Facebook, now Meta, bought Giphy for a reported $400 million in May 2020
The UK competition regulator is expected to block Meta Platforms’ acquisition of online GIF platform Giphy in the coming days, the Financial Times reported on Monday.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is set to reverse the deal in what would be the first time the watchdog has reversed a Big Tech acquisition, the report said, citing individuals close to the matter.
On 15 May 2020, Facebook bought Giphy to integrate it with its photo-sharing app, Instagram. The deal was then pegged at $400 million by Axios.
The regulator had in October fined the U.S. social media giant Facebook, now Meta, 50.5 million pound ($67.35 million) for breaching an order that was imposed during an investigation into its purchase of the GIF platform, Giphy.
Meta Platforms and the regulator did not respond to requests for comment from Reuters.
Giphy is a website for making and sharing animated images, or GIFs. It is an American online database and search engine that allows users to search for and share short looping videos with no sound, that resemble animated GIF files.
In October 2021, media outlets reported that the parent company of Facebook planned to change its name to ‘reflect its focus on building the metaverse’; it was rebranded as Meta later that month on October 28.
Meta is the parent organization of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, among other subsidiaries. It offers other products and services, including Facebook, Messenger, Facebook Watch, and Facebook Portal. It has also acquired Oculus, Giphy and Mapillary, and has a 9.99% stake in Jio Platforms.
The company generates a substantial share of its revenue from the sale of advertisement placements to marketers.
