Updates to AWS Channel Partner Programs to Drive Growth in 2026

By Sachin Vora, Director of Specialists and Partner Programs – AWS

We’re announcing strategic updates to the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Channel Partner Programs (Solution Provider and Distribution) and the Managed Services Provider (MSP) Program in 2026. These updates include stronger incentives, simplified benefits, and new deal registration and billing capabilities—designed to help Partners efficiently scale their AWS practice and drive greater customer success.

As the demand for specialized cloud expertise accelerates, enterprises are increasingly turning to AWS Partners to drive their digital modernization and AI initiatives. These strategic program updates will empower our Partners to expand their capabilities, improve business predictability, and unlock new growth opportunities while delivering innovative solutions to customers.

“At AWS, we’re committed to evolving our Partner programs to meet the dynamic needs of both our Partners and their customers,” said Julia Chen, Vice President of Specialists and Partner Core at AWS. “These strategic updates to our channel programs reflect our continued investment in the Partner network and our deep commitment to Partner success. By investing in Partners’ value-added capabilities and growth, while continuing to streamline operations, we’re empowering our Partners with the predictability and tools they need to build sustainable, profitable AWS practices while delivering exceptional outcomes for our customers.”

These updates will begin rolling out January 1, 2026 across the following areas:

Enhanced Channel incentives

We’re introducing new incentives and updating existing ones across the AWS Solution Provider Program (SPP) and Distribution Program to help Partners better forecast their gains and make long-term investments in their AWS practices, including:

• Streamlined Base Benefit that consolidates the previous Base incentive and Technical Capability Discount.
• New Customer Incentive that rewards Partners for winning new customers, replacing the Partner Originated Discount (POD), Public Sector Discount (PSD), and Customer Engagement Incentive: Grow.
• New Partner Growth Incentive that recognizes incremental growth across a Partner’s resale portfolio.

Additionally, we’re making updates to support AWS Distributors, including increased investments and simplified calculations for greater predictability, driving focus on key areas like SMB and selling AWS Marketplace solutions.

New Private Pricing Resell incentives

Private Pricing Resell is designed to offer resellers and their end customers access to commercial benefits in exchange for spend commitments. The program is introducing new incentives that provide resellers with multiple ways to earn. With these changes, resellers can benefit from cash and/or discounts based on their engagements with AWS.

Streamlined operations

We’re launching Deal Registration for Private Pricing Resell Program as a channel sales mechanism to enable Partners to register resell opportunities. As part of these operational improvements, we’re also investing in enhanced billing capabilities to help Partners reduce overhead and optimize the billing experience, while providing customers greater administrative control.

The updates support customer success through improved governance and enhanced service delivery from increased AWS co-investment with Partners.

New benefits for AWS Managed Services Partners

Additionally, we recently announced three benefits to the AWS Managed Services Partners designed to reward Partners who drive cloud adoption, leverage AWS services to enhance their capabilities, and support government customers. The new benefits empower MSP Partners to accelerate their growth while delivering exceptional cloud solutions across diverse customer segments.

Next steps

To prepare for these updates and understand how these enhancements align with your business strategy, connect with your AWS Partner Development Manager (PDM). Implementation will follow a phased approach starting January 1, 2026 and continue throughout the year, with ongoing communication and enablement. To support a smooth transition:

• Review FAQs in AWS Partner Central: SPP and Distributors (login required).
• Attend enablement sessions in November and December 2025 (invites to follow), continuing throughout 2026.
• Review the updated Program Guides, with detailed information on incentive structures and eligibility requirements. Available in AWS Partner Central by the end of December 2025.

Note: Certain geos and segments, including some Government customers, are excluded from planned updates to Private Pricing Resell. See details in AWS Partner Central for SPP and Distribution Programs.