VMware AppSpeed to be Retired

This is the excerpt of a message I received yesterday.(the highlights and graphics are my own)

Dear Maish,

We want to provide you with an important update about the VMware® vCenter AppSpeed™ product. As customers continue to expand the use of virtualization and cloud resources, we are focusing on delivering management solutions that can support the flexibility that enterprises require. As a result of this focus, we have decided not to produce additional releases of vCenter AppSpeed. vCenter AppSpeed will be end of availability for new license purchases as of January 3, 2012, however it will continue to be supported through September 15, 2012, in line with our General Support Policy.

As part of VMware continued investment in our customers’ journey to cloud computing, we have developed a more comprehensive application performance management solution, VMware® vFabric™ Application Performance Manager (APM). As a customer of vCenter AppSpeed, we would like to offer you a special opportunity to leverage the comprehensive capabilities of vFabric APM. Customers who are active on a Support and Subscription (SnS) plan from December 1, 2011 until the vFabric APM entitlement becomes available in early January 2012 may exchange their related licenses of vCenter AppSpeed and upgrade to vFabric APM at no additional license cost. This upgrade will take place on a one-to-one basis. Future purchases of SnS for vFabric APM will have a higher list price than SnS for AppSpeed because APM provides significantly more application performance management functionality and has a higher license cost than VMware vCenter AppSpeed, however, SnS costs will not rise prior to customer’s next SnS term. Learn more about VMware vFabric APM.

AppSpeed was a technology the VMware acquired back in 2008 from a B-hive Networks.

The product as you see from the mail above, is to be retired and incorporated into the bigger suite of VMware vFabric Product family.