Top VMware Exec: Cisco-Google Cloud Deal Is 'Clear Validation' Of VMware On AWS Vision

VMware COO Sanjay Poonen threw down the public cloud development gauntlet in a stinging tweet referencing Cisco and Google's blockbuster hybrid cloud deal announced Wednesday.

Poonen took to Twitter Wednesday to call the Cisco-Google partnership "clear validation of VMware Hybrid Cloud vision 1yr ago," adding, "glad to see others embrace same vision."

The dueling solutions, and Poonen's tweet illustrate the increasing heat of the hybrid cloud arms race between Cisco and Dell Technologies which owns VMware.

[Related: Cloud Blockbuster: Cisco Teams With Google In Massive Enterprise Public Cloud Offensive]

The competing public cloud partnerships from Dell and Cisco comes with both vendors competing aggressively for more share of wallet and mind from solution providers.

One executive from a solution provider who partners with Dell EMC and Cisco said he feels an increase in pressure from both sides to choose one or the other. "I feel a lot more of the Dell versus Cisco competition this year," said the executive, who declined to be identified. "Their product sets are becoming more similar, even though they specialize in different market segments. It will be interesting to see what they do in the channel over the next 12 months."

Poonen was unavailable for immediate comment on his tweet.

News below is clear validation of Hybrid Cloud vision 1yr ago, glad to see others embrace same vision, see

"We have been delivering on our multi-cloud strategy to secure hybrid cloud infrastructure, platforms, and services for some time," wrote a Cisco spokesman, via email. "Our solutions offer customers the freedom to choose the best environments and consumption models for traditional and new cloud applications. Cisco and Google are focused on a unique and open hybrid cloud offering that enables applications and services to be deployed, managed and secured across on-premises environments and Google Cloud Platform."

Almost exactly a year ago, VMware and Amazon Web Services took the wraps off the VMware Cloud on AWS partnership, which allows VMware's software-defined data center offering to run on the AWS public cloud. Based on the VMware Cloud Foundation platform, the partnership allows customers to run applications across VMware vShpere-based private, public and hybrid cloud environments using existing VMware software and tools.

VMware Cloud on AWS became available in August. At the time, partners told CRN that the offering, which boasts pricing that appeals to customers evaluating private and public cloud options, could significantly alter the cloud market.

Cisco and Google Wednesday unveiled a blockbuster sweeping hybrid cloud partnership that provides the networking giant with a seamless bridge to next-generation public cloud technologies including the Google Kubernetes container orchestration platform.

The offering will become available in the second half of 2018 and will allow developers to combine Google Cloud services with Cisco's on-premises networking, hyper-converged infrastructure, and security offerings.

The deal gives Cisco a seamless bridge to next-generation public cloud technologies like the Kubernetes container orchestration platform.

The Cisco and Google Cloud hybrid cloud offerings, which will become available in the second half of 2018, opens the door for developers to combine emerging Google Cloud services with Cisco on-premises networking, hyper-converged, and security offerings.

Mark Haranas contributed to this story.