Netflix files lawsuit against Broadcom over virtual machine patent infringement

Netflix has filed a lawsuit against Broadcom, accusing its subsidiary VMware of infringing patents related to virtual machines.

Here's What We Know

As part of the lawsuit, Netflix claims that Broadcom and VMware have infringed five patents related to the use of processors in virtual machines and the configuration of these machines on physical devices.

According to Reuters, the lawsuit was filed in the District Court of California. In the document, Netflix notes that Broadcom is responsible for all violations, as VMware is its subsidiary. The plaintiff also claims that VMware has gained its reputation by using the technological innovations of other companies.

Netflix points to VMware's cloud solutions, in particular those that work with AWS, Azure, Alibaba Cloud, Google Cloud, Oracle, IBM and other vSphere-based products or services.

Netflix is demanding that the court "award damages" for patent infringement, which can be made both separately and in combination with VMware, including interest. It is known that last November Broadcom acquired VMware for $69 billion.

In addition, in June 2025, Netflix and Broadcom will meet in court over another lawsuit in which Netflix accuses Broadcom of infringing patents for video streaming.

Recently, the Dutch Data Protection Authority (DPA) fined Netflix €4.75 million for not being transparent enough about how it handled user data in 2018-2020.

Source: Reuters