Meta sells Giphy to Shutterstock to comply with UK regulator order

Shutterstock Inc said on Tuesday it would buy animated-images platform Giphy Inc from Meta Platforms Inc for $53 million in cash, months after the Facebook owner had agreed to divest the company on competition concerns.

Britain’s competition regulator last year ordered Meta to sell Giphy over fears that it could deny or limit competitors such as Snapchat Inc and Twitter access to the target’s content.

Meta had reportedly paid $400 million for New York-based Giphy in 2020. A year later the deal was challenged by Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority and its successful campaign was the first time a regulator had forced a US tech giant to sell an already acquired company.