Windows 11 is honestly getting out of hand with its craving for ads – remember the recent full-screen pop-up to convince users to install Edge or other Microsoft services? Then another ad was placed in the Start menu, and now Microsoft has finally worn out my mood – with a new Game Pass ad in the Settings app.
This will likely appear in the July update for Windows 11, or at least it’s almost certain that it will. It was present in the latest preview update that Microsoft just released for the operating system (and was quickly paused due to a bug, But that is an other story). It’s also worth noting that the ad was present in previous test builds of Windows 11.
You can call it a “recommendation” if you’re nice, but the veiled ad for Game Pass will appear for Windows 11 Home and Pro users who are actively playing games on their rig, like Windows Central reports.
Microsoft’s attempt to further monetize the operating system appears to be through smaller, less flashy “recommendations” or suggestions like this one. These are becoming more and more common and I fear that they will become even more frequent and annoying in the future.
It’s going too far…
In my opinion, things have already gone too far. The attempt to blur the line between a recommendation and an advertisement makes the whole thing feel rather unfair. Yes, you could argue that Microsoft (at this point) only recommends its own products that can make life easier or more interesting for Windows 11 users, but who’s to say this will always be the case? Once some sort of broad acceptance has emerged among Windows users, there is a fear that Microsoft will push boundaries in the future.
I think of third-party app advertising, which has already crept into some corners of Windows 11. Will it inevitably become more common? And could Microsoft’s adoption of it even prompt similar moves from rivals? Could I turn on my Chromebook in a few months (well, years) and be bombarded with ads for things I don’t want or care about?
Another thing that bothers me is that it’s not like these ads appear in some obscure corner of Windows 11. Think about how often you open the Settings app and consider how aggressive this level of advertising really is in the grand scheme of things. Do you get hit with a full-screen ad when you finally try to open File Explorer?
The problem is that you’re not renting your PC: you own the PC, or maybe it’s a work device, but either way, you, your company, or your boss have already paid for Windows. Considering that implementing inescapable ads reduces your ownership experience, just like how you have to watch ads on YouTube to watch free content. Only Windows 11 isn’t free – and if I have to navigate a maze of ads to change my wallpaper or check for an update, I’m not going to be happy about it.
Microsoft might want to keep a closer eye on how it behaves here, and keep these types of ads to a minimum if it doesn’t want to antagonize the Windows 11 user base — though I have my doubts the company will.