Microsoft shall no longer support Internet Explorer, the once-dominant browser that crowds of web users loved to hate – and a few still claim to like.
Its demise wasn’t really a surprise. Last year, Microsoft announced they will put an end to Internet Explorer on June 15, 2022, encouraging users to its Edge browser, which was launched back in 2015.
The Internet Explorer was created by Microsoft to come pre-installed with every computer running their Operating System. Since the web browser comes free with every Windows OS, it created a huge burden for the competition who sell their web browsers. This controversial move by the software giant not only put itself in the hot seat with series of antitrust cases filed against them, but the U.S. government also came to intervene to disrupt Microsoft’s dominance.
Throughout its existence, the Internet Explorer has been slow, buggy, and unpopular. In fact, most people simply use the Internet Explorer to download their preferred browser. That is usually the only time many open the prebuilt browser.
Fast forward to today, 27 years after its launch, Microsoft has chosen to discontinue the Internet Explorer, putting the final nail in the web browser’s coffin. The decision to retire the internet browser was not a tough decision to make as the IE was highly unpopular. In addition, Microsoft now has a newer and better internet browser – in the form of Edge, which is not only faster and more secure, but it also provides a better more modern browsing experience.
General manager of Microsoft Edge Enterprise wrote, “Not only is Microsoft Edge a faster, more secure and more modern browsing experience than Internet Explorer, but it is also able to address a key concern: compatibility for older, legacy websites and applications.”
After being discontinued, support and download access will be removed from Microsoft’s website. Not that it will be missed. Nevertheless, the name Internet Explorer will resound in infamy. Love it or hate it, we should all be thankful to Microsoft for creating the Internet Explorer. After all, their fiendish decision to give away the app for free helped pave the way for us and have access to other internet browsers free of charge. If not for them, buying your web browser will still be the norm.
Today, Chrome sits on top of the list for the most popular web browsers, at about 65%. It is followed by Apple’s Safari with 19%, according to internet analytics company StatCounter. Meanwhile, Microsoft Edge lags with about 4%, just ahead of Firefox.