Microsoft's Windows Updates in Europe Enable Greater User Control and Choice

In a landmark shift spurred by Europe’s stringent regulatory landscape, Microsoft has begun rolling out a series of significant updates to Windows 10, Windows 11, and an array of native apps. This evolving update cycle reflects not only Microsoft’s “ongoing commitment to compliance” but also demonstrates how global tech giants adapt under mounting pressure from the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA). For everyday Windows users, the implications are far-reaching, promising more meaningful choice, transparency, and even the option to uninstall preinstalled software once considered immovable.

The European Union’s Digital Markets Act: Setting a New Benchmark​

To appreciate the magnitude of these changes, understanding the DMA is vital. The EU’s Digital Markets Act—a sweeping regulatory framework—targets so-called “gatekeepers”: major digital platforms whose market dominance risks stifling competition and consumer choice. Among other mandates, the DMA enforces interoperability, prohibits unfair self-preferencing, and, crucially, seeks to give users control over core platform functions such as default apps and service uninstallability.
Although the DMA is focused on the 27 EU member states and the wider European Economic Area (EEA), its ripple effects extend globally, as seen in Microsoft’s approach. The updates now rolling out to European devices—beginning with Windows Insider builds and scheduled for general availability across the continent—are a testament to how regulation can rapidly reshape long-standing technology paradigms.

Redefining Default Browser Controls: Empowering End Users​

Central to this compliance push is a noteworthy revision to how Windows governs default browser file associations. Historically, a user’s default browser on Windows managed only a handful of file types and link protocols—principally http, https, .htm, and .html. For years, alternative browsers and privacy advocates criticized these restrictions for limiting user autonomy and subtly reinforcing Microsoft Edge’s centrality within the ecosystem.
With the new updates, Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.4151 dramatically expands this scope. Users selecting a new default browser can now expect it to handle a broader array of protocols and file types, including:

• Links: ftp, read
• Files: .mht, .mhtml, .shtml, .svg, .xht, .xhtml, and .xml

Notably, the installer now prompts users to pin their chosen browser to the Taskbar as soon as it becomes the default, though opting out remains possible. There’s also an innovative addition: you can designate a preferred browser for opening PDFs—something previously controlled by Edge, regardless of a user’s default choice.
This update not only brings Windows into clearer alignment with the DMA but sets a new standard for desktop OS user empowerment. Mozilla, makers of Firefox, and other browser vendors have long called for precisely these kinds of changes, arguing they lower switching costs and challenge entrenched defaults.

Windows Search: Democratising Web Search Engines​

Previously, searching the web from Windows Search tended to funnel users toward results powered by Microsoft’s own Bing, often through the Edge browser. This practice—termed “search engine bundling”—has drawn regulatory scrutiny worldwide, including considerable focus from the European Commission.
The DMA-mandated update alters this paradigm. Windows Search in the EEA now allows web results to come not just from Bing, but also from other search engines of the user’s choosing—simultaneously. This parallel search feature mirrors similar antitrust recovery measures imposed on Google’s Android platform, where a “choice screen” mechanism was introduced for selecting default search providers at setup.
Adding further transparency and personalization, Windows users can now sort search results according to their preferred engines. This functionality—earmarked as a work-in-progress in recent Insider builds—represents a clear break from historic Microsoft strategies, where results were frequently optimized for Edge and Bing, raising interoperability barriers for competitors.
For context, Google, Apple, and Meta have also faced regulatory mandates to unbundle or open up search capabilities within their respective platforms, illustrating how DMA-style changes are influencing global tech platform design.

The Option to Uninstall Microsoft Store: A New Era of Choice​

Perhaps one of the more radical outcomes of the DMA compliance wave is the ability for EEA Windows users to uninstall the Microsoft Store. For years, the Store has sat at the heart of Microsoft’s app distribution strategy, deeply integrated into the OS with no supported method of removal. Critics argued this privileged placement potentially disadvantaged third-party app repositories and alternative distribution channels.
With the new update:

• Users can freely uninstall the Microsoft Store.
• Any Microsoft apps previously downloaded will continue to receive updates, even without the Store installed.
• Should you wish to restore the Store, reinstallation remains possible and straightforward.

This change, while specific to the EEA for now, could set a compelling precedent. It acknowledges that the Microsoft Store—while important for security and discoverability—should not be an unavoidable aspect of the Windows experience, especially for tech-savvy users and those managing highly specialized IT environments.

App-Level Tweaks: Bing, Edge, and the Start Menu​

In line with the goal of treating all browsers even-handedly and promoting user agency, Microsoft has initiated several smaller, yet non-trivial, tweaks to its suite of built-in apps:

• Microsoft Bing: Now opens web-based content—such as search results or web links—using the browser chosen as the system default, rather than defaulting to Edge.
• Microsoft Edge: Will no longer nudge users to set it as the default browser upon launch. Edge can now also be removed without other Microsoft apps prompting for its reinstallation.
• Start Experiences App: This component, which governs web content and widgets within the Start menu, now also respects the user’s default browser choice.

While these changes may seem evolutionary, they collectively dismantle some of the more frustrating, vendor-locked behaviors that have dogged the Windows ecosystem for years. In particular, the detachment of Bing from Edge represents a significant philosophical pivot, underlining Microsoft’s willingness to comply with both the spirit and the letter of DMA regulations.

Rolling Out: What to Expect as a Windows User in Europe​

Microsoft has clarified that these changes are being released in phases. Early access is available through Windows Insider builds—a testing ground for features bound for mass deployment. Broad, retail-level availability across European devices is expected throughout the remainder of the year, with precise timelines contingent on feedback and further regulatory guidance.

How to Check for DMA-Related Updates​

For those eager to see whether their device already reflects these new freedoms, here are concrete steps:

• Update Windows:
  Go to Settings → Update & Security → Windows Update, then click “Check for updates.” Insider builds may offer early access, but mainstream users might have to wait several more months.
• Test Default Browser Settings:
  Navigate to Settings → Apps → Default apps. Change your default web browser and note the enhanced range of file types and protocols linked to your selection.
• Attempt to Uninstall Microsoft Store:
  Settings → Apps → Installed apps → Search for “Microsoft Store.” If removable, you’ll see the uninstall option.

Remember, these features are strictly for users within the EEA. Users elsewhere will continue with the existing Windows experience until or unless local laws prompt Microsoft to generalize these changes.

Critical Analysis: Strengths and Remaining Risks​

Strengths and Opportunities​

• Enhanced User Choice: Windows users—especially in Europe—gain control over critical aspects of their desktops, ending the era of forced defaults and hard-to-remove apps.
• Greater Interoperability: Other software vendors, particularly browser and search engine makers, now face lower barriers to compete head-on with Microsoft’s preinstalled solutions.
• Regulatory Alignment: By anticipating and exceeding compliance obligations, Microsoft may avoid more stringent regulatory actions (such as the multi-billion-euro fines levied against other Big Tech gatekeepers).
• Precedent Setting: The changes could set new standards for operating system openness globally, pushing other platform providers to follow suit.

Ongoing Risks and Trade-offs​

• Regional Fragmentation: Non-EEA users remain subject to legacy behaviors, potentially fostering inconsistencies in the global Windows ecosystem. There’s a risk that features devolve into “check-box compliance”—available only where absolutely required.
• Security and Support Challenges: Uninstalling core components like the Microsoft Store could increase the risk for end-users, particularly around safe app sourcing and updates—even if Microsoft continues patching pre-existing apps. Power users gain freedom, but less sophisticated consumers might unwittingly weaken their own device security.
• Potential for Vendor Lock-In Elsewhere: While the EEA enforces user choice, there is no firewall preventing non-EU markets from seeing new forms of “soft bundling” or nudges unless local regulations catch up.
• Implementation Complexity: Managing an operating system that behaves differently based on geography adds testing, support, and documentation burdens for Microsoft, partners, and IT admins.

Market Reaction and Independent Verification​

Initial community reports and blog posts from the Windows Insider Team confirm these updates’ fundamental features. Cross-referencing coverage from outlets like TechRepublic with the official Windows Insider blog, as well as browser vendor commentary (notably Mozilla and Opera), substantiates key claims:

• The expanded list of browser file association protocols is verified in multiple sources, including Microsoft’s own documentation and independent reporting.
• The new uninstallability of the Microsoft Store for EEA devices is confirmed in public Insider build release notes and corroborated by third-party tech journalists.
• Functional changes to Bing, Edge, and Start Experiences have appeared in changelogs across various Insider preview releases, with favorable early feedback for increased consistency and respect for user choice.

However, some details—such as the simultaneity of multi-engine search results or the scope of default PDF handling—remain in active preview; final rollout features may vary slightly from initial tests.

Looking Forward: Will Global Windows Change, or Just Europe?​

Microsoft’s compliance-focused updates mark a pivotal inflection point—not just for European users, but also for the evolution of Windows as a platform. By being among the first to broadly operationalize DMA requirements, Microsoft places itself at the vanguard of what may soon be global best practice for desktop user freedom.
For now, these new powers are largely limited to Europe. But history demonstrates that big tech companies—once forced to “open up” in one region—often extend those freedoms to the rest of the world, if only in the face of possible future legislation or if market desire demands it.
Windows, once notorious for its closed defaults and resistance to deep user customization, is suddenly the most customizable it’s been in years—at least for Europeans. For the rest of us, the future likely hinges on how fast other governments move, and whether Microsoft’s experiment with transparency and choice proves popular enough to export worldwide.
As always, the ultimate test will be how these updates are received in practice. Will users embrace their newfound freedoms, or will the unintuitive prospect of uninstalling foundational apps confuse more than it empowers? Only time—and the world’s regulators—will tell.
In the end, Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to DMA compliance is about more than just avoiding penalties or appeasing Eurocrats; it’s an acknowledgment that real user choice is now a central expectation for modern operating systems. Whether these changes represent the first step in a worldwide unbundling, or merely a siloed regional experiment, Windows users everywhere should prepare for a landscape where choice—and the control to shape your own desktop experience—is making a comeback.

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Source: TechRepublic Microsoft Starts Rolling Out DMA Updates in 'Ongoing Commitment to Compliance' | TechRepublic