VMware licensing costs are driving customers toward multi-hypervisor and container strategies

According to a Rimini Street survey of 300 VMware users worldwide, 60% are contemplating a multi-hypervisor strategy, while 47% favor a combination of hypervisors and containers. The survey, conducted by Rimini Street, a third-party support provider for VMware and other enterprise software, indicates that operational complexity is the most significant barrier to changing virtualization strategies, cited by 40% of respondents.

Managing multi-vendor environments and addressing the expanded attack surface also emerged as concerns for 38% and 37% of respondents, respectively. License savings are a factor, but interest in combining hypervisors and containers suggests that some customers want to rethink their approach to workload placement, not just switch to another virtualization vendor.

This approach could lead to organizations supporting existing VMware systems while introducing new technologies. The survey does not indicate how many respondents have implemented these changes. Despite the drive for change, organizations are cautious, aiming to minimize risk and disruption. Ninety percent of respondents attribute their interest in alternatives to higher VMware licensing costs, with 73% prioritizing cost savings in their virtualization plans.

Additionally, 54% cited Broadcom's decision to end support for perpetual license holders, with some customers reporting substantial price increases, ranging from 100% to 1,000%. However, not all customers are eager to move to VMware's hybrid cloud platform, with 48% stating they have no plans to migrate assets. Gartner predicts that by 2029, 55% of enterprises will test alternatives to VMware deployments for distributed hybrid infrastructure, up from 25% in 2026.

The survey underscores the challenge of reducing reliance on a single vendor, as adding platforms increases the number of systems that IT teams must manage and secure.