Why Cloud Repatriation Feels Like Streaming TV in 2025

ArcShift Team
Jun 24
3 min read

Updated: Jul 11

Illustration of dollar bills falling from clouds, representing rising public cloud costs — Money cascades from the clouds, illustrating the surge in public cloud expenses.

Remember when tv streaming was cheap, ad-free, and let you share your password?

Fast forward to today: prices are up, ads are back, and the original promise of simplicity has been replaced with frustration. Sound familiar?

That’s exactly what we’re seeing with cloud providers.

What started as a cost-effective and flexible alternative to on-premise infrastructure has morphed into a tangled web of rising prices, hidden fees, and performance trade-offs. Much like the streaming wars, the cloud’s honeymoon phase seems to be over.

What’s Changed in the Public Cloud?

The public cloud landscape is shifting dramatically. Let's break down the major changes:

1. Cloud Prices Are Up (Again)

Cloud providers have steadily increased pricing across the board. Whether it’s compute, storage, or bandwidth, you're likely paying more now for the same usage—sometimes significantly more.

This price hike isn’t just a minor issue. It affects budgeting, and many organizations are feeling the pinch.

2. Egress Fees: The New “Cable Box Rental”

Want to move your data out of the cloud? Prepare for egress charges. It’s like paying to cancel your subscription or return hardware, and these fees are no longer trivial.

For companies running data-intensive workloads, these expenses can quickly become overwhelming, crushing budgets in unexpected ways.

3. Slower Performance and Less Control

When using public cloud services, you’re sharing resources with thousands of others. In critical moments, such as backups or latency-sensitive applications, this arrangement might not be ideal.

Studies indicate that performance can dip, leading to delays and inefficiencies for businesses reliant on swift data accessibility.

4. Security Assumptions Are Being Rewritten

While the cloud isn’t inherently insecure, it’s also not automatically safe. Organizations are increasingly recognizing that the concept of “shared responsibility” frequently translates to “shared risk.”

With compliance pressures escalating, having visibility and control over your data is more crucial than ever. Businesses must actively manage their security postures in the cloud.

What’s the Alternative? Cloud Repatriation

Just like many viewers hesitate to pay for multiple streaming services and are opting for live TV with antennas—favoring no buffering and no subscriptions—companies are taking a hard look at their cloud expenses.

They are realizing it might be time to reevaluate their cloud strategy altogether.

What Is Cloud Repatriation?

Cloud repatriation—also referred to as a cloud exit—is the process of transferring workloads and data from public cloud platforms like AWS, Azure, or GCP back to on-premises or hybrid infrastructure.

It’s not about moving backward; rather, it’s about regaining control, cutting costs, and optimizing performance based on specific business requirements.

Why Businesses Are Repatriating from the Cloud

At ArcShift, we specialize in assisting organizations with this critical transition. Whether you aim to reduce monthly cloud bills, eliminate surprise egress fees, or improve backup and recovery speeds, we offer cloud repatriation services tailored to your environment.

1. Regain Visibility and Control

One of the most significant benefits of cloud repatriation is the ability to regain visibility and control over your data and workloads. Organizations can better tailor their infrastructure according to their needs without external pressures affecting them.

2. Improve Performance for Critical Workloads

By returning to an on-premises setup, businesses often see improved performance for their essential applications. With dedicated resources, you can avoid the bottlenecks and latency issues tied to shared environments.

3. Reduce Infrastructure Costs

Cloud prices are constantly fluctuating. By minimizing dependence on public cloud services, companies can anticipate their expenses more accurately and reduce unexpected costs.

4. Strengthen Data Security and Compliance Posture

In-house infrastructure can offer an additional layer of security. Managing your own systems allows organizations to strengthen their security measures and better comply with regulatory requirements.

For IT leaders, this shift feels familiar — like when cord-cutters realized streaming wasn’t the cheaper, simpler dream they expected. Cloud repatriation isn’t just about cost; it’s a recalibration of control, performance, and sanity. The real power lies in choosing what you don’t outsource. That’s why 2025 is shaping up to be the year smart teams rethink their infrastructure like they once rethought cable.