Broadcom and VMware Intend to Close Transaction on November 22, 2023
investors.broadcom.comAnd the bloodbath in Palo Alto begins...
We have been informed they are dropping their academic list pricing entirely, which will cause many institutions to pay double or even triple what they do now. As a result, several major universities (specifically the Big Ten but I'm sure many others are as well) are looking into alternatives to reduce license costs ahead of next year's contract negotiations.
Source: Someone higher up in my department.
There are open source alternatives. Perhaps they could even help contribute to development? Those licenses must not be cheap, seems like the money would be better used paying OSS developers. A few big institutions making an effort to free themselves of commercial software might have a meaningful impact.