VMware users gripe over 3-year commitment to renew licenses

VMware users continue to be unhappy with licensing changes since the virtualization giant was acquired by Broadcom, and are now complaining that they are being forced into three-year commitments when renewing vSphere licenses.

Following the takeover of Virtzilla at the end of 2023, Broadcom has shaken things up with a switch to "simplified" licensing and a preferred focus on larger enterprise customers.

However "simplified" meant ditching standalone support services and perpetual licenses, with customers instead being offered per-core subscriptions to bundles of software and support. Many protested that this led to a massive hike in the license fees they owed to Broadcom. The licensing changes have subsequently lost VMware some big name clients including insurance giant Geico and agriculture juggernaut John Deere over the past year.

Now, customers are claiming that if they want to renew existing vSphere licenses, they are required to stump up in advance for a three-year ...