Apple’s threat to kick Parler off the App Store may have backfired

UPDATE: Jan. 9, 2021, 7:50 p.m. EST Apple announced it has suspended Parler. In a statement provided to Mashable, the company wrote: “We have always supported diverse points of view being represented on the App Store, but there is no place on our platform for threats of violence and illegal activity. Parler has not taken adequate measures to address the proliferation of these threats to people’s safety. We have suspended Parler from the App Store until they resolve these issues.”

When it comes to the App Store, any publicity does indeed appear to be good publicity. 

Less than 24 hours after Apple threatened to remove Parler from its App Store, the social media app favored by conservatives for its lax content-moderation policies shot to the top of the download charts. Saturday afternoon, mere hours before the reported deadline was set to expire, the previously fringe alternative to Twitter had been infused with new life. 

Parler suddenly found itself listed as