This article proposes a model to study the interaction of price competition and congestion in the cloud computing marketplace. Specifically, we propose a three-tier market model that captures a marketplace with users purchasing services from Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) providers, which in turn purchase computing resources from either Provider-as-a-Service (PaaS) or Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) providers. Within each level, we define and characterize market equilibria. Further, we use these characterizations to understand the relative profitability of SaaSs and PaaSs/IaaSs and to understand the impact of price competition on the user experienced performance, that is, the “price of anarchy” of the cloud marketplace. Our results highlight that both of these depend fundamentally on the degree to which congestion results from shared or dedicated resources in the cloud.
The Economics of the Cloud
Jonatha Anselmi;Danilo Ardagna;
2017-01-01
Abstract
This article proposes a model to study the interaction of price competition and congestion in the cloud computing marketplace. Specifically, we propose a three-tier market model that captures a marketplace with users purchasing services from Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) providers, which in turn purchase computing resources from either Provider-as-a-Service (PaaS) or Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) providers. Within each level, we define and characterize market equilibria. Further, we use these characterizations to understand the relative profitability of SaaSs and PaaSs/IaaSs and to understand the impact of price competition on the user experienced performance, that is, the “price of anarchy” of the cloud marketplace. Our results highlight that both of these depend fundamentally on the degree to which congestion results from shared or dedicated resources in the cloud.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
