The UK competition authority said Tuesday that it had instructed Meta Platforms, which Facebook belongs to, to sell the gif platform Giphy. The regulator said the deal could harm social media users and advertisers in the UK.
Meta was quoted by Reuters as saying that it disagreed with the decision.
The regulator Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said Facebook’s acquisition of Giphy would result in less competition between social media platforms. The watchdog said the Meta-Giphy deal had already taken the latter off the market as a competitor.
A panel of the competition and market regulator also determined that the acquisition of Giphy will enable Facebook to further expand its already significant power in the social media market. According to the panel, this can be done by blocking or restricting other social networks’ access to Giphy’s gif images.
This, in turn, can increase traffic to Facebook and its platforms like Instagram and WhatsApp, which gives Meta more advantages in the market.
“We do not agree with this decision,” said a meta spokesman, according to Reuters. “We are reviewing the decision and considering all options, including the appeal.”
In August of this year, CMA had provisionally determined that the acquisition of Giphy would give Facebook an unjustified advantage. At the time, the Guardian had even said that Facebook may have to break the deal.
(With contributions from agencies)
