Will the Windows I Want Only Be Available in the EEA? (Premium)

It looks like the Windows 11 I want, and the Windows 11 we all deserve, will only be made available to Microsoft customers in the European Economic Area (EEA). This is unjust on every level, but it also indicates how easily Microsoft could change Windows to be less terrible but won't unless forced to by regulators.

I'm sure you've seen the news: Microsoft is making sweeping changes to how Windows 11 works thanks to its new legal requirements as a gatekeeper in the EU. Some of the changes, which I detail below, were telegraphed in the Windows Insider Program, and now make a bit more sense in context. But some are new, and the collective set of changes goes a long way towards addressing many of the key complaints that I and others have about Windows 11. Not all the way. But still meaningful.

There is a caveat, of course: Microsoft will only make these changes in the EEA. And there is no way to sugarcoat this: It sucks. Plain and simple.

But as with the information I provided in The Enshittification of OneDrive Escalates Yet Again, But Help is On the Way (Premium), there may be a silver lining here: Because the changes Microsoft is making to Windows 11 will be included in the Setup image it will use worldwide, those of us outside the EEA will almost certainly be able to work around Microsoft's terribleness and take advantage of this more user- and privacy-friendly Windows. Via third-party utilities, various hacks, whatever. It will happen.

But we shouldn't have to rely on that kind of nonsense. This is just what Windows should be. Well, this and some other changes that Microsoft isn't making. But these changes constitute a massive step forward in de-enshittifying Windows 11 and offsetting years of confusion and consternation.

So what are these changes? And how will they impact Windows and its users?

For now, I am relying on the descriptions provided by an unattributed post to the Windows Insider Blog, which I think we can all agree isn't exactly authoritative or clearly written on the best of days. When I get home, I will install the new Release Preview build with which I can experience the changes first-hand, and I suspect that will provide additional clarity.

Understanding the requirements of the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) helps, too, of course. At a high level, the DMA is about preventing Big Tech firms like Microsoft from abusing their dominance using platforms, like Windows, that are considered "gatekeepers." But we need to get more specific than that: What exactly does the DMA require Microsoft to change in Windows to comply with its rules?

Those familiar with Microsoft's antitrust history will understand the motivation behind the first requirement, which is that Microsoft must allow users to uninstall pre-installed apps (what we call "in-box" apps now in Microsoft-land) from the operating system. This rule was of course inspired by the EU requiring Microsoft to let users uninstall Internet Explorer, Windows ...