Digital media conglomerate Starboard has recently acquired Parler, a popular social media app in the United States among conservatives, Reuters reports.
This move came after a failed deal where rapper Kanye West planned to purchase Parler's parent company, Parlement Technologies.
Parlement Technologies announced on Twitter back in December 2022 that Ye and the company had reached a mutual decision regarding Parler's purchase and that both parties had terminated the agreement. It means Kanye West is no longer pursuing his plans to own a social media network.
Starboard, formerly known as Olympic Media, owns conservative-leaning platforms American Wire and BizPac Review.
The company said in the latest statement that it aims to provide a platform for unsupported online communities, away from the ad hoc regulatory hand of platforms that they feel hate them.
The team at Parler has built an exceptional audience, and we look forward to integrating that audience across all of our existing platforms," Ryan Coyne, CEO of Starboard, said in the statement.
Parler to Temporarily Shutdown for Revamp
As part of the acquisition, Reuters reports that Parler will be temporarily shut down to allow Starboard time to roll out a revamped version of the platform.
While the Arlington, Virginia-based conglomerate did not disclose the deal's terms, it stated that it would be accretive by the end of the second quarter of 2023.
Parler, in the Last Few Years
Founded five years ago, Parler positioned itself as an alternative to Twitter for free speech. However, following the US Capitol riots in January 2021, the app was removed from the Google and Apple app stores. It was later reinstated after restructuring into Parlement Technologies and purchasing cloud services company Dynascale.
Starboard has stated that they do not intend to create a conservative Twitter clone, as several social media platforms have already positioned themselves as Twitter alternatives.
The acquisition of Parler by Starboard comes amid a growing debate over the role of social media in political discourse. Many conservatives have accused social media platforms of bias against their views, resulting in the rise of alternative platforms like Parler.
Regulators and lawmakers have also increased their scrutiny of social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook for their handling of user data and their role in spreading misinformation.
Starboard's acquisition of Parler demonstrates the growing interest in alternative social media platforms and their potential to provide a platform for voices that do not feel heard on mainstream platforms.
As the redesigned version of Parler is expected to be released in the coming months, it remains to be seen whether the app can attract a larger user base and provide a viable alternative to Twitter and other mainstream social media platforms.
What is Parler?
According to the app's official App Store description, Parler, the 'uncancelable' free speech platform is a viewpoint-neutral social media platform dedicated to free expression, user privacy, and civil discourse. The description then encourages users to enjoy real-time news and other content.
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