Assessing the Complexity of Cloud Pricing Policies: A Comparative Market Analysis

Assessing the Complexity of Cloud Pricing Policies: A Comparative Market Analysis | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Assessing the Complexity of Cloud Pricing Policies: A Comparative Market Analysis Vasilliki Liagkou, George Fragiadakis, Evangelia Filiopoulou, and 3 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4165583/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 12 Sep, 2024 Read the published version in Journal of Grid Computing → Version 1 posted 11 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Cloud computing has gained popularity at a breakneck pace over the last few years. It has revolutionised the way businesses operate by providing a flexible and scalable infrastructure for their computing needs. Cloud providers offer a range of services with a variety of pricing schemes. Cloud pricing schemes are based on functional factors like CPU, RAM and storage, combined with different payment options, such as pay-per-use, subscription-based and non-functional aspects, such as scalability and availability. While cloud pricing can be complicated, it is critical for businesses to thoroughly assess and compare pricing policies along with technical requirements to ensure they design an investment strategy. This paper evaluates current pricing strategies for IaaS, CaaS and PaaS cloud services and also focuses on the top leading cloud providers, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google. To compare pricing policies between different services and providers, a hedonic price index is constructed for each service category based on data set collected in 2022. Using the hedonic price index a comparative analysis between them becomes feasible. The results revealed that providers follow the very same pricing pattern for IaaS and CaaS, with CPU being the main driver of cloud pricing schemes, whereas PaaS pricing fluctuates among cloud providers. Pricing policy models Hedonic price index IaaS CaaS PaaS Cloud market Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 12 Sep, 2024 Read the published version in Journal of Grid Computing → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 08 May, 2024 Reviews received at journal 08 May, 2024 Reviews received at journal 06 May, 2024 Reviews received at journal 15 Apr, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 31 Mar, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 31 Mar, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 29 Mar, 2024 Reviewers invited by journal 29 Mar, 2024 Editor assigned by journal 29 Mar, 2024 Submission checks completed at journal 27 Mar, 2024 First submitted to journal 25 Mar, 2024 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-4165583","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":285919957,"identity":"b97625d3-a138-43b5-b528-cf6f4a288ebb","order_by":0,"name":"Vasilliki Liagkou","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Harokopio University of Athens","correspondingAuthor":false,"submittingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Vasilliki","middleName":"","lastName":"Liagkou","suffix":""},{"id":285919959,"identity":"0a1b8062-2dff-43d5-824c-66cd1618c46b","order_by":1,"name":"George 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