Chipmaker Broadcom has obtained approval from the European Union’s antitrust authority for its proposed acquisition of VMware worth $61 billion. This deal marks Broadcom’s largest ever and serves as a means for the company to expand into the enterprise software market.
To address concerns regarding competition, Broadcom has made commitments to support rival Marvell Technology and other competitors. These commitments involve providing interoperability resources and technical support related to Fibre Channel Host-Bus Adapters (FC HBAs), which are storage adapters. Marvell and other rivals will have guaranteed access to the necessary tools, materials, technical support, and application programming interfaces for the development and certification of third-party FC HBAs. Additionally, they will be granted access to the source code of all current and future FC HBA drivers through an irrevocable open-source license.
Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s antitrust chief, stated that the commitments made by Broadcom will ensure that Marvell, as the only rival, can continue to compete on an equal footing, and they will also protect potential future entrants. The US Federal Trade Commission and the UK competition agency are also reviewing the acquisition. Broadcom has received legal merger clearance in several countries, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, the European Union, South Africa, and Taiwan, and has obtained foreign investment control clearance in all relevant jurisdictions.
Broadcom acknowledged this progress in a statement and stated that it is continuing to advance its regulatory filings worldwide.
