The current owners of conservative social network Parler have announced that rapper Kanye West is set to buy the platform.

Parlement Technologies announced it had reached an ‘agreement in principle’ to sell the platform to West, who recently changed his name to ‘Ye’.

In a statement, Ye said: “In a world where conservative opinions are considered to be controversial, we have to make sure we have the right to freely express ourselves.”

In a press release, Parler said that the proposed acquisition will assure the platform has a future role in creating an uncancelable ecosystem where all voices are welcome.

Parlement Technologies CEO George Farmer said he welcomed Ye as a compatriot in the fight for free speech: “This deal will change the world and change the way the world thinks about free speech.

“Ye is making a ground-breaking move into the free speech media space and will never have to fear being removed from social media again. Once again, Ye proves that he is one step ahead of the legacy media narrative. Parlement will be honoured to help him achieve his goals.”

Under the terms of the agreement, the parties intend to enter into a definitive purchase agreement and expect to close during the fourth quarter of 2022, the statement read.

The terms of the proposed transaction would include ongoing technical support from Parlement and the use of private cloud services via Parlement’s private cloud and data centre infrastructure.

Ye is currently active on Parler, which pitches itself as a “viewpoint-neutral social media app dedicated to freedom of expression, civil discourse, and user privacy”.

His controversial behaviour has already seen him hit the headlines recently after social platforms Twitter and Instagram restricted his accounts after an alleged anti-semitic post. It was part of a tweet sent for the first time in two years complaining of his ban from Instagram.

Conservative social platform Parler only made its return to the Google Play Store last month. It has been previously removed after the Capitol riots in January 2021 for allowing postings that seek “to incite ongoing violence in the US”.

Recommended

• What are the data science realities for your business?
• BBC reports £150k of electronic devices stolen over three years
• Which of your social media accounts is most likely to het hacked?

Parler was mooted as a potential new home for Donald Trump after he was banned from Twitter and other mainstream sites for his role in the violence on January 6th.

Trump launched his own social media platform Truth Social in response, which has seen a recent surge in popularity following the FBI raid on the former president’s Florida estate.

Truth Social was similarly denied access to the Google Play app store in August, with Google stating that the platform allows prohibited content, such as inciting violence and making physical threats, violating its policies.

Get the latest news from DIGIT direct to your inbox

Our newsletter covers the latest technology and IT news from Scotland and beyond, as well as in-depth features and exclusive interviews with leading figures and rising stars.

To subscribe, click here.