Parler CEO John Matze announced on Saturday night that the “free speech” app could go offline for up to a week starting on Sunday after Amazon kicked its hosting service’s social media platform on web.
On Saturday, a trust and security team from Amazon Web Services (AWS) told Parler that it would stop hosting the application starting Sunday, January 10 at 11:59 pm PST, after the US Capitol was invaded by a pro Trump who used the platform to plan his attacks, according to Buzzfeed News.
Matze told users that it is possible “Parler will be unavailable on the internet for up to a week while we rebuild from scratch”, according to an image shared by Parlertakes.
“On Sunday (tomorrow) at midnight, Amazon will shut down all of our servers in an attempt to completely remove freedom of speech,” said Matze in a statement shared with Parler. “We prepare for events like this, never counting on the Amazons [sic] proprietary infrastructure and construction of bare metal products. “
Matze promised users that he will try to “switch to a new provider now, as we have many competing for our business”.
Amazon’s decision came after Google Play and Apple suspended Parler from their app stores for failing to properly moderate and remove harmful and harmful content. Google suspended the social media network favored by Trump supporters on Friday.
The same day, Apple told Parler to “remove all objectionable content from its app” or facial removal from the store, and gave the app 24 hours to submit a content restriction plan. Apple decided to remove Parler on Saturday afternoon.
“Your response also refers to a ‘for now’ moderation plan, which does not meet the requirements under Directive 1.2 – Security – User-generated content,” Apple said in a letter to Parler announcing the suspension. “A temporary ‘task force’ is not a sufficient response, given the widespread proliferation of harmful content.”
Matze called the Google Play, Apple and Amazon suspensions a “coordinated attack by tech giants to eliminate competition in the market”.
“We were very successful very quickly,” he said. “You can expect the war on competition and free speech to continue, but don’t exclude us.”
Conservatives, including those who support Trump’s unverified claim that widespread electoral fraud caused his defeat in the elections for President-elect Joe Biden, have turned to Parler in recent months to circumvent the censorship of Facebook and Twitter.
Trump accused Twitter of suppressing free speech and suggested that he could start his own social media network after being permanently banned from the platform.
Newsweek contacted Parler for comment.
Olivier Douliery / Getty