Web Host

A web host provides the server infrastructure where websites run — the physical or virtual machines that store and serve content to users' browsers. Traditional web hosting is rented server space. Cloud hosting — Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure — offers scalable virtual infrastructure on demand. Cloud providers have become deplatforming vectors: AWS terminated Parler's hosting in January 2021, taking the platform offline within hours of the app store removals.

What it means

When a website runs on AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure, it's dependent on that company's continued willingness to host it. Given that these are the same companies — or subsidiaries of companies — that operate competing social platforms and have documented ideological alignments, the conflict of interest is significant. A company can simultaneously compete with you in the social media market and control whether your servers stay online.

The coordinated Parler deplatforming in 2021 — simultaneous removal from AWS, Apple App Store, and Google Play Store within 48 hours — demonstrated how complete this control can be when multiple chokepoints are activated together.

How it works on Gab

Gab runs on its own physical servers — hardware owned and operated by Gab AI Inc., not rented from Amazon, Google, or Microsoft. This architectural choice was made explicitly to avoid the hosting deplatforming vector. It costs more to operate than cloud hosting, but it eliminates a critical dependency that could be used to take the platform offline.

Related terms

Domain registrars and CDNs are other infrastructure layers at deplatforming risk. Gab's own servers are the response to deplatforming at the hosting layer. Digital sovereignty means owning rather than renting your infrastructure.