Kanye West to buy social media app Parler

Oct 17 (Reuters) – Parlement Technologies, the parent company of social media app Parler, said on Monday that it will be acquired by rapper Kanye West, who legally changed his name to simply Ye last year.

Parler, a popular app among conservatives, said it expects the deal to close during the fourth quarter of 2022. It did not give a deal value.

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

Ye’s Instagram and Twitter accounts have been restricted before, most recently this month when social media platforms removed his posts that online users condemned as anti-Semitic.

The American rapper had announced in 2020 that he would run for U.S. President in an apparent challenge to former U.S. President Donald Trump, but later pulled out.

Last month Parler created a new parent company, Parlement Technologies Inc as part of an overhaul.

West last month ended a partnership with apparel company Gap Inc , saying it failed to meet its obligations under the contract.

(Reporting by Tiyashi Datta in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D’Souza)

Photo: (FILE) – US entertainer Kanye West. EPA-EFE/MICHAEL REYNOLDS