VMware acquires hybrid cloud solution company DynamicOps

VMware has announced the acquisition of Mass.-based cloud computing startup DynamicOps, which will allow the company to expand beyond the delivery and development of software utilized only for its own cloud platform.

DynamicOps specializes in cloud management suites, known in the corporate market for turning existing -- and potentially old or outdated -- IT infrastructures into more flexible, efficient and dynamic environments which mimic public cloud systems.

VMware is one of the leaders in virtualization space, but the acquisition of DynamicOps may mean it plans to go beyond the licensing of virtual machines and instead expand into application management that can be hosted on different platforms -- whether VMware, Xen, Amazon's Elastic Compute Cloud (ECC) or a KVM virtual space.

Today's modern data centres may be attempting to manage multiple software stacks and applications that are independent, or restricted to particular kinds of IT infrastructure. DynamicOps creates an orchestration layer in existing IT structures that hosts a private platform for these apps to run effectively -- and hybrid cloud models like this are increasingly popular.

What this means for customers is that rather than being tied down to a single, virtual space, VMware will be offering a new way for enterprise clients to manage multiple cloud environments through their IT departments.

As the technology and business spheres become more firmly meshed, it is these kinds of options that customers will begin to require and expect. If VMware is to remain relevant, it is these types of key decisions which will support the company's long-term future.

The specific details of the agreement remain undisclosed. However, unnamed sources have told Gigaom that the sale price was between $100 million and $150 million.