Differentiation factors between free and premium among different cloud computing services

This paper tries to give more insight in the differentiation factors between free and premium versions for consumers among various cloud computing services. The design is a comparative case study by which Spotify, MBAM, LinkedIn, DropBox, Flickr and Skype are subjected to qualitative content analysis. The product of this essay is a taxonomy formed of literature, applied to the cases. The results show that the differentiation factors are different as well as the cases. Most of the cases have multiple differentiation factors (a mix) to go premium. The theoretical implications of this paper (due to limitations) shows the need for more research for a more complete understanding. Practical implications could be the rise in awareness in the decision to go premium for consumers.