Microsoft attacks VMware with poker chips

LAS VEGAS — Microsoft has a booth here at VMworld 2008, but they’re not being a very good guest in VMware’s house.

On my way through the Venetian this morning, I — along with several other attendees — passed a man who handed us poker chips wrapped in cardboard. The chip is a real $1 Venetian chip that I will undoubtedly lose at the blackjack table tonight. But the packaging is much more interesting. Check it out for yourself.

As you can see to the right, it says: “Looking for your best bet? You won’t find it with VMware.” Then it plugs a new website, www.vmwarecostswaytoomuch.com. Wow. That’s like going to a house party and telling the hosts to visit your new website, www.yourfoodsucksandyourhousesmellslikegarbage.com.

These poker chips are just the latest in a recent line of snippy comments between VMware, the virtualization market leader, and Microsoft, its new, formidable challenger. Just last week, VMware issued a blog attacking Microsoft’s Get Virtual Now event. And Carl Eschenbach, VMware’s executive VP of field ops, yesterday made fun of the fact that Microsoft Hyper-V won’t have live migration until 2010.