VMware by Broadcom Pinnacle Partner: SoftwareOne stays ahead

The world of IT is constantly evolving. That's why it's essential to maintain strong partnerships and drive innovation. At SoftwareOne, we are pleased to announce that we have been awarded the highest VMware by Broadcom Pinnacle Tier in more than 40 countries around the globe. This award recognises our long-standing relationship and our commitment to excellence in consulting and delivering VMware solutions.

Background: Broadcom's acquisition of VMware and partnership realignment

The acquisition of VMware by Broadcom has changed the technology world significantly over the past year. This acquisition led to a realignment of partnerships at the beginning of 2024, resulting in the termination of all existing partnerships and the awarding of new partnerships. In the face of these dynamic changes, we have successfully maintained our partnership status, achieving the highest Pinnacle Tier in more than 40 countries around the globe. This award recognises our long-standing relationship and commitment to excellence in consulting and delivering VMware solutions., underlining our leadership and dedication to VMware by Broadcom’s solutions and vision moving forward.

What does VMware by Broadcom Pinnacle status mean to our customers?

Our Pinnacle partner status is a commitment to provide our customers with the best possible advice and support. As one of a select few Pinnacle partners, we have unrivalled expertise and experience. This is even more important now that VMware by Broadcom has wholly revolutionised the VMware product portfolio for hybrid cloud infrastructure with a strong strategic focus on advisory services.

VMware by Broadcom licences now only available as subscriptions

As of 11 December 2023, VMware by Broadcom discontinued the sale of perpetual licences across all business units. In addition, it will no longer be possible to renew existing perpetual licences, support and subscription (SnS) agreements for perpetual offerings, or purchase credits through the Hybrid Purchase Program/Subscription Purchase Program (HPP/SPP). Customers are now only able to purchase subscriptions.

However, VMware by Broadcom customers will still be able to use their perpetual licences. For customers with active maintenance contracts for perpetual licences, VMware by Broadcom guarantees to provide contractually agreed support until the end of the contract period, after which users must either forgo support or migrate to the subscription option.

Simplified portfolio: VMware by Broadcom products only in specific bundles

There has been much discussion about the need for VMware by Broadcom to have a less complex product portfolio. However, many were surprised to see that VMware by Broadcom so drastically streamlined their portfolio. In the future, most VMware by Broadcom products - such as vCenter - can no longer be purchased individually but only as part of packages (bundles).

In essence, the familiar VMware Cloud Foundation and VMware vSphere Standard bundles (which now include vCenter), as well as the VMware vSphere Essentials Plus Kit, will remain in place. A new bundle called VMware vSphere Foundation has been added.

VMware Cloud Foundation and VMware vSphere Foundation are VMware by Broadcom's priority offerings and the primary target for enterprise customers with a range of complementary add-on services. By contrast, VMware vSphere Standard and VMware vSphere Essentials Plus are intended for lower-end deployments.