bit sick of being badgered by Microsoft to use Edge, despite clearly setting my preferred web browser as
the default in Windows 11 .

In the screenshot Windows Latest showed of the pop-up in Outlook, theres no explanation from Microsoft about why a user should use Edge over their
default choice. (Image credit: Windows Latest / Microsoft)

By spending more time selling Edges benefits to users (it is, after all, one of the best web browsers ), rather than trying to sneak it onto systems in other ways, Microsoft would have a much better chance of winning people over.

The hype surrounding Bings new AI-powered search saw organic interest and use in Bing grow with even the Bing app on iOS making a rare appearance at the top of the App Store downloads chart. This shows that when Microsoft demonstrates how its products are different, and even better, than its competitors, people will gladly try them out.

Forcing them on people, however, will not have the same effect, and I hope Microsoft learns this lesson soon.



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/news/microsofts-edge-bullying-is-now-infecting-iphon es-as-well-as-windows-11


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