Broadcom Cuts VMware Partner Levels to Focus on Top Resellers
By Scharon Harding • Jun 2, 2025
Getting the Ax: What’s Changing in the VMware Partner Program
In a strategic move to concentrate on high-volume customers and deepen technical engagements, Broadcom has eliminated the Registered tier from its VMware reseller program. Announced in a blog post by Broadcom executive Brian Moats, the new structure reduces partner levels from four to three: Pinnacle, Premier, and Select.
Key Details of the Restructuring
- Registered tier officially sunset; 60 days’ notice to affected partners across Americas, Asia–Pacific, and Japan.
- New minimum requirements for Pinnacle and Premier: dedicated sales and technical headcount, joint business plans, and annual revenue thresholds (e.g.,
$25M+for Pinnacle,$10M+for Premier). - Select partners must retain at least 10 VMware-certified staff and maintain a minimum annual billings baseline.
- Top-tier Pinnacle partners must achieve or renew Expert Advantage Professional Services Partner status or operate a dedicated SMB practice leveraging VMware “Cross-Cloud Services.”
“The vast majority of customer impact and business momentum comes from partners operating within the top three tiers,”
— Brian Moats, SVP, Broadcom
Rationale Behind the Cuts
Broadcom cites its “strategic direction” and a “comprehensive partner review” as drivers behind the cuts. Laura Falko, Head of Global Partner Programs, says most eliminated partners were inactive or lacked the capabilities to assist customers in a hybrid-cloud era powered by technologies like VMware Tanzu and vSphere 8 with AI observability extensions.
Technical and Commercial Implications
By focusing on a leaner ecosystem, Broadcom aims to:
- Accelerate integration of AI/ML services through VMware’s Project Monterey network offload capabilities.
- Enhance sales of bundled offerings—VMware vSphere+, vSAN, NSX, and Aria suite—through partners with deep professional services frameworks.
- Streamline support SLAs by reducing partner handoffs and consolidating service-level agreements under certified top-tier resellers.
Additional Analysis
Impact on VMware’s Cloud Strategy
With the push toward VMware Cloud Foundation and VMware Cross-Cloud services, Broadcom is betting that a tighter, higher-skilled partner base will drive adoption of subscription-based, API-driven infrastructure. IDC data shows that partners generating >30% of revenue from cloud migrations outperformed peers by 15% in customer retention. By weeding out smaller resellers, Broadcom hopes to accelerate enterprise upgrades to vSphere+ and NSX Advanced Load Balancer.
Alternative Channels and Competitive Responses
Some displaced partners, like Canada’s Members IT Group, are migrating clients to HPE VM Essentials or exploring offerings from Microsoft Azure VMware Solution and AWS Outposts. Gartner analysts warn that reducing partner count could drive channel migrations to Nutanix, Microsoft, and open-source virtualization stacks such as KVM and Proxmox, especially among SMB customers facing 50%+ price hikes.
Expert Opinions
“Restricting the partner base may backfire by pushing end customers toward public-cloud stacks or alternative hypervisors,”
— Michael Warrilow, VP Analyst, Gartner
“We saw 24-day delays in quote processing post-acquisition—inefficiencies these cuts won’t solve for SMBs,”
— Dean Colpitts, CTO, Members IT Group
Broader Industry Risks and Opportunities
Broadcom’s channel consolidation arrives amid broader industry consolidation in cloud infrastructure. While a leaner partner program can yield stronger technical engagements, the firm risks alienating long-standing resellers and accelerating the search for multi-cloud, hyperconverged, or open-source alternatives. Conversely, it opens the door to onboarding new, high-velocity partners capable of driving large-scale migrations to VMware’s subscription and SaaS portfolio.
Categories: Cloud Computing, Tech News