ReutersMar 04, 2021 01:15:45 IST
(Reuters) – Social media app Parler has dropped its federal case against Amazon.com Inc for cutting off its web-hosting services and filed a separate lawsuit against the company and its web services unit in a Washington state court, according to court documents from late Tuesday.
The new lawsuit filed by Parler, which was first reported by NPR, accused Amazon of defamation and breach of contract.
Parler, an app popular among American right-wing users, came back online last month after going dark in January as many service providers pulled back support, accusing it of failing to monitor violent content related to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, the nation’s legislative seat, by supporters of then-President Donald Trump.
Parler sued Amazon, accusing it of making an illegal, politically motivated decision to shut it down to benefit Twitter Inc but a U.S. judge rejected its demand that Amazon restore services for the platform later in January.
A month later, Parler re-launched its services online and said the new platform was built on “sustainable, independent technology.” SkySilk, a Los Angeles-based company, said it was providing Parler with private cloud infrastructure.
An Amazon Web Services spokesman said there was no merit to the lawsuit’s claims. Parler did not respond to requests for comment.
Amazon has said that Parler ignored repeated warnings to effectively moderate the growth of violent content on its website, including calls to assassinate prominent Democratic politicians, leading business executives and members of the media.
Parler, however, said there was a lack of evidence that it had a role in inciting the pro-Trump riots in U.S. Capitol and argued that it was unfair to deprive millions of law-abiding Americans a platform for free speech.
Google also removed the application from its Play Store and Apple from its App Store.
(Reporting by Munsif Vengattil in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Elizabeth Culliford in New York; Editing by Shailesh Kuber, Aurora Ellis and Arun Koyyur)
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