Microsoft removes EPUB support from Edge

The Edge browser is losing support for the EPUB format of eBooks, Microsoft has announced. The decision follows the discontinuation of e-books in the Microsoft Store.

The removal of epub support for Edge is stated on a support page that Microsoft publishes. The company, together with the Daisy Consortium, is compiling a list of epub applications that appear in the Microsoft Store and that can be used as an alternative. The Daisy Consortium consists of organizations that support projects to make reading more accessible.

It seems likely that Microsoft is not actively removing support from the current Edge but is preparing to replace the browser with the Chromium-based variant. That version of Edge has reached the beta phase and is therefore in the final phase before the official release. That browser did not have EPUB support during the test phase and therefore does not seem to get it.

Last April, Microsoft stopped selling and renting e-books in its Microsoft Store. Its delivery was linked to Edge, which allowed customers to read the epub format books. Support for eBooks was one of the features Microsoft tried to differentiate with Edge. The Chromium version does not yet have extensive e-book features.