VMware alternatives are taking advantage of the turmoil caused by Broadcom. Since the pricing and licensing changes earlier this year at VMware, Scale Computing has been doing good business. It may even surpass 50 percent growth in 2024 over the previous year, states CEO Jeff Ready.
“With the #1 rated product, support team, and channel program in the industry, we are seeing our business explode to the upside in the aftermath of the Broadcom-VMware acquisition,” Ready said. Growth is occurring in all regions. Scale emphasizes that sales are being led by partners, which is a not-too-subtle reference to the fact that VMware/Broadcom has been reducing its partner network significantly.
We previously spoke at length with Scale CEO Jeff Ready: Scale CEO: “Shocking” VMware saga offers an opportunity to approach IT differently
Seamless transition or “Rip & Replace”
For partners, the switch from VMware to an alternative may sound a bit threatening. The “VMware Rip & Replace Program,” despite its somewhat aggressive-sounding name, makes that a lot easier. There is a 25 percent discount on Scale software and services for every new customer, a selling point that comes across as a lot friendlier.
Those who do still have the old hardware and ongoing licenses will benefit from “Seamless Switch.” This program transfers existing licenses and equipment to Scale whenever possible.
It is a commercial expression of the clear aversion Scale appears to have toward Broadcom’s approach. Unsurprisingly, Ready spoke of a “shocking” situation over at Broadcom and promised that Scale would never act so rigorously with customers or fire partners en masse. “It has a big impact, especially for mid-sized companies, non-profits and schools. Special discounts for those groups are gone,” he noted.
Scaling up
Our earlier conversation with Jeff Ready revealed that the influx of VMware departures had momentarily been disruptive, but within a few weeks, things were already back to smooth running within Scale Computing. That’s just as well for their business, as hundreds of partners in all regions have signed on. Scale is having to scale up, consequently.
However, a core aspect of Scale is in an entirely different part of IT than virtualization: edge computing. For that application, Scale had already been present with many VMware customers, as Virtzilla’s offering is not at all suitable for situations where compute resources are very limited.
The rise of edge computing has been taking place for years, but Scale continues to grow there as well. It has also recently signed a partnership with Reskube, for example, to further deepen its edge offerings.
Also read: Microsoft is also scrambling to acquire VMware customers