Starboard, formerly known as Olympic Media, has announced the acquisition of right-leaning social media platform Parler for $1 billion. The deal comes after a failed bid by YE (formerly Kanye West) to purchase the app's parent company, Parlement Technologies on October 17, 2022. The terms of the acquisition have not been disclosed; however, Starboard anticipates the transaction will prove accretive by Q2 2023.
Founded in Arlington, Virginia in 2018 by Ryan Coyne and recognized as the fastest-growing advertising/media firm in America in 2021 according to INC5000 rankings, Starboard aims to provide support for "unsupported online communities away from ad-hoc regulatory hand of platforms that hate them."
Parler is one among several alternative content platforms—including Truth Social, Rumble and Gab—widely perceived as having less stringent content moderation policies than mainstream counterparts such as Facebook-owned Meta and Twitter.
As part of a strategic assessment following its acquisition by hedge fund Starboard last Friday , Parler has temporarily shut down but plans to relaunch soon. This development comes after significant usage increase post-Capitol insurrection and subsequent bans imposed on former President Trump’s accounts across various mainstream social networking sites.
In November last year , Ye withdrew his intent to purchase Parler due to insufficient funds. According to an agreement with both parties involved , they mutually agreed upon terminating any intentions related to selling or acquiring ownership stakes within each other's enterprises .
The CEO of Starboard described their temporary closure decision for Parler as a “breath of fresh air” while expressing commitment towards serving unsupported online communities through building homes far removed from subjective regulations enforced on opposing platforms . No reasonable person today believes replicating Twitter solely catering conservatives could ever be considered viable business strategy anymore ," said he .
Despite not disclosing specific details pertaining acquisition terms , Starboard confidently asserts expectations surrounding deal's accretive value by end Q2 2023 . Overall, the company's future direction appears focused on leveraging AI technology to broaden its user base and provide safe spaces for marginalized online communities who feel targeted or silenced elsewhere.