Why your channel partner strategy needs rethinking — and how to rebuild it for Europe
Research-backed insights for B2B cloud platform leaders
The model has changed. Most companies haven’t.
For most of the last decade, B2B cloud platforms went to market in one of two ways: build a direct sales team, or build a product good enough to sell itself. Sales-Led Growth (SLG) and Product-Led Growth (PLG) were the dominant frameworks. Channel partners were often an afterthought — useful for extending reach, but rarely treated as a primary revenue engine.
That has changed. The data now points clearly to a third model — Ecosystem-Led Growth (ELG) — as the most efficient and scalable GTM strategy for B2B cloud platforms. And the companies that have not yet recalibrated their channel partner programmes and cloud marketplace strategy are paying for it in slower deal cycles, underperforming partner relationships, and European market entry that takes longer and costs more than it should.
The cloud marketplace opportunity – and the execution gap.
The hyperscaler marketplaces — AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud — have become the primary procurement route for enterprise cloud technology. This is not a trend in progress; it has already happened.
Omdia forecasts the combined value of the three marketplaces will reach $163 billion by 2030, up from $30 billion in 2024 — a 29.1% compound annual growth rate. Enterprise cloud commitments across the three hyperscalers now total $470 billion, and enterprise buyers are increasingly negotiating those commitments to include budget for a broader set of third-party vendor products.
The problem is not the opportunity. The problem is execution.
The reasons for this gap are consistent. Channel partner programmes designed for a pre- marketplace world do not translate. Partners who were effective as resellers in a direct- procurement model need different enablement, different incentive structures, and different co- sell support to perform in a marketplace-led motion. And the European market adds a further layer of complexity: fragmented procurement cultures, different regulatory requirements, and channel ecosystems that do not behave like their North American counterparts.
What the hyperscalers have just changed – and why it matters.
AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud have all made significant structural changes to their partner programmes in 2024 and 2025. If your channel strategy was designed before these changes, it needs updating.
AWS: execution over certification
AWS has restructured its ISV Accelerate programme to reward co-sell execution rather than programme participation. Partners can now earn $7.13 in services revenue for every $1 of AWS technology sold. Co-sell motions drive 51% higher revenue for participating partners. But from 2026, AWS Specialization renewals require partners to demonstrate launched customer opportunities — not just completed technical reviews or static case studies. AWS is measuring real-world execution, not readiness.
The practical implication: channel partners who were previously certified but not actively co- selling will lose their status. ISVs whose partner programmes do not drive active marketplace transactions will find their partners de-prioritised in AWS co-sell motions.
Microsoft: marketplace consolidation and AI refocus
Microsoft merged Azure Marketplace and AppSource in September 2025, creating a single commercial marketplace. The standard transaction fee dropped to approximately 3% — dramatically improving partner economics. Microsoft is simultaneously refocusing its entire partner programme around AI capabilities, with partners now earning $8.45 in services revenue for every $1 of Microsoft revenue. The message to channel partners is clear: demonstrate AI competency or find yourself increasingly marginalised in the co-sell motion.
Google Cloud: new marketplace incentives and committed spend
Google Cloud introduced a new revenue sharing model in 2025, with a 1.5% fee on marketplace renewals and migrations — down from the standard 3%. A new Marketplace Customer Credit Programme provides buyers with credits against Google first-party services for eligible marketplace transactions, creating a direct incentive for enterprise buyers to procure through the marketplace. Google Cloud’s committed spend pool reached $93.2 billion at the end of 2024. ISVs who are not marketplace-transactable are increasingly excluded from committed spend budgets.
| Hyperscaler | Key 2024-2025 change | Implication for ISVs |
|---|---|---|
AWS | Execution-based specialization renewals from 2026; $7.13 services multiplier per $1 AWS revenue; co- sell expanded to all transacting ISVA partners | Partners must demonstrate launched opportunities. ISVs need co-sell- ready channel programmes, not just certified ones. |
Microsoft Azure | Azure Marketplace and AppSource merged (Sept 2025); fee reduced to ~3%; programme refocused on AI competency | Single marketplace simplifies listing. AI capability is now a partner programme qualifier, not a differentiator. |
Google Cloud | 1.5% fee on renewals/migrations; new Marketplace Customer Credit Programme; $93.2B in committed spend (end 2024) | Committed spend budgets increasingly include marketplace procurement. Non-transactable ISVs are excluded from this pool. |
What a modern channel partner looks like
The channel partner programme that worked in 2021 — recruit partners, provide product training, agree a margin, wait for leads — does not work in an Ecosystem-Led Growth world. The companies generating the highest partner-sourced revenue share a set of structural characteristics that most programmes still lack.
Structured partner tiers with outcome-based incentives.
Top-performing programmes have moved away from volume-based tiering — where partners advance by hitting revenue targets — towards outcome-based models that reward contribution to customer success, co-sell activity, marketplace transactions, and ecosystem development. This matters because it aligns partner behaviour with the activities that actually drive revenue in a marketplace-led GTM.
Co-sell readiness as a programme requirement
In a hyperscaler marketplace world, a partner that cannot co-sell with AWS, Azure or Google field teams is a partner that cannot access committed spend budgets or co-sell prioritisation. Modern programmes build co-sell readiness — marketplace listings, ACE opportunity registration, field seller relationships — into their partner onboarding rather than treating it as an advanced capability.
Enablement that reflects how partners actually sell
Companies with structured partner enablement programmes report up to six times more revenue from trained partners versus untrained ones. But most enablement programmes focus on product knowledge rather than on the sales motion — how to position the solution in a co-sell context, how to identify and qualify committed spend opportunities, how to build a business case for a European enterprise buyer. These are the gaps that kill partner programme performance.
The European dimension
European markets do not behave like North American ones. Procurement cycles are longer. Decision-making is more consensus-driven. The regulatory environment — including GDPR, the EU AI Act, and sector-specific data sovereignty requirements — creates qualification criteria that require genuine local knowledge to navigate. The channel ecosystem itself is different: the partners worth having in Germany, the Nordics or Benelux are not the same as those who perform in the UK, and building those relationships requires local presence and a track record that most non-European ISVs do not have. Getting the European channel right is not a scaled-down version of the North American model. It requires a distinct strategy, locally executed.
| The old channel partner model | The new channel partner model |
|---|---|
Recruit partners, provide product training, agree margin | Structured onboarding with co-sell readiness as a Day 1 requirement |
Revenue-based partner tiering | Outcome-based incentives: co-sell activity, marketplace transactions, customer success |
Marketplace listing as a compliance exercise | Marketplace as primary GTM vehicle — transactable, co- sell active, committed spend enabled |
Same programme globally | Europe-specific strategy: local partners, regulatory navigation, market-by-market execution |
Partner performance measured by pipeline volume | Partner performance measured by deal velocity, marketplace revenue, and customer outcomes |
How ChannelCreator helps
ChannelCreator designs and executes channel partner programmes and go-to-market strategies for B2B cloud platforms entering and growing in the UK and European markets. We operate as a local sales and partner development office — providing the market knowledge, channel relationships, and execution capability that most cloud ISVs need but cannot efficiently build in- house.
Channel Partner Programme Design.
We build the architecture: partner tiering, incentive structures, co-sell readiness requirements, enablement frameworks, and marketplace transaction models. Designed specifically for European markets, and calibrated for how the hyperscaler partner programmes now work.
Go-To-Market Execution
We identify, recruit and enable the right partners in your target European markets — not a broad network, but the specific partners with the right customer base, the right sector expertise, and the appetite to co-sell. We manage the partner relationships, the co-sell motions, and the pipeline development.
European Market Entry
For cloud platforms at earlier stages of European development, we run a structured validation phase — testing proposition-market fit with real buyers and partners before committing to a full build-out. This reduces risk, accelerates learning, and ensures the channel programme is built on validated foundations.
The Clinic
A free, focused diagnostic session on your channel partner programme and European GTM strategy. Forty-five minutes. One focused problem. A written output you can use immediately. No obligation beyond the session.