T-Mobile Sues Broadcom Over VMware Support

T-Mobile filed a lawsuit in the Supreme Court of the State of New York in August 2025, seeking a judicial declaration that Broadcom is contractually obligated to continue supporting its VMware perpetual licenses. The telecommunications company stated that it operates tens of thousands of virtual machines utilizing VMware software, spanning approximately 303,140 CPU cores. T-Mobile is in the process of migrating these virtual machines away from VMware, a process it described as time-consuming and technically challenging, particularly given the need to migrate over 1,000 applications. The lawsuit was first reported by The Register.

The core of T-Mobile's legal action centers on the interpretation of its existing perpetual licenses for VMware software, which it acquired prior to Broadcom's acquisition of VMware in November 2023. T-Mobile contends that these perpetual licenses should guarantee ongoing support and maintenance from the software provider, irrespective of changes in ownership. Broadcom, following its acquisition, has reportedly shifted its licensing and support model, leading to concerns among existing customers about the future availability and cost of support for their VMware deployments.

This move by T-Mobile highlights a broader industry concern regarding the integration of VMware into Broadcom's portfolio and the potential impact on customers who rely on VMware's virtualization technology. The company's decision to pursue legal action underscores the significant operational and financial implications of a forced migration away from a deeply integrated infrastructure. The outcome of this lawsuit could set a precedent for other large enterprises facing similar challenges with their VMware environments under Broadcom's new ownership.