Microsoft appears to be preparing to add advertisements to even more of its products.
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| Windows 11 Ads in File Explorer |
According to what several Windows Insiders have noted, the File Explorer in Windows 11 appears to be infected with Microsoft's self-promotion.
Windows 11 Ads in File Explorer
A screenshot of the Windows 11 File Explorer containing an ad for Microsoft Editor was supplied by Twitter user Florian B, who is also a Windows Insider MVP.
The ad is said to be in the most recent build of the Windows Insider Dev channel, build 22572, which was released last week.
For what it's worth, the advertisement appears to demonstrate where it makes sense.
Microsoft Editor is a proofreading and grammatical correction application from the corporation, and it competes with Grammarly.
The ad appears when the user is in the Documents folder, as indicated in the image, so it's likely that it's only displayed when it makes sense.
Still, the fact that advertising is now being pushed into the File Explorer in the first place is the greater problem here.
This isn't totally surprising given Microsoft's history of promoting and occasionally putting its own goods on users, but it's also unwelcomed for many.
Another person mentioned a message encouraging them to look at PowerPoint templates on Office.com, so this isn't the only complaint out there.
Ads may be found all across Windows, and they come in a variety of shapes and sizes. You've undoubtedly seen the ad touting the Outlook smartphone app if you use the built-in Mail app to keep track of your email on your phone.
Many non-Microsoft programs are pinned to your Start menu when you clean install Windows; they're normally not installed, but they're just a click away.
Microsoft allegedly damaged Windows 11 at one time by attempting to introduce an ad for Teams.
Even Microsoft Office, which is a purchased piece of software in and of itself, promotes Microsoft's mobile apps.
Despite the fact that both Windows and Office are commercial software, Microsoft crams self-promotion into nearly every aspect of the experience.
That's not even taking into account some of the marketing efforts Microsoft has made to promote its Edge browser.
Microsoft Testing Ads in Windows Explorer
The advertising banner, according to Microsoft's Brandon LeBlanc, Senior Product Manager for Windows, was an internal experiment that wasn't supposed to be viewed by consumers. The whole statement is as follows:
“This was an experimental banner that was not intended to be published externally and was turned off.”
Even if it was intended to be an internal experiment, the fact that it's a function that's being considered in the first place may be enough to make some people uneasy.
We'll have to wait and watch whether these adverts reappearance in the near future.
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