Windows 11 currently displays commercials on the lock screen and in the Start Menu, but Microsoft looks to be becoming more aggressive, since it has begun testing Office 365 subscription advertisements in the native File Explorer. According to several Windows Insiders, the File Explorer in Windows 11 appears to have been infected by Microsoft's self-promotion this time.
Florian B, a Windows Insider MVP on Twitter, published a screenshot of the Windows 11 File Explorer with an ad for Microsoft Editor. The ad is said to be on the most recent build in the Windows Insider Dev channel, build 22572, which was issued last week.
Some people will go mad if Microsoft starts adding ads in explorer. pic.twitter.com/rusnyrYyX2
— Florian (@flobo09) March 12, 2022
For what it's worth, the ad appears to be presented where it makes sense. Microsoft Editor is the company's proofreading and grammatical correction application, and it competes with Grammarly. The ad appears when the user is in the Documents folder, as indicated in the image, so it's likely that it's only displayed when it makes sense.
The main problem here, though, is that advertising are being pushed into the File Explorer in the first place. The addition of advertisements to File Explorer is not a new phenomenon. In 2017, Microsoft experimented with File Explorer OneDrive advertising, which were highly condemned by Microsoft watchers and were eventually dropped by the firm. Microsoft appears to be doing another A/B test with a new banner at the top of Explorer.
Microsoft is no stranger to promoting and even putting its own goods on consumers, so this isn't wholly shocking, but it's also unwelcome for many people. This isn't the only allegation out there, as another user mentioned a message encouraging them to see PowerPoint templates on Office.com.