Internet Explorer Is Shutting Down After Almost 30 Years Today

It's the end of an era for internet browsing. After 27 years, Microsoft is officially retiring its historic browser, Internet Explorer. Beginning on Wednesday, June 15, most users who attempt to open Internet Explorer will be directed to the company's more recent browser Microsoft Edge, The Wall Street Journal confirmed, with Microsoft set to begin the process of completely disabling the software completely in the coming months.

Internet Explorer's Wednesday retirement doesn't come as much of a surprise. Microsoft first announced in a May 2021 blog post that it would move away from the software in summer 2022, announcing, "we are at the next stage of that journey: we are announcing that the future of Internet Explorer on Windows 10 is in Microsoft Edge." Per the company, Microsoft Edge is "faster, more secure," and offers a "more modern browsing experience than Internet Explorer." Edge "is also able to address a key concern: compatibility for older, legacy websites and applications."

"With Microsoft Edge, we provide a path to the web's future while still respecting the web's past. Change was necessary, but we didn't want to leave reliable, still-functioning websites and applications behind," the company continued. "We're here to help you transition to the more comprehensive browsing experience of Microsoft Edge and tell you a bit more about why we think it will address your needs, both at home and at work."

The blog post went on to announce the June 15 retirement date, saying the platform would "go out of support" for certain versions of Windows 10. The company said they "can't thank everyone enough for supporting Internet Explorer over the years. Many people and organizations around the world have depended on IE to support them as they've learned, grown and conducted business online."

First launched in 1995, Internet Explorer was Microsoft's attempt to challenge the then-dominant Netscape Navigator. Explorer quickly became one of the most popular ways of accessing the internet. However, as more browsers, including Mozilla's Firefox and Google's Chrome, entered the field, Internet Explorer's popularity began to falter, with users complaining that the browser was slow, prone to crashing, and vulnerable to hacks. Per The Wall Street Journal, as of this month, .28% of people surfing the web were still using Internet Explorer compared to two-thirds of people using Chrome and 18% using Apple's Safari.