Microsoft Teams will soon drop support for Internet Explorer (IE) 11, which means web browser users will no longer be able to join video conferencing sessions or access chat features. As part of the timeout process that will mark the end of Internet Explorer's 25-year history, several Microsoft applications will begin phasing out support. The process is designed to facilitate a smooth transition out of IE and encourage users to migrate to the company's new flagship Edge. According to a Microsoft blog post, the Teams collaboration suite will be the first to ditch the outdated browser on December 1. By August 17, 2021, all remaining Microsoft 365 apps and services will have followed suit. After the end of support date expires, users of Microsoft 365 Apps will experience a "degraded experience" or be unable to connect to the service through Internet Explorer, Microsoft confirmed.
Microsoft Teams in Internet Explorer
You may think that this change will only affect a small minority, since very few people still use Internet Explorer to access the Internet and web applications, but you would only be partially correct. According to Statcounter data, Internet Explorer is the browser of choice for just 1.05% of web users, up from 95% at its peak. However, since estimates suggest that there are more than 7 billion Internet-connected devices in circulation worldwide, this small percentage still represents millions of users. The decision to remove the cult browser (despite its inexplicable fidelity) can be seen as an admission of its growing irrelevance in modern contexts, as well as an attempt to preserve the quality of experience for users of other apps and services. the company. “Customers have been using IE 11 since 2013, when the online environment was much less sophisticated than it is today. Since then, open web standards and newer browsers, like the new Microsoft Edge, have enabled better and more innovative online experiences,” Microsoft said. "We believe that Microsoft 365 subscribers, in both consumer and business contexts, will be well served by this change with faster, more responsive web access to larger sets of features in everyday tools like Outlook." . , Teams, Sharepoint, and more.” The easiest solution for users who are having trouble dropping support is to download the Teams desktop client, available for Windows, macOS, Linux, and more. Alternatively, the web client remains operational via of the most common browsers.