The British competition watchdog CMA has finally ruled that Meta’s acquisition of GIPHY should be undone. That means Facebook’s parent company has to sell the gifting platform compulsorily. The acquisition of GIPHY by Meta, according to the watchdog, primarily hinders competition in the online advertising market. For example, Meta can remove GIF animations on competing platforms, the regulator States. The CMA ruled last december that the acquisition of GIPHY should be reversed. Meta appealed against this ruling. The British Competition Appeal Tribunal heard the case and announced in July that the CMA’s decision was right. But the UK regulator would not have handed over certain documents explaining its decision to Meta. The CMA therefore had to take another look at the matter. The result of this is that Meta has to sell the gifjesplatform. Meta can no longer appeal against this. Meta has announced that it is accepting the decision. The company says it will work with the CMA to find a buyer for GIPHY.
