This was determined by the competition and market surveillance authority Meta Platform Inc META Takeover from Giphy could allow Meta to restrict other social media platforms’ access to GIFs, making those sites less attractive and less attractive to users competitive.

The deal was also found to have removed Giphy as a potential challenger in the UK display advertising market and prevented UK companies from capitalizing on innovation in that market.

The CMA ordered Meta to sell Giphy in November 2021, noting that the deal could hurt social media users and UK advertisers. Meta then appealed this decision to the Competition Appeal Tribunal. In July 2022, the CAT upheld the CMA’s decision.

Also read: Meta’s concerns are growing as internal documents reflect underperforming Metaverse

The CMA found that Giphy’s advertising services had the potential to compete with Meta’s and would have encouraged further incredible innovation from Meta and other market participants.

However, Meta ended Giphy’s advertising services after the acquisition and removed a potential advertising tool for UK companies. The CMA has concluded that the only way to avoid the impact of the deal is to sell it to an approved buyer.

In September, Facebook suffered a setback in its lawsuit in a European Union court against a German antitrust decision calling for an overhaul of social media the giant’s business model. The competition authorities investigated Meta for alleged abuse of a dominant position.

Price promotion: META shares traded up 1.04% to $135.43 on the latest check Tuesday.