- Published on
T-Mobile moving tens of thousands of virtual machines off VMware amid lawsuit
- Authors
- Name
- DeepHorus
T-Mobile is moving tens of thousands of virtual machines off VMware software and has taken legal action against Broadcom, demanding that the company honor its contractual obligations for support services. The mobile network operator filed a lawsuit in the Supreme Court of the State of New York in August 2025, seeking a declaration that it is entitled to renew support for its perpetual VMware licenses. The case highlights the fallout from Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware in 2023, which led to sweeping changes in licensing and pricing.
T-Mobile originally purchased perpetual VMware licenses in 2023, along with two years of support and an option to buy a third year. However, after Broadcom completed its acquisition of VMware, the company discontinued sales of perpetual licenses in favor of subscription models and began bundling products into more expensive packages. When T-Mobile attempted to exercise its option for a third year of support, Broadcom refused, claiming that all perpetual products and renewals had been discontinued.
According to T-Mobile’s court filing, the company operates approximately 303,140 CPU cores running VMware software, supporting tens of thousands of virtual machines and over 1,000 applications. The cost to extend support for the third year was set at $5,288,398.45. A judge has since granted T-Mobile an injunction, allowing it to receive support services from October 2025 through August 3, 2026, for the same $5.28 million, plus a $500,000 undertaking.
The migration off VMware is a massive undertaking for T-Mobile, involving time-consuming and technically challenging processes to move thousands of applications. The company is now seeking a court declaration that Broadcom was contractually obligated to provide the support renewal, as well as further relief as deemed necessary. The case underscores the risks companies face when relying on proprietary software that undergoes ownership changes.
Industry observers are closely watching the lawsuit, as it could set a precedent for how perpetual license agreements are treated after acquisitions. T-Mobile’s legal action reflects growing frustration among enterprises over Broadcom’s aggressive licensing changes, which have forced many customers to either accept higher costs or migrate to alternative platforms. Broadcom has defended its strategy as a move to simplify and modernize VMware’s offerings.
Looking ahead, the New York court will need to determine whether T-Mobile’s contractual right to renew support remains valid despite Broadcom’s policy shift. Meanwhile, T-Mobile continues its migration efforts, which may take years to complete. The outcome of this case could influence how other companies handle similar disputes and shape the future of enterprise software licensing.
