Digital Event Horizon
European Commission Reconsiders Broadcom's VMware Acquisition Amid Criticism Over Security Patch Delays
CISPE is challenging the European Commission's approval of Broadcom's acquisition of VMware over security patch delays. Critics argue that Broadcom's dominant position is restricting competition and increasing prices for customers. Broadcom maintains that users with legacy products will have free access to critical security patches, but with a 90-day delay. The European Commission has been criticized for not prioritizing the needs of smaller cloud service providers in Europe.
The European Commission's approval of Broadcom's acquisition of VMware has come under scrutiny once again, this time over concerns regarding security patch delays for certain customers. The trade group CISPE has filed an appeal to the European General Court challenging the EC's approval of the deal, arguing that the commission did not enact any regulations that would prevent a concentration of dominance or mitigate potential abuse.
The acquisition, which was valued at $61 billion, was approved by the European Commission in 2024 following a thorough merger review process. However, critics have raised concerns that Broadcom's VMware business has been using its dominant position to restrict competition and increase prices for customers. Specifically, some organizations that opted against signing up for a subscription and are running VMware without a support contract have reported being unable to download security patches from Broadcom's support portal.
In response to these allegations, Broadcom has maintained that users of legacy VMware products who no longer have active maintenance and support entitlements will have free access to critical security patches for as long as those products remain supported by the company. However, some customers have reported that they may have to wait 90 days before they can download the patches.
The situation has sparked renewed criticism of the European Commission's approval of the acquisition, with CISPE arguing that the commission did not prioritize the needs and concerns of smaller cloud service providers in Europe. The trade association has emphasized its commitment to ensuring that the European market remains open and competitive for all players, regardless of size or scale.
Meanwhile, VMware has confirmed that it is providing critical security patches for certain customers, albeit with a delay. The company has assured users that these patches will be made available at a later date via a separate patch delivery cycle, although the exact timeline remains uncertain.
As the European General Court prepares to hold a hearing on whether the EC's approval should be reexamined, it is clear that Broadcom's VMware acquisition has raised significant concerns over security and competition. With the clock ticking for affected customers to download critical patches, the stakes are high for all parties involved in this ongoing controversy.
Related Information:
https://www.digitaleventhorizon.com/articles/European-Commission-Reconsiders-Broadcoms-VMware-Acquisition-Amid-Criticism-Over-Security-Patch-Delays-deh.shtml
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2025/07/some-vmware-perpetual-license-owners-are-unable-to-download-security-patches/
Published: Thu Jul 24 15:51:09 2025 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
