Will VMware Cloud on Amazon Web Services (AWS) and IBM lead to similar VMware offerings on Google Cloud Platform and Microsoft Azure? Pat Gelsinger, CEO of the virtualization software provider, seems to be indicating yes.
As you may recall, VMware sold its struggling public cloud service to OVH in 2017 -- clearing the way for the virtualization company to build a cloud service (often called VMC) atop AWS.
During an earnings call yesterday, Gelsinger indicated that VMC for AWS is off to a fast start and expanding across Europe and Asia. First movers on the platform include Presidio, the midmarket IT solutions provider.
VMware Multi-Cloud Strategy: AWS, IBM, Google and Microsoft
When a financial analyst asked if VMware would build similar services atop Google Cloud Platform and Microsoft Azure, Gelsinger offered a diplomatic answer. First, he injected existing partner IBM into the conversation. Then he addressed the other top public cloud platforms. Gelsinger statement: "Yes," similar moves with Google and Microsoft are planned.
Then he added:
"The two foundational relationships that we have launched for Amazon and IBM -- our two key public cloud partnerships --are going very well as I indicated. We don’t breakout numbers specifically, but the VMware Cloud Provider Program, of which IBM is central, had another very good quarter. It's seeing great momentum and the IBM partnership is going well. But as you suggest, we do see that customers will be using multiple cloud providers in the future, so we are expanding our relationship with Azure."
Gelsinger didn't exactly say that full-blown VMC services will surface on Azure and Google. But he did mention a bunch of services that are arriving on those clouds -- particularly these:
- Azure: NSX and VDI, with more VMware management products for Azure are on the way.
- Google Cloud Platform: VMware has partnered with Google and Kubernetes. Also, Android- and Chromebook-related offerings involve the virtualization company.
Longer term, Gelsinger added. added, "you can see us filling in more of those service offerings with the other clouds and we really see that our strategy as we have called it is a multi-cloud one, where we enable customers to take advantage of private cloud in combination with multiple public cloud providers."
His conclusion: VMware is already "leading the way" with the Amazon and IBM partnerships. But the company will also "fill out that portfolio of both cloud partners" (apparently referring to Google and Microsoft) and service offerings.
VMware Quarterly Results
The company's Q1 revenue for fiscal 2019 was $2.01 billion, up 14 percent from Q1 during fiscal 2018, VMware said yesterday. The company tossed around marketing jargon like "digital infrastructure" momentum. Remove the jargon, and the actual momentum involves growing demand for VMware's network virtualization (NSX) and storage virtualization (vSAN) technologies.
During the quarter, new Channel Chief Jenni Flinders hit the ground running, and the company also furthered its MSP partner strategy.
Amid the company's growing momentum, chatter about parent Dell potentially merging or pursing some other deeper financial relationship with VMware continues. From time to time, that chatter has raised concerns about VMware's long-term financial independence from Dell.
