T-Mobile Sues Broadcom to Keep Lifeline Support While Fleeing VMware
Trapped on perpetual licenses across 303,000 CPU cores, T-Mobile is paying millions under a court injunction to buy time as it migrates away from VMware.
When Broadcom closed its acquisition of VMware in late 2023, it quickly scrapped perpetual licenses and streamlined roughly 150 standalone products into subscription bundles like Cloud Foundation. For corporate clients holding older perpetual contracts with promised support extensions, that pivot turned into a legal quagmire.
According to court filings reported by The Register, telecom carrier T-Mobile has joined a growing list of enterprises trying to enforce extended support rights while actively migrating away. The carrier originally inked a deal with VMware in August 2023, securing perpetual licenses, two years of support, and an option for a third year. By 2024, Broadcom notified the operator that it would not extend support once the initial term ended in 2025, asserting that the legacy products no longer exist under its subscription-only model.
The dispute carries massive operational weight. T-Mobile, which began using VMware in 2008, runs the software across more than 303,000 CPU cores hosting roughly 1,000 internal applications. To avoid an unmanaged cliff, the telecom giant sought an injunction to force support continuity and even offered $20 million for two additional years to finish a paced migration.
A court granted the preliminary injunction forcing Broadcom to maintain support past August 2025, requiring T-Mobile to pay $5.28 million alongside a $500,000 bond. Broadcom subsequently demanded $24 million for extended support covering six products, citing the need for over 20 dedicated staff. T-Mobile pushed back, noting it had logged just two support tickets in 2026.
Similar clashes have surfaced elsewhere: AT&T settled its support dispute confidentially, while British retailer Tesco remains in litigation. With the court injunction expiring on August 3, 2026, T-Mobile faces a hard deadline to untangle its infrastructure before vendor support abruptly terminates.
Source: habr
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