One of the biggest criticism VMware received during its phenomenal rising these years is that its strategy doesn’t care enough of SMB market: prices too high, complex technical prerequisites, features for niche audiences.
virtualization.info supposed how Microsoft still has a chance to take over VMware passing through SMBs, despite its hypervisor is not even here.
With new funds collected during its IPO, VMware may be finally ready to address smaller customers needs, launching new tools at upcoming VMworld 2007.
A signal of this change is coming from the company itself, with its Director of Small and Medium Business, Ben Matheson, which recently summarized what VMware did so far to lower virtualization entry costs: a cheap ($1,000) Virtual Infrastructure 3 edition, a free enterprise plaftorm (VMware Server), a free P2V tool (VMware Converter 3).
What else will be exposed at VMworld?
virtualization.info revealed a couple of major improvements which will positively impact the SMB market:
- the hardware appliance form for ESX Server 3.5 (formerly 3.1)
- the second version of VMware Server (finally will be centrally managed by VirtualCenter 2.5)
but there is a serious chance VMware will have other announcements for small companies at VMworld: SMB market is where XenSource (now with renewed energies, after Citrix acquisition), Virtual Iron, SWsoft, and soon Microsoft, will embitter competition most.