AT&T sues Broadcom for breach of contract, citing national security risk

In its complaint, AT&T said the Broadcom threat poses a risk not only to critical government services but also potentially to national security and public safety. The telecommunications company stressed that millions of its customers, including police, fire departments and government agencies, rely on VMware software to ensure seamless communications during emergencies.

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

In the complaint, AT&T emphasized that Broadcom’s support services include daily maintenance, security patches and updates critical to AT&T’s continued functionality. “Without the support services, AT&T’s software, and therefore its critical operations, are at risk of failure,” the lawsuit added.

Broadcom’s Alleged Brute Force Tactics

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

“Broadcom is attempting to intimidate 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 around the world,” the company said in the letter.

AT&T argued that it had a contractual right to renew support services under an existing agreement that was signed before Broadcom acquired VMware. However, Broadcom allegedly refused to honor those renewal terms unless AT&T agreed to purchase bundled subscription services, which increases AT&T’s operating costs by millions.