As cloud marketplaces continue to grow in scale and influence, they are reshaping how software is bought, sold, and delivered. For independent software vendors (ISVs), cloud platforms, and partners, marketplaces offer a streamlined route to customers, accelerated procurement, and new monetization models. But as this ecosystem matures, a subtle but important issue is emerging: the potential for revenue double-counting across the value chain.
The marketplace revenue flow
In a typical cloud marketplace transaction, a customer may purchase a SaaS or PaaS solution from an ISV via a private offer. That offer might be created by a distributor and fulfilled by a partner, while the ISV itself runs its solution on the same cloud platform that hosts the marketplace. Each party in this chain—partner, distributor, ISV, and cloud provider—may record the full transaction value as revenue or gross merchandise value (GMV), depending on their role and reporting model.
Where overlap occurs
The potential for double-counting arises when the same infrastructure spend is captured in multiple places. For example, an ISV may purchase infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) from a cloud provider to run its application. That same ISV may then sell its solution via the cloud marketplace, where the customer pays for the full SaaS offering—including the embedded IaaS costs. In this scenario, the cloud provider may record both the ISV’s IaaS consumption and the customer’s SaaS purchase as separate revenue streams, even though they are economically linked to the same infrastructure usage.
Estimating the impact
Our latest estimates suggest that up to 10–20% of reported marketplace revenue could be subject to some form of double-counting. This is particularly relevant in complex enterprise deals involving multiple intermediaries and multi-year commitments. The risk of overlap is higher in marketplaces with mature ISV ecosystems and transactional depth, where infrastructure and software are tightly coupled.
Implications for the ecosystem
This dynamic doesn’t imply wrongdoing—each party is legitimately recognizing revenue based on their role in the transaction. However, it does raise questions about how we measure the true size and growth of the cloud economy. Without careful deduplication and end-user-level spend tracking, there is a risk of overstating total IT spend, partner influence, and marketplace adoption.
Why it’s hard to fix
The challenge lies in the complexity of the ecosystem. Each participant has different incentives, reporting standards, and visibility into the transaction flow. Cloud providers may report gross marketplace volume, ISVs may report full contract value, and partners may claim influence or attach credit. Without a standardized framework for revenue attribution, it’s difficult to isolate and remove duplication.
A subtle signal
This isn’t a crisis—but it is a signal. As marketplaces become a larger share of enterprise IT procurement, the need for transparency and consistency will grow. For ISVs and cloud platforms alike, understanding where and how revenue is recognized can help avoid misaligned incentives and ensure sustainable growth. It’s something to be aware of as the ecosystem continues to evolve.
IDC’s EMEA Partnering Ecosystems team helps technology vendors, platforms, and ISVs navigate the evolving dynamics of cloud marketplaces and partner ecosystems.
Through continuous engagement with the ecosystem and proprietary survey data, we provide grounded, real-world insights into how value flows, where overlaps occur, and what it means for your go-to-market strategy. Whether you’re refining partner models, optimizing marketplace presence, or simply seeking clarity in a complex landscape, we can help. Get in touch to access the intelligence you need to make smarter, faster, and more efficient ecosystem decisions. For more information on the research, click here.
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