This is not the first time Microsoft has included advertisements within File Explorer. In 2017, Microsoft added a huge banner advertisement to the File Explorer in Windows 10 to promote subscription choices for its OneDrive cloud storage service. While the advertisements are easily discarded, they remain an annoyance in an operating system that has historically been ad-free.
Microsoft has been experimenting with advertisements inside Windows for the better part of a decade. It already displays advertisements on the Windows 10 lock screen and Start menu, and there have been numerous instances of obnoxious pop-up advertisements in the taskbar. Numerous built-in Windows 8 apps included advertisements.
Regrettably, Microsoft is not alone in promoting its own services through its operating system and applications. If you purchase a new iPhone, Apple bombards you with offers for Apple Music, Apple Fitness, and iCloud, and we’ve even seen full-screen commercials for Apple TV Plus if you own Apple’s TV hardware. Google will relentlessly bombard you with pop-up advertisements until you succumb and purchase a YouTube Premium subscription.
