90% of VMware Users Explore Alternatives Due to Rising Licensing Costs

Ninety percent of VMware users are exploring alternatives due to escalating licensing costs, according to a recent survey by Unisphere Research. Since Broadcom's acquisition of VMware, costs have reportedly surged by 1,000 percent, with 54 percent of participants noting Broadcom's termination of support for perpetual license holders as a key factor in their decision. More modest price increases of 100 to 300 percent have also been reported by customers.

Cost savings are a priority for 73 percent of participants when making virtualization roadmap decisions. However, barriers such as operational complexity (40 percent), multi-vendor management challenges (38 percent), and the need for enhanced security (37 percent) are hindering migrations. Additionally, 37 percent of respondents cited team skills requirements as a barrier to transitioning away from VMware.

The survey indicates a shift in strategy, with 60 percent of organizations considering a multi-hypervisor approach and 47 percent favoring a hybrid IT virtualization environment. Notably, 48 percent of respondents do not plan to migrate assets to VMware's Cloud Foundation. By 2026, 25 percent of enterprises are expected to conduct proofs of concept for alternative infrastructure, increasing to 55 percent by 2029.

Tony Harvey from Gartner remarked that many clients view this as a wake-up call regarding their dependency on a single vendor, prompting them to seek greater diversity in their on-premises environments. Joe McKendrick from Unisphere Research added that the survey reflects a broader enterprise effort to reduce reliance on a single provider while ensuring continuity for mission-critical systems.