Centralized cloud providers charge not just for compute, but for moving data out of their systems.

This is called egress. It is often where costs become unpredictable. Storing and processing data inside the cloud can look affordable at first, but once data starts flowing between services or leaving the network, pricing increases quickly.

The result is lock in. The more data you move, the harder it becomes to leave.

@Fluence Network approaches this differently because it is not built around a single closed infrastructure. In centralized clouds, data movement crosses internal billing boundaries controlled by one provider.

In Fluence’s model, compute is distributed across independent operators, so the system is not designed around one central gate where data exit costs can be imposed.

In simple terms, big clouds make money when your data moves out.

Fluence removes that single controlled exit point, so pricing pressure shifts away from “where your data goes” and toward “who is actually doing the compute and for how much.”

The tradeoff is structure versus simplicity. Centralized clouds are simple to understand but expensive at scale.

Distributed systems can reduce artificial transfer costs, but they rely on coordination between many independent nodes instead of one controlled network.