Fidelity sues Broadcom, says cutoff of VMware software threatens major system failures

Fidelity Technology Group, the tech arm of investment manager Fidelity, told a court in Suffolk County on Friday that Broadcom is about to pull the plug on software the company has used for years, causing huge system failures across all of its platforms.

The filing said the conflict began when Broadcom told Fidelity it would end its access to the VMware tools after January 21, a move Fidelity said could shut down trading, block customers from their accounts, and break the systems its workers use each day.

Fidelity said it filed the action because it believes Broadcom is ignoring a contract that came with VMware long before Broadcom bought the company.

Fidelity challenges Broadcom over VMware access

The lawsuit said VMware’s virtualization software has powered Fidelity’s virtual servers since 2005, and the company said it built most of its internal and customer-facing systems on top of that setup.

Fidelity said the software became central to how it handles account access, trade execution, and everyday service for its nearly 50 million customers.

Fidelity explained that this fight began in 2023 when Broadcom completed its purchase of VMware and changed the entire product lineup.

The filing said Broadcom took the older VMware tools and rebuilt them into new bundles that cost far more than the separate products Fidelity used for years.

Fidelity said that when it tried to renew its old subscription, Broadcom refused to honor the VMware contract. Fidelity said Broadcom pushed it to buy the new bundle instead of the tools it already used, which the company said would change its tech setup in a way that made no sense for its systems.

Fidelity argued that losing access on the date Broadcom first gave, December 22, would have made it impossible to keep its platforms running.

Fidelity’s filing said the company told the court it would need at least 18 to 24 months to move to a new setup because of how deeply VMware runs through its servers.

The filing said Broadcom later agreed to extend the cutoff to January 21, giving the judge time to hear the case. Fidelity said this delay helps only for now, because the threat to its operations still stands if access ends.

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