Microsoft has confirmed on record what was always obvious. It uses Windows 11 and other Windows products to fuel its cloud business, but also to grow Microsoft Edge, Bing, Copilot, Teams, Microsoft 365 Consumer, Xbox Game Pass, and other services.
The Browser Choice Alliance, a browser group backed by Google and Opera, is not happy with the fact that Microsoft leverages Windows to push Edge and other products.
In a statement to Windows Latest, the Browser Choice Alliance called out Microsoft for restricting user choice and pushing users towards its own products, such as Microsoft Edge and Bing.
“In its most recent annual filing, Microsoft confirmed to investors what we’ve been saying for years: that it leverages its breadth in the operating system market to steer Windows users onto Edge and other Microsoft products,” the Browser Choice Alliance told Windows Latest in a statement.
Browser Choice Alliance members include Google Chrome, Opera, and Vivaldi, and it is one of the largest alliances set up against Microsoft.
“When Microsoft uses its Windows ecosystem to push users toward its own browser, it restricts user choice, undermines web freedom, and unfairly tilts the playing field in its favor and away from fair competition and innovation,” the alliance told me in a statement.
Microsoft files an annual report with the SEC every year, and this year, we spotted that it clearly noted how it leverages Windows to promote its own products.
“Leveraging Windows to fuel our cloud business, grow our share of the PC market, and drive increased engagement with our services like Microsoft Edge, Bing, Copilot, Microsoft Teams, Microsoft 365 Consumer, XBOX Game Pass, and more,” the company noted in its SEC filing, and it should surprise practically nobody.
Microsoft has always used Windows to promote its own products, just as Apple uses iOS and macOS to push iCloud or Safari, and Google uses its search engine and Android to harvest data for its advertising business.
When we’re looking at these tech giants, you won’t find a saint, but somehow Microsoft seems to get all the negative PR. I think it’s largely due to Windows’ sinking reputation, which has now begun to hurt the rest of the company. It’s also why we’re seeing Microsoft focus on the operating system.
Windows was abused to push ads for Bing
Windows is in a much better state than it was under its previous boss, Mikhail Parakhin, who also used to oversee Bing.
An anonymous employee who claims to have worked in Mikhail’s organization at Microsoft alleged that he was responsible for adding ads and MSN-related features to Windows 11 as part of his strategy to increase revenue.
We’ve seen similar ideas under previous leaders, but Mikhail pushed the limits, which is why we were seeing full-fledged Bing pop-ups while using Chrome.
“He got promoted twice in the last two years due to this crapware actually generating money for the Ads group,” the alleged Microsoft employee wrote in a forum post.
“I know everybody is in love with Microsoft these days because of OpenAI, but the dark side of Microsoft is still there.”
Fast forward to 2026, Microsoft has changed a lot, and Satya Nadella has confirmed that the company cares about Windows more than ever. He said the focus is on getting the quality right and improving the fundamentals.
When Nadella says fundamentals, he is referring to memory footprint, design consistency, and fewer bugs.
Microsoft has confirmed that it’ll remove ads from Windows 11’s setup experience, and we’re already seeing some of the changes, such as no Bing or ads in Windows Search and a cleaner Widgets board. However, concerns about Microsoft pushing Edge and Bing remain, and it’s unclear whether those issues will be addressed in the near future.
