British market authority again rules that Meta should sell poison platform Giphy

The Competition and Markets Authority has again ruled that Meta must sell the poison platform Giphy. The purchase of Giphy by Meta, among other things, limits the choice of social media for British users, the authority says.

The CMA writes on Tuesday that Meta’s acquisition of Giphy could limit other social media platforms’ access to gifs. As a result, the platforms become less attractive to users and they cannot compete with Meta’s platforms or not at all. The authority also says that as a result of the acquisition, Giphy is no longer a potential competitor in the British advertising market, as a result of which there is insufficient innovation in this market.

Prior to Meta’s acquisition, according to the CMA, Giphy planned to allow businesses to advertise on its platform, which could have made Giphy a competitor to Meta. The only way to avoid those problems is to sell Giphy again, the market watchdog says. Meta has not yet commented on the decision.

Meta bought Giphy in 2020 for 369 million euros. In November last year, the CMA ruled that the American company should sell Giphy again, citing the same reasons as those in the current decision. Meta appealed the decision and was vindicated by the judge, who subsequently overturned the decision. The judge had reservations about the approach taken by CMA. The watchdog is said to have incorrectly consulted certain parts and used certain research findings on incorrect grounds or painted them black. The CMA said in July it would reconsider its decision.