Cloud marketplaces provide a streamlined platform for accessing a wide range of cloud services, enabling cost-effective procurement, rapid scalability, and simplified compliance with regulatory requirements. AWS and OMNIA Partners sat down together to discuss a few myths that are commonly heard about cloud marketplaces:
Myth #1: I have to use a competitively awarded contract and negotiate many of the contract terms to purchase software, so I cannot use a software marketplace where all the terms are commercial.
AWS Marketplace is available is available to all OMNIA Partners’ participating agencies, including state and local government agencies, public and private K-12 school districts, and higher education organizations, through AWS’ cooperative contract for an online software marketplace and related cloud services. This contract was awarded via a competitive process and offers access to AWS Marketplace and all other AWS cloud services.
Jeff Kohrman, CTO, Region 4 Education Service Center (TX) shared, "In the past, aligning purchases for IT projects required multiple sources for cloud and software needs in a slow, manual process. With the extensive catalog of services and solutions in AWS Marketplace and the award of the OMNIA Partners Co-Op contract, AWS meets our procurement standards making AWS Marketplace a one-stop shop for many of our applications and AWS services. The combination of AWS Marketplace and OMNIA Partners has allowed us to be much more agile, resulting in a significant reduction of time for product delivery."
Myth #2: The prices in the marketplace are much higher than the ones I got quoted by my software vendor.
AWS Marketplace is a public website, so many software manufacturers choose to post MSRP-like prices. Software vendors and value-added resellers provide discounted prices to public agencies with AWS Marketplace private offers. Some AWS Marketplace vendors also choose to offer discounts like the exclusive discounts available to OMNIA Partners participating agencies through the AWS Marketplace OMNIA Partners contract.
Myth #3: My organization does all our IT purchases through a value-added reseller (VAR) and marketplaces require you to buy directly from the software manufacturer.
More than 2,200 registered resellers sell software and their own professional services in AWS Marketplace. While OMNIA Partners participating agencies will set up their AWS account directly with AWS rather than procuring through a reseller, they can still use their AWS account to purchase software and related services from VARs and software distributors via AWS Marketplace channel partner private offers.
Myth #4: AWS Marketplace has a lot of products that are not suitable for the size and scope of my organization, so we cannot use it.
While AWS Marketplace does have a broad selection with more than 15,000 products, it also offers the ability to create a limited catalog of approved products in what’s called a Private Marketplace. With Private Marketplace, procurement and IT administrators can build a customized digital catalog of vetted software from AWS Marketplace. Your organization’s users can easily find and deploy products selected within Private Marketplace through the “Approved for Procurement” label on listings.
Myth #5: If I allow the use of marketplaces, employees within my organization will make purchases they’re not authorized to make.
An unauthorized user accidentally clicking to accept the wrong set of terms is a common procurement concern. AWS Marketplace offers access policy guardrails that are easy to set up, so only authorized users can make purchases.
Myth #6: Software marketplaces don’t have any benefits that are useful to public sector customers.
Public sector customers most frequently cite the following reasons they use AWS Marketplace: faster vendor onboarding, strengthened security profile, and a single pane of glass for all software procurements while using multiple resellers and direct software purchases. Arizona Deputy CISO Ryan Murray said, “Seeing our subscriptions from various software vendors and resellers holistically in one place has been super beneficial. Being able to click a button to purchase was also fantastic. AWS Marketplace provided an intuitive user experience.”
As your agency begins exploring the advantages offered by cloud marketplaces, AWS and OMNIA Partners are here to help. Get started by exploring solutions specifically designed for public sector organizations and available at a discount exclusive to OMNIA Partners participating agencies. Discover additional Government and Education Solutions on AWS Marketplace and check out resources for customers new to cloud and AWS.
Fireside Chat with AWS: Danielle Hinz and Richard McVay
Watch to hear from AWS and OMNIA Partners on how the partnership can work as a bridge between IT and Central Procurement.
About OMNIA Partners & AWS
AWS Marketplace is a curated digital catalog that makes it easy to find, test, buy, and deploy the third-party software you want, with the simplified procurement and controls you need. OMNIA Partners and Amazon Web Services deliver public agencies cost-saving solutions that simplify procurement and help drive compliance with purchasing requirements. With AWS Marketplace, OMNIA Partners participants benefit from simplified software licensing and pricing, and save on procurement-related administrative overhead.