Choosing your favorite music streaming service is a personal choice. Microsoft seems to want to take that away from you now – and installs Spotify on Windows 10 and 11 without being asked!
Streaming music is now part of everyday life for most people. The selection of corresponding services is large and everyone has their own individual preferences. Spotify is one of the most popular platforms worldwide. Microsoft also seems to have a soft spot for the provider. In fact, the company is apparently so convinced of the service that it almost forces Windows users to use it. At least that is what various complaints from angry users on the Internet suggest.
As the website windowslatest.com reports, a growing number of Windows users are reporting in forums and social networks that the Spotify app has suddenly appeared in the taskbar of their PC – even though they never installed it. Both Windows 10 and Windows 11 are affected by the phenomenon. As expected, the excitement about this unsolicited bonus is limited. Many report that they immediately uninstalled the app and gave the provider a bad rating. However, it is questionable whether Spotify is directly to blame for the forced installation.
Anyone else had Spotify mysteriously install itself onto Windows 10?
— Just Echo (@leiwakeyah) September 28, 2022
Only Microsoft can install apps Unsolicited
In fact, the company does not have the technical capabilities to install unsolicited software on other people’s computers. This is an option reserved exclusively for Microsoft as the provider of Windows. However, it remains unclear whether the Redmond company is behind the distribution of the Spotify app. The company has yet to comment on the matter.
It seems entirely conceivable that the company has struck a promotional deal with Spotify that includes installing the service on Windows by default. It wouldn’t be the first forced installation of third-party software that Windows users have had to live with. But since there hasn’t been a corresponding announcement so far, the process could just as well be an error.