Customers and Partners Seek Reassurance About Broadcom’s Plan for Transforming VMware

C. Drake

Summary Bullets:

• Broadcom’s move to acquire VMware raises many questions, including whether Broadcom can integrate a much larger company with a focus on cloud software and application management.
• Key questions about the acquisition include whether Broadcom might change or dispose of existing VMware solutions or alter the relationship between VMware and its customers or partners.

The announcement of Broadcom’s $61 billion (USD) bid to acquire VMware raises a raft of questions, the answers to which should not be expected anytime soon.  Assuming the acquisition gains regulatory approval and is not met with a counterbid before the July deadline, it will be one of the largest technology acquisitions of all time.  This will be a major acquisition for Broadcom, which will need to integrate VMware’s 35,000 employees with its own 20,000-strong workforce.  The acquisition will also significantly enlarge Broadcom’s software business, especially in the markets for multi-cloud, hybrid cloud, and application management solutions.