bodyType

customContents

entityId

printArticlePageQuery

filter

article

body

urlAlias

articleSectionsContent

articleSeoArticle

articleSourceHeaderArticle

contentSchemaRenderContent

contentSubHeadlineContent

contentHeadlineContent

mainImagePrintArticleArticle

authorBlockPrintArticleArticle

contentSponsorTagContent

articlePianoPaywallContent

scmpYoutubeContent

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

query printArticlePageQuery(
  $entityId: String!
  $customContents: [CustomContentInput]
  $bodyType: BodyFormatTypeEnum
) {
  article(filter: {entityId: $entityId}) {
    entityId
    body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
      json
    }
    urlAlias
    ...articleSectionsContent
    ...articleSeoArticle_3o8td4
    ...articleSourceHeaderArticle
    ...contentSchemaRenderContent
    ...contentSubHeadlineContent
    ...contentHeadlineContent
    ...mainImagePrintArticleArticle
    ...authorBlockPrintArticleArticle
    ...contentSponsorTagContent
    ...articlePianoPaywallContent
    ...scmpYoutubeContent
    ...hooksTrackPageViewArticle
    id
  }
}

fragment articlePianoPaywallContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksPaywallPromiseContent
}

fragment articleSectionsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      ...helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection
      ...entityLink
      name
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment articleSeoArticle_3o8td4 on Article {
  ...hooksArticleSeoArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersGetArticleTypeArticle
  entityId
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
  summary {
    text
  }
  subHeadline {
    text
  }
  body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
    text
  }
  keywords
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  topics {
    name
    entityId
    id
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  images {
    style(filter: {style: "768x768"}) {
      url
    }
  }
  readingTime
}

fragment articleSourceHeaderArticle on Article {
  urlAlias
  ...entityLink
}

fragment authorBlockPrintArticleArticle on Article {
  ...defaultArticleDateContent
  ...authorNamesArticle
}

fragment authorNameAuthor on Author {
  ...entityLink
  name
  entityUuid
}

fragment authorNamesArticle on Article {
  authorLocations
  authors {
    entityId
    location
    ...authorNameAuthor
    id
  }
}

fragment blockquoteQuoteContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment contentHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  socialHeadline
  ...contentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
}

fragment contentNewsletterWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
    id
  }
  sections {
    value {
      relatedNewsletters {
        ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
        id
      }
      id
    }
  }
  ... on Article {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment contentSchemaRenderContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...blockquoteQuoteContent
  ...imageContent
  ...inlineWidgetContent
  ...photoGalleryWidgetContent
  ...scmpYoutubeContent
}

fragment contentShareWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  shortUrl
  socialHeadline
  headline
}

fragment contentSponsorTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentSubHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  subHeadline {
    json
  }
  summary {
    json
  }
  ...contentSchemaRenderContent
}

fragment defaultArticleDateContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksArticleDateUtilsContent
}

fragment entityLink on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  __typename
  entityId
  entityUuid
  urlAlias
  urlRedirect {
    toUrl
    id
  }
  application {
    entityId
    id
  }
  ... on Section {
    fullSectionPath {
      entityId
      id
    }
    parentSection
  }
  ...helpersAppBarVariantBase
  ...helpersApplicationBase
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersAppBarVariantBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsLiveArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...helpersSectionContent
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersApplicationBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
}

fragment helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection on Section {
  name
}

fragment helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle on Article {
  entityId
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  disableOffPlatformContent
  sponsorType
  published
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment helpersCheckIsLiveArticle on Article {
  flattenTypeIds
  liveArticle {
    status
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    paywallTypes {
      entityUuid
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsStyleArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersGetArticleTypeArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        entityId
        id
      }
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter on Newsletter {
  entityId
  name
  alternativeName
  description {
    text
  }
  summary {
    text
  }
  homepageDescription {
    text
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle on Article {
  authors {
    types
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersStyleSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersUseContentSponsorContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    sponsor {
      ...sponsorTagSponsor
      name
      type
      id
    }
    id
  }
  ... on Article {
    sponsorType
  }
  ...helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent
}

fragment hooksArticleDateUtilsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  createdDate
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
}

fragment hooksArticleSeoArticle on Article {
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle
  entityId
  headline
  socialHeadline
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
  images {
    generic_og: style(filter: {style: "og_image_scmp_generic"}) {
      url
    }
    styles(filter: {styles: ["og_image_posties_article", "og_postmag", "og_image_style", "og_image_scmp_analysis", "og_image_scmp_explainer", "og_image_scmp_editorial", "og_image_scmp_fact_check", "og_image_scmp_debate", "og_image_scmp_live", "og_image_scmp_obituary", "og_image_scmp_opinion", "og_image_scmp_review", "og_image_scmp_series", "og_image_scmp_generic"]}) {
      url
      style
    }
    type
  }
  urlAlias
}

fragment hooksContentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        name
        entityId
        description {
          text
        }
        id
      }
    }
    ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  }
  flag
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  ...hooksContentHelperContent
}

fragment hooksContentHelperContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle
  ...helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle
  ...helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle
  flag
}

fragment hooksPaywallPromiseContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment hooksTrackPageViewArticle on Article {
  entityId
  publishedDate
  headline
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  entityUuid
}

fragment imageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  ...checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent
}

fragment inlineWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentNewsletterWidgetContent
}

fragment mainImagePrintArticleArticle on Article {
  images {
    title
    url
    isSlideshow
    size_652x446: style(filter: {style: "652x446"}) {
      url
    }
  }
}

fragment photoGalleryDialogContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment photoGalleryWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...photoGalleryDialogContent
}

fragment scmpYoutubeContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  publishedDate
}

fragment sponsorTagSponsor on Sponsor {
  name
  type
  images {
    url
  }
}


sections

types

disableOffPlatformContent

sponsorType

published

headline

socialHeadline

authors

images

publishedDate

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

keywords

topics

readingTime

authorLocations

entityUuid

Bloomberg

Broadcom agreed to buy cloud-computing company VMware for about US$61 billion, sealing one of the largest technology deals in history and advancing the chip maker’s quest to become a force in corporate software.
VMware shareholders can choose to receive either US$142.50 in cash or 0.2520 shares of Broadcom stock for each VMware share, according to a statement on Thursday. The offer represents about a 44 per cent premium to VMware’s closing price on May 20.
The deal marks the biggest-ever takeover for a semiconductor maker and extends an acquisition spree for Broadcom Chief Executive Officer Hock Tan, who has built one of the largest and most diversified companies in the industry.
UK to conduct in-depth review of Shanghai Kington’s acquisition of Welsh firm
VMware bolsters Broadcom’s software offerings – a key part of Tan’s strategy in recent years. He acquired corporate-software maker CA Technologies in 2018 and Symantec’s enterprise security business in 2019.
Broadcom’s offer – coming during a market downturn for tech stocks – has the support of key VMware shareholders Michael Dell and Silver Lake, and includes a so-called go-shop provision that allows VMware to solicit competing offers.
VMware will be required to pay a US$1.5 billion break-up fee if it backs out of the deal, unless it secures a superior agreement by July 5. Then the amount will be just US$750 million. Broadcom must pay VMware US$1.5 billion if it terminates the deal or if the transaction fails to get regulatory clearance.
Broadcom, one of the most valuable companies in the chip industry, sells components for everything from the iPhone to industrial equipment. But it is seeing some of its biggest growth from data centres – the massive server hubs that power cloud-computing services – and bulking up on software helps it further serve that market.
Tan had warned investors in March that he was on the hunt for deals, saying at the time that the company had the capacity for a “good size” acquisition. Bloomberg News first reported that the VMware talks were underway on May 22, and that company’s shares soared 25 per cent the next day.
Slashing expenses has been a key part of Tan’s strategy when he buys companies. Broadcom cut the cost base at CA and the Symantec business by 60 per cent to 70 per cent, according to Sanford C. Bernstein.
“Building upon our proven track record of successful M&A, this transaction combines our leading semiconductor and infrastructure software businesses with an iconic pioneer and innovator in enterprise software,” said Tan in a statement.
SK Hynix latest semiconductor giant to eye potential acquisition of British firm Arm
VMware has faced slowing revenue growth – a rate that is now below 10 per cent a year – as its flagship virtualisation software line matures. But it is a reliable source of profitable sales, Broadcom software head Tom Krause said in an interview.
“Is it a double-digit growth business? I don’t think so,” he said. But it’s sustainable, Krause said. “When I think about our model, that is the kind of businesses we run and run very well.”
Krause said Broadcom will also evaluate where VMware is spending research-and-development funds, as well as some of the newer businesses that the software maker has acquired. But units like its security business and end-user computing unit relate well to some of Broadcom’s existing product lines, he said.

Broadcom was previously in talks to purchase SAS Institute, a closely held software company valued at US$15 billion to US$20 billion. But those discussions ended last year without agreement.
Broadcom’s most ambitious takeover attempt ever also failed to gain traction. The company tried to buy rival chip maker Qualcomm but had to walk away from the deal in 2018 after resistance from the Trump administration. Broadcom’s Singapore headquarters was an issue for regulators at the time, but the company has since switched its domicile to the US. It is now based in San Jose, California, about 20 miles from VMware’s Palo Alto headquarters.
The VMware acquisition “doesn’t appear to be a deal that raises antitrust concerns,” said Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Jennifer Rie. “But with the current antitrust climate and the FTC’s mission to be more vigilant on merger reviews, this will probably get in-depth scrutiny.”
While there could be some concern that the portfolio of products the combination would give Broadcom would allow it to bundle or tie products and services in an anticompetitive way, Rie said, she does not think the Federal Trade Commission would go to court to try to block the deal.
VMware is a pioneering Silicon Valley company that was founded in 1998, the same year as Google. It invented virtualisation software, which consolidated applications and workloads on a smaller number of server computers. The innovation made it easier for servers to handle more than one program.
Such software was valuable when businesses managed their own servers, but as companies began relying more on giant cloud providers, VMware’s role was less clear. It struggled to maintain growth and ultimately forged a partnership with Amazon.com, one of the biggest providers of cloud storage and services.
Even with the challenges, VMware could become the “crown jewel of Broadcom’s software division,” according to Angelo Zino, an analyst at CFRA.
VMware has already changed hands before. In 2004, it was acquired by storage technology giant EMC Corp, which then sold a portion of its stake as part of VMware’s initial public offering three years later. The business passed to Dell Technologies when that company acquired EMC in 2016.

VMware spun off from Dell last year, but Dell and private equity backer Silver Lake remain top investors in the software company.
Software would help decrease Broadcom’s reliance on chips. But its earlier forays into that market have not always been cheered by investors. Tan has argued that he looks for businesses that are “franchises” – ones that hold a strong market position and can be made more profitable without pouring in huge investments.
Chip makers like Broadcom have enjoyed booming sales in recent years, fuelled by the spread of semiconductors into more products – as well as by the need for work-from-home technology during the pandemic. But Tan has warned that the boom times probably will not last.
Even after giving a rosy sales forecast in March, Tan said that the semiconductor industry will not be able to stay on its current trajectory. He expects the chip business to decelerate to historical growth rates of about 5 per cent.
“If anyone tells you otherwise, don’t believe it, because it has never happened,” he said on a conference call at the time. Industry leaders claiming that the semiconductor industry can grow at the current rate for an extended period are “dreaming,” he said.
Broadcom is targeting mid single-digit revenue growth for VMware along with Ebitda margins of the whole business in the mid 60 per cent range, Tan said on a call with analysts. “We see a lot of benefits in putting all these various franchises we have, hardware and software, under one umbrella,” he said.


Broadcom to buy VMware for US$61 billion in record chip deal

The Broadcom company logo is shown outside one of its office complexes in Irvine, California, March 4, 2021. Photo: Reuters

Exterior view of VMware headquarters in Palo Alto, California. Photo: AP

Hock Tan, CEO of Broadcom, speaks on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange shortly before the opening bell in New York, February 12, 2018. Photo: Reuters

Tech

Big Tech


Broadcom’s offer – coming during a market downturn for tech stocks – has the support of key VMware shareholders Michael Dell and Silver Lake
VMware is a pioneering Silicon Valley company that was founded in 1998, the same year as Google



Chip maker Broadcom will buy cloud-computing company VMware for about US$61 billion, sealing one of the largest technology deals in history and advancing its quest to become a force in corporate software.


Semiconductors

Broadcom to buy VMware for US$61 billion in record chip deal

Broadcom’s offer – coming during a market downturn for tech stocks – has the support of key VMware shareholders Michael Dell and Silver Lake VMware is a pioneering Silicon Valley company that was founded in 1998, the same year as Google

Broadcom’s offer – coming during a market downturn for tech stocks – has the support of key VMware shareholders Michael Dell and Silver Lake

VMware is a pioneering Silicon Valley company that was founded in 1998, the same year as Google