>This means we have enormous control over what is going on. The combined software meanwhile runs on databases and services which we also run ourselves. [...] A well known example is the Netflix streaming service, which consists of Netflix-owned hardware that streams stupendous amounts of video using very limited space in a data center. Netflix would simply not be economical if they did not have full control over the stack.
That blog paragraph presents an incomplete and inadvertently misleading architecture of Netflix.
Netflix actually uses AWS and is very much "locked in" to Amazon's cloud ecosystem. The specific item the author is talking about is the Netflix CDN "appliance" that is installed at edge datacenters. However, those appliances can be seen as a "dumb box". The "smart management" of the CDN is controlled by Netflix code deployed on databases and servers at AWS. Also, the Netflix customer accounts, billing, recommendation systems runs on AWS.
That blog paragraph presents an incomplete and inadvertently misleading architecture of Netflix.
Netflix actually uses AWS and is very much "locked in" to Amazon's cloud ecosystem. The specific item the author is talking about is the Netflix CDN "appliance" that is installed at edge datacenters. However, those appliances can be seen as a "dumb box". The "smart management" of the CDN is controlled by Netflix code deployed on databases and servers at AWS. Also, the Netflix customer accounts, billing, recommendation systems runs on AWS.
https://www.google.com/search?q=netflix+AWS+manage+CDN