Parler disclosed that it was restructuring; the new venture, named Parlement Technologies, will provide unique internet infrastructure benefits for businesses it states are at risk of being pushed off the internet.
With $16 million in recent Series B funding, the company purchased Dynascale, a California-based cloud services company that praises more than $30 million in annual revenues and 50,000 square feet of data center space.
“We are joining a new era as Parlement Technologies, one that goes far beyond the edges of a free discourse social media platform,” said Parlement Technologies CEO George Farmer. “We acknowledge that Parlement Technologies will power the fortune. And the future is uncancelable.”
Parler was launched in 2018 as a censorship-free alternative to more mainstream social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter. The app surged in favor during the Trump administration as the former president continuously attacked dominant platforms for allegedly censoring conservative speech. In addition, Trump’s war with Silicon Valley tech companies spurred a flood of new conservative-friendly media to enter the market, like Gettr, projected by Trump ally Jason Miller, and Trump’s own Truth Social app.
Parler revealed that it was joining the internet infrastructure industry to deliver new “uncancelable” cloud services for online companies. But Parler’s favor has tumbled in the face of new competitors and increasing market saturation. More than 4 million individuals signed up for the app during the 2020 presidential election, but the company has worked to maintain those numbers.
Apple and Google pulled the app from their app stores after the Capitol riot, and the companies didn’t endorse the app for download for months, citing moderation problems. Still, Sensor Tower app data reveals that the app had rarer than 7,000 downloads last month.
Parler did not reveal the terms of the deal. Still, the acquisition puts the company in competition with other online infrastructure companies like RightForge, claiming to provide “cancel proof” services for contentious clients like Trump’s Truth Social forum.
Other alternative social media institutions, like Rumble, have continued to increase over the last few years. On Thursday, Rumble revealed that it had secured enough shareholder votes to go public on Monday under the ticker “RUM.” Before the announcement, Rumble began rolling out its advertising platform, putting ads on other right-wing-favored platforms like Truth Social.
Parler was established by John Matze Jr. and Jared Thomson in Henderson, Nevada, in August 2018. The company’s title was taken from the French word “parler,” implying “to speak.” The name was initially planned to be pronounced in French but is now enunciated as the English word “parlor.” The Wall Street Journal first wrote in November 2020 that conservative investor Rebekah Mercer had financed Parler, and Mercer has since been disclosed to have been the company’s co-founder.
As reported by Mercer, she co-founded Parler to oppose the “ever-increasing tyranny and hubris of our tech overlords.” Thomson conforms as the chief technology officer, and Matze was Parler’s chief executive officer from its establishing days until January 2021. Both are alums of the University of Denver computer science program and were roommates in college. Some other Parler senior staff also accompanied the school.