Following the acquisition of VMware by Broadcom, customers with perpetual licences are facing a new and uncertain reality. The conglomerate has made changes to its support policies that effectively limit access to key security updates, putting pressure to move towards a subscription model.
According to reports, users with permanent licences have lost immediate access to security patches via the support portal. Broadcom confirms that the updated entitlement validation system prioritises customers with active subscriptions. Other users are expected to receive updates at a later date, which could delay deployment by up to 90 days, exposing their IT environments to newly discovered vulnerabilities during this time.
The decision is part of Broadcom’s broader strategy to abandon perpetual licence sales altogether and aggressively promote subscriptions. While the company must respect the ‘perpetual’ licences already sold, the new support and upgrade policy is becoming a key tool to drive customers towards a change in licensing model. Access to current patches is now conditional on having an active support contract, which can no longer be renewed without switching to a subscription.
These actions are being met with growing resistance. The European association of cloud providers CISPE has filed a complaint with the court, seeking to annul the European Commission’s approval of the VMware acquisition. It argues that Broadcom is abusing its dominant position by imposing unfair terms and drastically increasing prices.
Furthermore, in the Netherlands, a court has already ruled against the company. It obliged the company to continue to provide technical support to the government agency after the expiry of the contract and at an affordable price to allow it to migrate safely. The ruling could set an important precedent for other companies in a similar situation. Broadcom’s new policy, while beneficial to investors, has been increasingly controversial in the technology market.
