UK competition authority says Facebook takeover of Giphy might hurt competition
Facebook announced in 2020 that it was buying the GIF search engine Giphy for $400 million. In a preliminary report, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the deal will negatively impact competition between social media platforms. The CMA considers that Giphy was developing an ad business that would have competed with Facebook. The potential acquisition of Giphy by Facebook made Giphy end its advertisement development plans, therefore reducing competition in the marketplace. The CMA’s final report on the deal is expected in early October. Facebook’s social media-related acquisitions have increasingly been under the scrutiny of antitrust bodies.
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