It's the end of an era for one of the oldest web browsers still being used.

Microsoft is finally killing Internet Explorer after initially releasing the web browser in 1995 as a competitor to Netscape Navigator.

In a blog post, the tech company announced it will end support for Internet Explorer 11 across its Microsoft 365 apps and services on August 17, 2021.

The Microsoft Teams web app will no longer support the browser from the earlier date of November 30, 2020.

Replacing Explorer is Microsoft Edge, the company's newer browser that uses Chromium - open-source software developed by Google for its popular browser, Google Chrome. 

Microsoft will, however, continue to honour investments made by businesses in Internet Explorer - all private IE 11 applications will keep functioning.

Despite using Chromium, Edge includes a range of features that differentiate it from Google Chrome, including turning on tracking protection by default which blocks advertisements and most third-party trackers.

Microsoft has been working on killing off or 'sunsetting' Internet Explorer for years. It unveiled Edge in 2015 and has since labelled Explorer a "compatibility solution" more than a browser.