Microsoft caters to new EU rules and adjusts users in Win11,EEA area to uninstall Edge and disable Bing

Thanks to CTOnews.com netizen EdgeOS for the clue delivery! CTOnews.com, November 17, Microsoft issued a press release today, saying that in order to meet the relevant provisions of the Digital Market Law, the Win11 system has been adjusted for users in the European Economic area (EEA). Users can uninstall Edge, Bing and other pre-installed applications, and can disable recommendation and advertising content.

Windows Search pages with Bing Search disabled

Microsoft said that the biggest change in this adjustment is to allow users to uninstall Edge browsers and remove Bing Search from the Windows Search panel, leaving only a small number of pre-installed applications such as file manager and Phone Link.

Microsoft also said it would push Win11 updates to EEA regions, allowing users to disable Microsoft News and ad streams in Widgets Board.

CTOnews.com Note: Microsoft made it clear in its blog post that these adjustments are limited to Win11 devices in the EEA region at this stage, and it is not clear whether they will be extended to other countries and regions.

EEA (European Economic area) includes the following countries:

Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. There are 30 countries in the EEA region.