The 3 Types of IT Executives Navigating the Broadcom-VMware Merger
One Year After the VMware Acquisition:
What’s Changed?
It’s about a year since Broadcom closed the $61 billion acquisition of VMware, and since we wrote our first post on their new license model and the implications. We are proud most of our forecasts were accurate, and yet the IT landscape still feels like a game of chess where the rules keep changing mid-match (more on that later!). Having spoken with over 100 IT executives on the subject since that blog post, our team has seen patterns emerge: adaptation, frustration, and some cautious plotting.
TL;DR: What We’ve Seen So Far
Different tactics have produced different outcomes, and every single customer scenario is situational. But in general, if you have a decent core count, and have adopted the entire VMware SDDC – you have near-zero impact from Broadcom, other than support and sales turnover drama. If you have massive processors (with approximately 5–10% utilization) and vSphere only, you’ve had a rough year.
Type 1: The Pre-Acquisition Strategists
Some of our most proactive executives bought VMware support for five years before the acquisition closed. Those folks are smirking quietly in the corner or educating their organizations on their strategic move. This was exactly the advice CAS was providing in 2023, prior to the November acquisition closure. These folks are largely insulated from the immediate upheaval—their clusters hum along, unaffected by Broadcom’s portfolio overhaul, giving them breathing room to watch the chaos unfold. But that clock’s ticking—five years isn’t forever. Since they have 2–3 years left in these agreements depending on when they were inked, we expect these folks to continue to watch and see how the market moves in the next 12–24 months.
Let’s also add to this group a different customer type—those that were already “all-in” on VMware (at least their Software Defined Data Center or “SDDC”). If you already owned and deployed VMware Cloud Foundation (“VCF”) or many of its components prior to the acquisition, it was possible to not just avoid cost increases—some of our clients saved money on the new license model. Whether you are saving money today usually turns on NSX adoption, but it also depends on your previous ELA terms, core utilization, consumption of other VMware products (Aria, VSAN, etc.) and other specifics.
These folks saw minimal disruption outside of a large number of sales reps turning over, some support changes, and hopefully minimal other changes.
Overall, these customer types are mostly happy, but curious about alternatives and watching what folks are doing. However, we do have two clients that feel like lovers scorned—due to discontinued products, sales rep changes—and are aggressively looking elsewhere.
CUSTOMER EXAMPLE — 1312 cores
- Full NSX, VSAN, and Aria adoption
- 450+ cores of vDefend Firewall adoption
- Pre-Broadcom Budget: ~$350K/year
- Post-Broadcom Budget: ~$350K/year
Type 2: The Customers Who Got Hit the Hardest
If you were an IT exec running just vSphere Enterprise Plus and vCenter, with no other VMware consumption… and you had optimized for sockets not cores (i.e. you had very few processors with a ton of cores in each, which was the way to cost optimize in the old days)… and you had a renewal come and go in the past 12 months… Congrats—you’ve felt the sting hardest.
If this is you, we will perform free consultation. Contact us to see if you qualify.
As Broadcom axed perpetual licenses and slimmed its offerings into subscription bundles that are core-based (not socket-based), like VMware Cloud Foundation (“VCF”) and VMware vSphere Foundation (“VVF”), lean setups are overpaying for features they don’t need—unless they leaned into the new license model (with vSAN specifically) and moved from 3-tier SANs to Hyper Converged Infrastructure (HCI).
Bottom line: These really aren’t the customers Broadcom wants to support anyway—too small, too little SDDC adoption.
The vast majority of folks in this situation are in what we call “VMware purgatory”—begrudgingly moved to the new model (for 1–5 years, most commonly 3) and haven’t yet changed storage or optimized core utilization, in effect paying more right now for the same setup and trying to figure out where to go next.
Another set of customers heavily impacted were those leveraging products discontinued or sold off—like VMware Cloud Disaster Recovery (“VCDR”), Horizon/Workspace1, or CarbonBlack products that were nearly spun off. Total distraction!
CUSTOMER EXAMPLE – 250x cores
- vSphere Ent+ Adoption with limited VSAN usage, no other SDDC products in use
- Pre-Broadcom (per socket) Budget: ~$20K/year
- Post-Broadcom Budget: ~$50K+/year
Type 3: Everyone in the Middle
Some folks owned more than one VMware title, haven’t come due yet on a bill, and/or could stomach the increase in costs to VVF or VCF. This is the most common scenario and the response is mixed. Some customers are unaware or unaffected from an annual budget perspective. Others are slightly unhappy, and some are completely done with VMware. Their response largely has to do with how well their sales rep explained the changes, and how bumpy the ride was on the support side. The more changes they felt, the more likely they are to be exploring alternatives.
What Are Customers Doing Now?
What are the 3 things folks are doing who have adopted the new VMware with mixed feelings? We will explore this in detail in our next blog post, but here’s the summary:
- Doing Nothing (for now) – These are the “Wait and See” or “Broadcom Purgatory” customers.
2. Determining how to reduce costs while continuing with VMware – Embracing the new Broadcom.
3. Exploring Alternatives – Likely to be replacing VMware entirely.
Join the Conversation at CAS Severn User Groups
At CAS we are holding a series of User Groups this year to bring IT execs together—because things are so situational, and peer learning is often the most valuable. One of our clients typically hosts, we moderate and provide lunch, and we break out into role-based conversations.
We currently have an event next week in Maryland, and one in April in Northern VA. We’re also planning additional events in MD, VA, DE, and NC. See the links above for the next MD and NOVA events, or feel free to sign up to be notified for future VUG events here.
A Yeti for Your Thoughts—Free VMware Consultation
Analyze Your VMware Environment & Get a Free Yeti Tumbler!
The VMware landscape is evolving rapidly, and the changes can have major implications for your IT environment. With new subscription models, bundled features like vSAN, and potential cost-saving opportunities, it’s crucial to understand how these updates impact your business.
At CAS Severn, we’re here to help. Our team of experts is actively analyzing client scenarios to uncover tailored strategies that optimize costs, enhance performance, and align with your long-term goals.
Book a free VMware consultation with us today, and as a thank—you, we’ll send you a Yeti tumbler—because your insights matter, and so does keeping your coffee hot (or your drinks cold).
At CAS Severn, our goal is to provide our customers with insight and best-in-breed technology so they can meet their goals for growth and success. We pride ourselves in our long-term relationships with our clients and completely embrace our roles as trusted advisors for their IT environments. Committed to providing our clients with the right solution for their individual needs, our job is not done until our customers’ problems are solved.
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