VMware to cut 900 staff - reports

Rumoured cutbacks said to be driven by fall in share price and weak bookings

VMware is to announce it will cut its 18,000-strong global headcount by five per cent this week, according to two reports in the US press.

Fortune was first to report news of the rumoured cutbacks, which it said relate to Dell, EMC and VMware's efforts to drag their $67bn (£47bn) over the goal line.

Citing sources close to the virtualisation vendor, the report said VMware will lay off up to 900 staff this week, with the announcement possibly coming as part of its Q4 earnings statement tomorrow.

A later report on Bloomberg also cited the 900 figure. It said the rumoured cutbacks reflect VMware's share price decline, weaker bookings and concerns about EMC's acquisition by Dell.

VMware declined to confirm the story, saying it "cannot comment on rumour or speculation".

Cutbacks at EMC are already under way, with the storage giant announcing on 30 December that a reduction in its workforce this quarter will cost it $250m in associated charges.

Dell and EMC's planned union has not been plain sailing so far, with VMware in December backing out of plans to join forces with EMC on its new cloud venture, Virtustream.