Platform as a Service (PaaS) – A company may sell you computing resources for use online, and controlled through a web browser. A platform service like AWS, offers you the ability to create a complicated network of services and software for use online that would be very costly to build in person. But with PaaS you can rent the resources to build and run it in small increments (pennies per hour). This can get complicated and expensive very quickly, but can also be used for cheap, simple services as well.

Platform as a service is differentiated from Software as a service in that the company does not have control of what and how you web service is run. An eCommerce solution like Wix or Shopify can only be used to create online stores and services that they define. They also like to take a percentage of your sales. Where an eCommerce solution built on a PaaS service is controlled by you and you pay only for the resources you use to offer that service. There are very little to no limits to what can be sold or done using a PaaS service.