The VMware Licensing Overhaul Is Here & It’s a Wake-Up Call for IT Leaders

Broadcom’s next major licensing overhaul is set for November 1, 2025, and this one carries weight far beyond pricing structure. VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) will fully transition to a subscription-only, bring-your-own-license (BYOL) model for hyperscale environments, fundamentally changing how customers run VMware workloads in the cloud.

In plain terms, customers will no longer be able to buy bundled VMware licenses through cloud providers like Google Cloud. Instead, they’ll need to purchase portable VCF subscriptions directly from Broadcom and apply them to their cloud deployments.

Well, the fine print tells a more complex story… For legacy users, the changes introduce higher costs, stricter bundling, and reduced flexibility. What was once a modular, on-premises environment can now only be maintained through full-suite subscriptions, which often include tools and capacity that many organizations don’t need.

What This Means for Your Organization

When an IT department assumes “we’ll renew as before,” these changes turn that assumption into risk. If your environment still runs VMware, either on-prem, hybrid, or in the cloud, there are three dimensions that you should assess:

1. Cost Structure Shift - You’re moving from a predictable capital expenditure model (buy once, use many years) to recurring operational spend, where bundles and usage minimums erode cost control. Analysts estimate some renewals may increase by 200% or 300% under the new rules.

2. Flexibility Risk - Bundled suites and minimum core rules limit your ability to tailor solutions. Whatever vendor-agnostic architecture you hoped to build, you now face complexity or cost that wasn’t budgeted.

3. Strategic Vulnerability - Many SLED organizations and mid-market firms operate with lean teams, fixed budgets, and mission-critical workloads (including voice/UC systems). With partner choices narrowing and licensing changes looming, you may face support gaps, compliance risks (e.g., E911), and a loss of negotiation leverage.

4. Vendor Lock-in - If your architecture doesn’t leverage portability across clouds, you’re paying for a feature you won’t use. Industry analysts predict that up to 35% of VMware workloads could shift away by 2028. 

4. Vendor Lock in Risk - If you treat your next renewal as “business as usual,” you may find yourself locked into architecture and cost that serves the vendor more than your organization.

Key Questions to Consider

The Broadcom-VMware transition is a strategic decision point. Before signing your next infrastructure contract or renewal, make sure you’ve thoroughly reviewed these questions and know the answers.

• When does your current VMware support end? If it’s within 12–18 months, your next renewal will likely fall under Broadcom’s new terms. Don’t assume legacy pricing applies.
• Are you still using perpetual licenses or standalone modules? Broadcom is removing support for these. If you rely on a modular setup, you’ll have to buy full bundles, regardless of what you actually use.
• Will your workload patterns justify the new core-based minimums? Many orgs now face 72-core minimums, even if they only use half that. That’s wasted spend at scale.
• Are your workloads truly portable? License portability only matters if you actively run hybrid environments. If not, you’re paying for flexibility that doesn’t benefit you.
• Is your current partner still authorized to support your environment? Many smaller VARs were dropped in Broadcom’s partner purge. If yours was among them, you may lose critical support leverage.
• What else depends on your VMware stack? If you’ve tied communications tools, UCaaS, or compliance layers (like E911) to VMware, you need to understand the knock-on effects before pricing or performance changes downstream.

Why a Cloud Assessment is Important Before the VMware Overhaul

Broadcom’s licensing overhaul has introduced new complexity at every layer: subscription bundles, minimum core thresholds, partner channel restrictions, and removed support for standalone tools. For most organizations, the result is confusion: what do we actually have, what will it cost to keep, and do we have any control left?

At Maverick Networks, we work with IT teams facing tough decisions about infrastructure, voice platforms, and cloud strategy, especially when vendor models shift underfoot.

• We start with the facts: What licenses do you hold, and what are you actually using? Many teams are managing outdated combinations of perpetual licenses, standalone tools, and new bundled subscriptions. We inventory everything, so you have a complete and current picture.
• We map cost to usage: Are you paying for 72-core minimums on clusters that use 24? Bundled features you’ve never touched? We identify where you're over-licensed, or under-supported, and what it’s costing you.
• We model your renewal risk: We break down what your next renewal will cost under Broadcom’s new terms, including pricing changes, removed tools, and cloud portability features. No guesswork, just numbers.
• We give you real options:  We give you real options: Whether it’s streamlining your VMware footprint, shifting part of your workloads to hybrid or public cloud, or decoupling systems like UCaaS from the VMware estate, we lay out actionable paths. You decide what fits. We show you what’s possible.

Given the compressed renewal cycles, evolving licensing policies, and limited internal bandwidth many IT teams face, we’re offering this assessment at no cost, but for a limited window. If your next VMware/VCF renewal falls within the next 12–18 months, this is your opportunity to act ahead of the vendor’s rules.

We're supplier-neutral. That means no sales pitch, no vendor incentives: just a clear-eyed assessment of your environment, with an emphasis on cost control, flexibility, and strategic alignment.

When vendors move fast, your best move is to slow down and see clearly. That’s what this assessment delivers.

Bottom Line

If you walk into your next renewal assuming that everything is still business as usual, you risk paying more, getting less flexibility, and managing more complexity. But if you act now, you can:

•    Map your current environment and eliminate guesswork
•    Spot unnecessary licensing costs before they snowball
•    Evaluate alternative infrastructure strategies that align with your workloads
•    Decide whether to stay, shift, or modernize on your own timeline

Schedule your no-cost cloud assessment with Maverick Networks today. Act on data, not pressure.

Your next renewal shouldn’t be a guessing game.  Let’s build an infrastructure strategy that serves you, not another vendor.