Microsoft patents co-browsing technology that allows users to see what other users are looking up on the Internet

While Microsoft Edge has been updated to be as capable as Google Chrome (and some agree it’s even better than the world’s most popular Internet browser), the Redmond-based tech giant is constantly updating it with new settings (and a new UI for it), new features, such as Copilot, and many useful capabilities (Edge’s PDF reader might be the best out there).

However, in a recently published patent, Microsoft unveiled a co-browsing technology related to Edge (or any other browser, for that matter). It involves a multi-user approach to browsing the Internet. In other words, the technology allows multiple people to browse the web in real-time.

When a collaborative session starts, a group of tabs for each person involved is created. Others can be invited to join, and each person gets their tabs.

Collaborative browsing or co-browsing is not new, but it has only recently gained popularity for its efficacy in the corporate world. However, co-browsing is done within safe and secure environments, such as private spaces, and popular browsers cannot do it natively unless users install particular extensions or plug-ins.

In the co-browsing technology patented by Microsoft, all these individual tab groups are combined into one big group that updates instantly with any changes anyone makes. For example, if someone makes a change on their end, it gets sent to a central service, which then sends it to everyone else, keeping everything in sync.

The Collaborative Browsing Experience allows multiple people to browse the internet simultaneously. Think of it like a virtual meeting room where everyone can see and interact with the same web pages.

You can see what others are doing on their browsers now (real-time activity) and what they have done before (saved activity). When you start a collaborative session, it creates a particular group of browser tabs for that session. This group is linked to you, the person who started it.

You can invite other people to join your session. When they enter, they get their own set of tabs. Each person’s individual tab groups are combined into one big group. This big group updates instantly whenever anyone makes a change, like opening a new tab or navigating to a different page.

If you change your browser, it first happens locally (on your device). Then, this change is sent to a central service. The central service organizes everyone’s changes and sends them back to all participants. This way, everyone’s browser stays in sync, showing the same tabs and pages.

This technology makes it easy for people to browse the web together, share their browsing activities, and stay updated with each other’s changes in real-time.

While Microsoft doesn’t specify Edge, it does mention that the tech can include users from all sorts of devices, such as desktops, wired and wireless computing systems, mobile phones, tablets, notebooks, and laptops.

You can read the full patent here.