Giphy is about sold by Meta
Meta purchased Giphy for $400 million in 2020, but the transaction was criticized for possibly being anti-competitive.
Giphy must be sold by Meta, the parent company of Facebook, due to the “risk of a material reduction in competition in the social media and display advertising market.”
According to CNBC, UK competition regulators announced the final decision on Tuesday, October 18, and Meta was mandated to “sell Giphy, in its entirety, to a suitable buyer.” It is unclear who any potential buyers are as of this writing.
Meta states that it is “disappointed by the CMA’s decision but accepts today’s ruling as the final word on the matter” in response to the ruling.
It’s $400 million acquisition by Meta of the GIF company was announced in May 2020. Since Meta controls “nearly half of the UK’s £7 billion ($7.9 billion) display advertising market,” the deal was under investigation by the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).