VMware and Zimbra are preparing to launch an open source attack against Microsoft Exchange, starting on August 1. The effort will ultimately include thousands of VMware partners. Here are the details.

It’s been less than a month since VMware officially acquired Zimbra -- the open source email platform -- from Yahoo. But VMware isn’t standing still. Jim Morrisroe, VP and GM of VMware’s Zimbra division, says the company is preparing software appliances that combine virtualization with Zimbra. They should arrive by Q2 2010. Here are the details and the implications.

We don't for certain that VMware, the giant proprietary virtualization company, is buying Zimbra, the open-source e-mail server company from Yahoo, but that's the news from the rumor-mill.

Zimbra, one of the best-known providers of open source email, may soon have a new owner. Rumors are swirling that Yahoo plans to sell Zimbra to VMware. If true, here are the implications for Zimbra business partners.

VMware’s one year old, Zimbra saw its latest version, Zimbra.7 being unveiled on Monday last. VMware had acquired Zimbra from Yahoo January last year as it did not quite get the leverage the software required with Yahoo’s non-PR attitude.

Yahoo has reached an agreement to sell its open source Zimbra e-mail collaboration unit to VMware. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but VMware said it expects the deal to close in the first quarter of calendar 2010.

Yahoo has finally offloaded its open source enterprise e-mail division, Zimbra, to VMware. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the sales price is believed to be far less than the US$350 million Yahoo paid for the company in September 2007. Kara Swisher at Boomtown reported that the sales price was "well below" the acquisition price, but didn't specify an amount.

We wrote some days ago about Microsoft’s “Slog” against VMware. This campaign continues and reaches new heights under a new domain which Microsoft now operates. It’s www.vmwarecostswaytoomuch.com (VMware Costs Too Much). Is this how a publicly-traded company should behave?

A friend recently asked me if I really wanted VMware, a company with a former Microsoft guy in charge, VMware, to buy Novell? His unspoken message was "Wouldn't that be horrible for Novell's Linux?"