It’s time for Windows Movie Maker and MSN Messenger to return to PC

When it comes to the world of PCs, the Windows operating system has been the dominant desktop operating system for a great many years. Over the course of decades, Microsoft has developed and released a number of now-iconic software applications.

Along with all-time greats like Paint, Notepad, and Snipping Tool, there are two Windows apps in particular that I continue to hold a nostalgia-driven affinity towards: Windows Movie Maker, and MSN Messenger (later rebranded to Windows Live Messenger).

The former is a casual video editing suite, which was released alongside Windows Me in the year 2000. Throughout that decade and beyond, just about everyone with a PC had experience with the editor, either in a first or a second-hand capacity. As I’m sure is the case with many other Millennials and Zoomers, the default transition effects within Movie Maker are deeply and permanently etched in my brain.

The latter, meanwhile, was an early instant messaging service, popular back in the days when America Online’s AIM Messenger was still a dominating force. Microsoft’s MSN Messenger launched as an instant messenger (IM) program in 1999, built natively for the Windows platform. The chat service’s quirky ‘nudge’ function and hilarious animated ‘winks’ remain a core memory of my childhood.

Unfortunately, as time passed, both Windows Movie Maker and MSN Messenger fell by the wayside. Microsoft ended support for Movie Maker in 2017, with the company pivoting first to the Windows 10 Photos app, and then to the Windows 11 Clipchamp app as replacement tools.

Likewise, MSN Messenger was phased out in 2013 in favor of Microsoft’s then-popular Skype service. Then, alongside Windows 11’s release in 2021, the tech giant decided to pivot its focus once more — this time towards its Teams chat and video calling platform.

Needless to say, there’s a strong sense of dismay over Microsoft’s sunsetting of these two iconic pieces of software. Tech enthusiasts and everyday PC users alike reminisce about the good old days, back when computers were giant beige boxes, and families shared a single, communal desktop PC in their homes.

• Windows Live Messenger

  Windows Live Messenger, previously known as MSN Messenger, was Microsoft’s premier instant messaging platform in the 2000s. The program was later sunset in favor of Skype, and then Teams for Home.

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  Windows Movie Maker

  Windows Movie Maker was first introduced alongside Windows Me in the year 2000, and quickly became the go-to program for casual video editing. Microsoft eventually discontinued the software in favor of the web-based Clipchamp app.

Microsoft’s Clipchamp and Teams apps are unsatisfactory replacements

The tech giant ought to treat its legacy with the respect it deserves

As modern-day replacements for Movie Maker and MSN Messenger, Microsoft’s Clipchamp and Teams apps both miss the mark. Clipchamp is web-based, which makes for a slow and clunky user experience, and the app doesn’t follow native Windows Fluent Design interface guidelines. The video editor isn’t entirely free, either: a Premium subscription is required to enable 4K resolution and unlimited watermark-free exporting.

Likewise, Microsoft Teams is an inadequate first-party messaging application. The beauty of MSN Messenger was its simple interface, its frictionless design, and its consumer-oriented set of texting and calling features. The Teams DNA is one of corporate, business-minded software design, and Microsoft’s attempts to shoehorn the service into a user-facing client haven’t exactly panned out.

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  Microsoft Clipchamp

  Clipchamp is Microsoft’s first-party video editing application for Windows 11. The software is web-based, and runs off of a freemium business model. Microsoft purchased Clipchamp in September 2021, integrating it into Windows shortly thereafter.

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  Microsoft Teams

  Teams is the flagship video conferencing application from Microsoft, which has been deeply integrated into the company’s Office suite and Windows operating system. Teams competes with Skype for Business, Slack, Webex, and more.