Key facts
- Five European cloud business groups have urged EU antitrust regulators to suspend Broadcom's business practices.
- The groups accuse Broadcom of imposing steep price increases on VMware's virtualization platform users.
- They also allege Broadcom is excluding thousands of providers from deploying and purchasing the platform.
- The groups requested interim measures and a transition period of at least three years.
- Broadcom denies the allegations and states commitment to its European VMware Cloud Service Provider partners.
Five European cloud business groups, led by the Cloud Infrastructure Services Providers in Europe (CISPE), have jointly urged EU antitrust regulators to impose interim measures against U.S. chipmaker Broadcom. The groups accuse Broadcom of imposing steep price increases on users of VMware's virtualization platform and excluding thousands of providers from deploying and purchasing it.
CISPE, which represents nearly 50 members including associate members Microsoft and Amazon, initially raised concerns in March after Broadcom revamped its VMware cloud service provider ecosystem following its acquisition of VMware in 2023. The European Commission had already begun questioning these licensing changes.
Now, Belgium's Beltug, France's Cigref, Germany's VOICE, and CIO Platform Nederland have joined CISPE in a letter dated July 10. They implore EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera and EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen to act swiftly and impose interim measures, requesting a transition period of at least three years while the investigation continues.
A Broadcom spokesperson stated that the company disagrees with the allegations, characterizing CISPE as an organization funded by large cloud service providers that misrepresent market realities. The spokesperson affirmed Broadcom's commitment to investing in its European VMware Cloud Service Provider partners to offer alternatives to hyperscalers and meet evolving business needs.