Great doings by Microsoft

[Melita-s]

https://betanews.com/2019/01/27/micr...-media-player/

Another reason to move on to Linux?

[EldonW]

Originally Posted by Melita-s

https://betanews.com/2019/01/27/micr...-media-player/

Another reason to move on to Linux?

Install a different Media Player.

And yes, there are numerous reasons to use Linux instead of Windows.

[Remah]

Another reason to have migrated off WMP?
For a decade or more this site has been consistently recommending other products over WMP. Ten years later, the article still refers to WMP as bloated.
We've also said that if Linux is a real option for anyone then they should get off WMP and move to something like VLC.
These have always been good recommendations because WMP does not have a future with Microsoft Windows. The same writing on the wall for WMC also applies to WMP. It has slowly but surely been overtaken by other events and products:

• While WMP does run on Windows 10 it has not had an upgrade since Version 12 was released with Windows 7 in 2009.
• Since Windows XP, WMP has not been a core feature of all versions Windows since WMP was partially decoupled from Windows in 1999 when the EU forced the creation of Windows XP N - Windows edition N and the separate media packs are still available today.
• WMP is not integrated with Groove which is new Microsoft's primary music player.
• WMP is deprecated for software developers as of Windows 10, e.g. cannot link to it.
• Functionality often disappears from products as they approach end of life. For example, Google+ has been dying for years and losing functionality - it finally dies this year. RIP

Another good reason to upgrade from Windows 7?
betanews is correct that Microsoft wants users off Windows 7 and this change might help that. But this is not even one of the main reasons why Microsoft has done this.
Instead Microsoft support for Windows 7 really is ending soon. Note that this is actually "Windows 7 SP1" and not the original Windows 7 which was totally out of support nearly six years ago on April 9, 2013. Extended support, which is basically security updates and fixes for large customers, ends for SP1 in less than a year on January 14, 2020. That is another good reason to be leaving Windows 7.

Another reason not to listen to betanews?
Contrast their article with the article they got the news from at windowslatest: betanews is sensationalizing this and trying to make it sound like some "dirty" and underhand conspiracy to force users onto Windows 10:

Embarrassingly, Windows 10 -- initially released in 2015 as a free upgrade -- only recently overtook Windows 7 in marketshare. Yikes!

I have to laugh now because this only appears to be true for one source, NetmarketShare, which is very slow to show Windows 10 marketshare and lags a year or more behind most of the industry even in betanews' own words.

While other analyst firms, such as StatCounter, have shown Windows 10 overtaking Windows 7 sometime ago, NetMarketShare has consistently shown the new OS to be lagging way behind the aging fan favorite.

The change doesn't make much difference to functionality despite betanews saying it is crippling. I have to laugh again because the changes definitely won't cripple WMP, although I would still be upset if I depended upon that metadata:

the company has decided to purposely cripple both Windows Media Player and Windows Media Center on Windows 7, and Windows Media Center on 8.x. Microsoft

Windows Media Centre (WMC) is a discontinued product (October 30, 2015) which is why it affects all versions.
It doesn't affect existing media in WMP. Also, hardly anybody uses this feature which is why Microsoft say

After looking at customer feedback and usage data, Microsoft decided to discontinue this service.

[Melita-s]

Originally Posted by EldonW

Install a different Media Player.

And yes, there are numerous reasons to use Linux instead of Windows.

Thank you. I am not really affected by this. I have always used VLC in Windows 7. I removed WMP even from my Windows XP which is fully supported by VLC.