EMC takes the gloves off with VMware

Five years after purchasing VMware, EMC is becoming more aggressive in selling its own products and services alongside those of its virtualization subsidiary.

In the six months since firing VMware CEO Diane Greene, who had battled to keep the subsidiary as independent as possible, EMC has strengthened integration between its storage and VMware's hypervisor; unveiled replication software for VMware environments; updated data-protection software to improve backup for VMware customers; and acquired 500,000 additional shares of VMware stock.

Most recently, EMC became certified as a gold-level VMware Authorized Consultant (VAC), allowing the storage company to offer strategy, design and implementation services to VMware customers.

Greene, who was ousted in July and replaced with former Microsoft executive Paul Maritz, had always lobbied for VMware's independence, telling Network World just weeks before her departure that VMware relies heavily on partners and must be able to "execute in an unfettered way."  

EMC today is making defensive moves against other storage vendors, because server virtualization is a huge driver for the purchase of networked storage systems, says Forrester Research analyst Andrew Reichman. (Compare storage products.)  

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