Broadcom VMware and the real decision facing IT leaders

“I’ve been told to migrate away from VMware, what do I do?”

That’s a question many IT leaders are grappling with right now, as changes to Broadcom’s VMware CSP Program reshape who can sell, support and renew VMware environments – and who can’t.  

Understandably, there is a lot of noise around VMware right now. Pricing has changed and the partner ecosystem has narrowed. So, if you have VMware workloads in production, you’ve probably been told to reconsider whether it’s still the right platform for your organisation. But in many cases, that advice reflects the commercial reality your current provider’s facing, rather than a genuine assessment of what’s best for your organisation’s architecture, long term cost profile or risk posture.  

Interactive remains an Authorised VMware Cloud Service Provider. What’s more, we’ve been recognised as Broadcom’s 2024 APAC VMware VCSP Partner of the Year , and Broadcom’s 2025 APAC Sovereign Cloud Partner of the Year – a reflection of the depth of our VMware practice and commitment to customer outcomes.  

With a broad portfolio, a proven VMware Migration Factory and deep experience supporting VMware environments at scale, Interactive is uniquely positioned to help organisations move forward -whether that means migrating away from an existing partner, optimising a current VMware environment, or transitioning to a new platform altogether. 

While you may feel pressure to move, your VMware decision shouldn’t be rushed. It should be based on a thorough assessment of your options, giving you the confidence to make the right decision for your business with a clear understanding of all your options. 

Here’s what you need to know before you make the call.  

What’s changed, and why it matters now 

 Over the past year, Broadcom changed the VMware partner ecosystem, reducing the number of authorised Cloud Service Providers and implementing a change to the White Label model from April 2027. As a result, VMware customers now need to engage directly with an authorised VCSP to renew, expand or materially change their environments.  

If your organisation’s impacted, now’s the time to decide what those changes mean for your platform strategy going forward, especially as VMware Cloud Foundation 9 (VCF 9) becomes the centrepiece of VMware’s private cloud roadmap. 

It’s important to recognise that VMware today isn’t the same platform many organisations deployed five or ten years ago. Broadcom’s direction with VCF 9 reflects a deliberate evolution toward a deeply integrated, feature‑rich private cloud platform – designed to rival hyperscalers in capability. 

That evolution changes the nature of the decision organisations now face. Some organisations will find that staying on VMware with the right partner provides continuity, performance and long‑term value. Others will decide that this is the right moment to migrate. The risk isn’t in either choice. It’s in making a decision based on urgency, legacy assumptions or partner constraints rather than what best serves the organisation. 

The great revaluation 

The changes to the VMware ecosystem have created an opportunity. One where organisations can reconsider the role the platform plays in the business. So, in light of the changes, it makes sense to look at your environment with fresh eyes.  

This moment is not about vendors or partner programs. It’s about revisiting first principles. What workloads differentiate your business? Where do you need performance and resilience? What have you outgrown? What would your infrastructure look like if you were designing it today? That’s a different conversation to “who can I call to keep the lights on.” 

The organisations that “win” this transition will be the ones that approach this decision with strategic foresight. Conversely, the organisations that aim to reduce short-term friction by making a quick, reactive decision risk locking in the wrong architecture for the next phase of growth. 

Option 1: Stay with VMware 

 VMware invented server virtualisation. And Broadcom’s direction with VMware Cloud Foundation 9 (VCF 9) reflects that innovator DNA.  

VCF 9 is not just a hypervisor refresh – it’s a full‑stack private cloud platform that tightly integrates compute, storage, networking, security, Kubernetes and lifecycle management into a single architecture. For organisations running complex, regulated or performance‑sensitive environments, that integration makes a world of difference. 

VCF 9’s promise shows up in its performance metrics. It delivers 5.6x the pod density and 4.9x faster pod readiness compared to Red Hat OpenShift on identical hardware. In practical terms, that means more workloads running on less hardware. As the cost of new hardware rises, the ability to do more with less is more important than ever. VCF 9 delivers that capability in spades, enabling you to make the most of what you already have and avoid unnecessary hardware spend.   

Those efficiencies add up to a meaningful Total Cost of Ownership reduction, which makes a solid argument that VMware is still worth the licensing cost. 

Beyond raw performance gains, VCF 9 delivers a feature set that many alternatives require stitching together from multiple tools: 

• Built‑in Kubernetes (via vSphere Kubernetes Service) for running modern and traditional workloads side by side. 
• Integrated networking and security, reducing reliance on third‑party tooling and operational overhead. 
• Centralised lifecycle management across the full stack, simplifying upgrades, patching and compliance. 
• Consistent operations across private, hybrid and edge environments. 

For organisations balancing legacy workloads with modern application platforms, this level of native integration can materially reduce complexity, operational risk and long‑term cost. 

Staying on VMware isn’t the default, it’s the right strategic move for many organisations. It’s familiar, reliable and on raw platform performance, it’s pulling further ahead of the alternatives. The intent is to deliver platforms that behave more like hyperscale clouds, but remain private, sovereign and architecturally controlled. VMware still leads the category it invented and is actively investing in staying there.   The question you should actually ask is whether VMware’s increased focus on performance aligns with your environment today, and what it needs to be tomorrow. That’s your decision to make – the partner landscape shouldn’t make it for you.  

Option 2: Migrate, on your terms 

Not every organisation will choose to align to VMware’s new direction. And the decision to move away can be just as strategic as staying. A premium, performance-focused platform built for hyperscale private compute is the right fit for some but may mean unnecessary capability or cost for others. 

If your assessment lands on migration, the main paths worth evaluating are private cloud, public cloud or a combination of both. Each offers different trade‑offs in cost, control, scalability and compliance. Private cloud gives you the control and compliance benefits of dedicated infrastructure, with Interactive’s Private Cloud delivering comparable performance and lower costs compared to public cloud. If you run unpredictable workloads where speed of deployment takes priority over cost predictability, public cloud may suit. 

Many organisations end up with a mix of both, with the destination matching the workload’s unique needs.  

With a proven Migration Factory, Interactive supports migrations in a way that reduces risk, accelerates execution and removes cost uncertainty. Fixed‑price migrations, zero setup fees and destination‑agnostic expertise ensure your organisation can move forward at the right pace. We’ll help you make an informed, confident decision -backed by the vendor-agnostic expertise that’s been supporting Australian IT environments through several generations of innovation since 1988. 

Make a smart decision, not a speedy one

If your technology partner can no longer support VMware, their preference may be for you to migrate away from it. But this is not a decision that should be driven by timing pressure or partner constraints. There’s a new VMware, and it’s a powerful growth enabler for many organisations. 

Regardless of vendor preferences, this is a question your organisation should answer for itself:
 

 If you could stay on VMware without a migration, would you?  

Whether you migrate away from VMware or not, Interactive can help.  

How Interactive can help 

Interactive remains an Authorised VMware Cloud Service Provider under the new program. We can support VMware continuity and migration discussions – meaning our advice isn’t shaped by whether you stay or go, but what makes sense for your organisation.  

We’ve been a VMware partner since 2009, and we operate one of Australia’s largest VMware-based private clouds. Our Private Cloud solution can be deployed anywhere: At one of our 100% Australian-owned data centres – which are optimised for performance and uptime, at a third-party data centre of your choice, or on-premises.  

Recognised as Broadcom’s 2025 Sovereign Cloud Partner of the Year reflects a capability built to meet the Australian data residency and compliance requirements of government agencies, regulated industries and risk-sensitive enterprises. 

Our long-standing VMware partnership means we know the technology inside out. Our team includes 52 active VMware-certified specialists, more than 100 VMware-accredited engineers and a 24×7 Australian-based service desk covering L1 and L2 support. We bill in AUD, meaning no cost surprises. 

If you’re looking at moving your VMware environment, our Migration Factory makes that transition simple and cost-efficient. We offer fixed-price migrations with zero setup fees, regardless of your source environment.  

Although we can meet your VMware needs, we’re vendor-agnostic. Our goal is to match your technology solutions with your operational reality and organisational objectives. So, if you’re evaluating a broader platform change, we can support that too – to private cloud, Azure or AWS – with the same commercial clarity. 

If you’re still unsure whether to move away from VMware right now or migrate your licenses to an authorised partner, we can help guide you through each option so you can make an informed decision.  

 View our VMware migration and strategy services to find out more or book a consultation with our expert team to assess your options.