A recent study by CloudBolt Software Inc. and Amazon Web Services Inc. suggests that the predicted mass exodus of customers from VMware Inc. to other virtualization providers following Broadcom Inc.’s $61 billion acquisition may be overstated. The study surveyed 300 IT executives responsible for VMware-related purchases and found that while many are concerned about the impact of the acquisition, most are taking their time to evaluate their options. The top choices include keeping some VMware products, staying fully invested in VMware, moving workloads to the public cloud, migrating to an alternative hypervisor, and completely transitioning to the public cloud.
Broadcom has implemented significant changes to VMware’s sales and licensing plans since the acquisition, including discontinuing perpetual licenses in favor of subscriptions, withdrawing support for existing perpetual licenses, and ending the VMware partner program. While no price increases have been announced, many customers fear potential hikes due to Broadcom’s history with previous acquisitions.
The study found that 46% of respondents believe the acquisition will be disruptive to their IT strategy, with nearly three-quarters expecting significant price increases. Factors that might prompt customers to switch to an alternative provider include uncertainty about Broadcom’s plans, quality of support, pricing changes, negative experiences with Broadcom, and the company’s reputation in past acquisitions. The products most likely to be abandoned are vSphere hypervisor, vRealize cloud management, NSX networking, Tanzu Kubernetes management platform, vSAN storage, and Horizon virtual desktop infrastructure.
With Broadcom moving towards bundled licensing for VMware solutions, companies evaluating migration may need to abandon multiple products rather than just individual components. The study emphasizes the potential upheaval that could result from customers considering replacements for all of VMware’s major offerings. Nearly 70% of respondents face contract expirations with VMware within the next 12 months.
The study did not specify the timeline for customer expectations of price increases, but it revealed that most respondents are considering their options and have not yet made final decisions. Only 5% of respondents have already decided to switch providers, while the majority plan to do so within the next year.
The survey’s findings suggest that VMware customers are actively evaluating their options and considering potential alternatives in response to Broadcom’s acquisition. The study highlights the concerns and uncertainties facing customers as they navigate potential changes in their virtualization technology providers.
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https://siliconangle.com/2024/06/06/study-finds-fears-post-broadcom-vmware-customer-flight-may-overblown/