RIP Internet Explorer: Microsoft 365 apps will stop support

(Pocket-lint) – All good things come to an end, and, coincidentally, some less-liked things do, too. That’s the fate that now beckons for Internet Explorer, as Microsoft prepares to shutter its iconic browser. 

It’s put out a timeline to let people know that Internet Explorer 11 will no longer by supported by some of its own most popular apps come August 2021, in a year’s time. 

Principally that means the Microsoft 365 suite, so the online versions of Word, PowerPoint and the gang, will no longer be in the fold. No new features will come to the apps on the browser, and some features might not work properly, it says.

The two key dates from the announcement are as follows:

• “Beginning November 30, 2020, the Microsoft Teams web app will no longer support IE 11.
• Beginning August 17, 2021, the remaining Microsoft 365 apps and services will no longer support IE 11.”

The idea here is to encourage people to move over to Microsoft Edge, its new and constantly updating browser, but Microsoft makes a point of saying that Internet Explorer 11 isn’t being killed – it’ll still work, but will simply stop getting updated features and support. 

Also contained within the announcement is the news that Microsoft Edge Legacy will no longer be getting security updates as of March 9, 2021, again encouraging people to port over to the full Edge browser for the most up-to-date experience. 

Writing by Max Freeman-Mills.