Ads on Windows 11! Folders on your Windows PC could show advertisements in future

Windows 11 could be showing ads in the future within the File Explorer. Microsoft says it was mistakenly pushed out to some users.

Windows 11 could serve ads in File Explorer in the future. (Amritanshu Mukherjee / HT Tech)

Windows 11 has incorporated some radical changes to its core Windows user experience. And now, it might be working on another big one that most of you may not like. The annoyance may come in the from of ads in Windows 11! Yes, some users in the Windows Insider Program have observed adverts in the File Explorer. Once it caught attention online, Microsoft said that it accidentally pushed out those ads and was later turned off.

“This was an experimental banner that was not intended to be published externally and was turned off,” says Brandon LeBlanc, senior program manager for Windows, in a statement to The Verge. While Microsoft does not reveal any plan for serving ads inside Windows in the future, it now seems like a possibility, since we now know that the company can turn it on or off at will.

Ads in Windows 11 a possibility

But this is not the first instance of Microsoft serving ads inside Windows. On Windows 10 PCs, one can see ads placed on the lock screen. The Start menu also kept showing ads. The Widgets pane in Windows 11 is also not alien to concept of advertisements.

For most Windows users, Windows 10 came across as free upgrade and some of them even could upgrade to Windows 11 for free. And with all free operating systems, ads become an easy way to bring in more revenue. We have seen certain smartphone brands doing the same on their smartphones. Xiaomi was the first one to start it with its MIUI interface, while Samsung, Oppo, and Realme followed.

Even Apple and Google do the same for their services on their products. Simply recall all the times when you see the prompts of buying an Apple Music subscription, or iCloud storage on your iPhone's Settings app. Google does the same with its YouTube app.

What remains to be seen is how Microsoft implements its ad serving in Windows 11 File Explorer. The File Explorer has so far remained ad-free and has been focused on productivity.