AT&T sues Broadcom over breach of contract, cites threat to national security

In its complaint, AT&T said Broadcom’s threat poses a risk not only to critical government services but also potentially to national security and public safety. The telecommunications company emphasized that millions of its customers, including police, firefighters, and government agencies, rely on VMware’s software to ensure seamless communication during emergencies​. (Read more about the fallout from Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware in our timeline)

The lawsuit highlights the importance of VMware’s software in AT&T’s infrastructure, which runs across 75,000 virtual machines on 8,600 servers. This technology underpins services for millions of AT&T customers daily, including emergency responders and federal agencies. Without continued support, AT&T argued, the software could fail, leading to widespread service disruptions.

In the complaint, AT&T stressed that Broadcom’s support services include daily maintenance, security patches, and upgrades critical to AT&T’s continued functionality. “Without support services, the software and, by extension, AT&T’s critical operations, are just a glitch away from failure,” the lawsuit added.

Broadcom reacted to the filing, telling Networkworld, “Broadcom strongly disagrees with the allegations and is confident we will prevail in the legal process. VMware has been moving to a subscription model, the standard for the software industry, for several years — beginning before the acquisition by Broadcom. Our focus will continue to be providing our customers choice and flexibility while helping them address their most complex technology challenges.”

Broadcom’s alleged strong-arm tactics

The legal filing follows growing concerns in the tech industry over Broadcom’s aggressive post-acquisition strategies. AT&T claimed that Broadcom’s actions are part of a broader pattern of “bullying tactics,” designed to pressure customers into costly subscription models.

“Broadcom is attempting to bully AT&T into paying a king’s ransom for subscriptions AT&T does not want or need, or risk widespread network outages that could cripple the operations of millions of AT&T customers worldwide,” the company stated in the filing​.