Users of Microsoft's Edge who attempt to download an alternative browser are reportedly being met with a popup poll temporarily distracting them from proceeding to load a competing browser. According to Neowin, the options in the poll include specific reasons that a user would be switching browsers, such as difficulty searching on Google, inaccessibility to Google documents, missing favorites or passwords, too many ads and pop-ups, dislike for the news feed, slow performance, website compatibility issues with Edge, and more.

This move by Microsoft has raised questions about the company's tactics to discourage users from switching to alternative browsers like Chrome. It appears to be a part of Microsoft's efforts to promote its Edge browser and gather user feedback, though some users may find it intrusive or irritating.

The attempt to dissuade users from switching to Chrome comes amidst the Department of Justice's (DOJ) antitrust lawsuit against Google-- an ongoing trial in which Microsoft executives recently gave their testimonies in federal court. Last month, the DOJ accused the tech giant of using unfair tactics to maintain its dominant position. However, commentators, Google's lead lawyer, and other tech executives have argued that Google's search engine dominance is due to the company’s superior product and not any unfair advantage. Google has also emphasized that consumers have the option to easily switch to a different search engine if they prefer.

Microsoft's CEO, Satya Nadella, testified that Google's unfair practices contributed to its dominance as a search engine and negatively impacted Microsoft's Bing, a rival search engine. According to the New York Times, most of Nadella's Oct. 2 testimony focused around the fact that Google has made it impossible for Bing, and other competitors alike, to compete in the market. According to Nadella, Microsoft has not been able to overcome Google’s use of multibillion-dollar deals to make itself the default search engine on web browsers and smartphones.