“IBM is one of the largest technology companies in the world— and it exploited BMC’s justifiable reliance for its own gain, cementing its abdication of good faith and fair dealing in the service of its own self-interest,” US District Judge Gray Miller wrote in his decision. From 2008 to 2017, AT&T was one of BMC’s biggest mainframe software clients; the telco giant used BMC’s software on its IBM mainframe servers. IBM’s revenue from AT&T also has been substantial. Since 2017, IBM has received more than $100 million per month from AT&T; and since 2015, AT&T has accounted for at least $1 billion of IBM’s outsourcing division’s revenue. The judge sided with BMC, ordering IBM to pay contractual damages, punitive damages, plus interest. IBM plans to appeal the ruling, calling it “entirely unsupported by fact and law.” In a statement, the company added, “The decision to remove BMC Software technology from its mainframes rested solely with AT&T, as was recognized by the Court and confirmed in testimony from AT&T representatives admitted at trial.” BMC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
