Facebook’s acquisition of GIF site Giphy will face an in-depth investigation from antitrust regulators, after the social-media giant failed to make concessions to address competition concerns.
The U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority, or CMA, said on Thursday that it had referred the merger for an in-depth, “second-phase” investigation with a deadline of September 15.The CMA began probing the deal in June 2020 and launched an initial investigation in January this year. On March 25, the regulator said it was possible that Facebook’s takeover of Giphy “has resulted or may be expected to result in a substantial lessening of competition” in U.K. markets.
The regulator’s concerns center on how Giphy would have less of an incentive to expand its digital advertising, which would lead to a loss of potential competition. In July 2020, the CMA found that Facebook controlled more than 50% of the £5.5 billion display advertising market. Also read: Facebook, Google, Apple and Amazon could face multibillion-dollar fines under new EU tech regulations
They must stop this deal.