Definition
A cloud marketplace is an online store run by a large cloud provider where buyers can find, buy and deploy software. The purchase is billed through the buyer's existing cloud account. Many buyers can count these purchases toward spending commitments they already made with the cloud provider.
For vendors, a marketplace listing can shorten buying cycles because procurement and billing already exist. It can also connect the vendor with the cloud provider's own sellers.
Many marketplaces let partners resell a vendor's listing through private offers. Rules, fees and partner options differ by marketplace and change over time, so check current terms before building a plan around them.
In practice
A security vendor creates a private offer on a cloud marketplace so an enterprise buyer can pay from its existing cloud budget instead of starting a new vendor approval.