Shutterstock Inc., a stock photography company, acquired Giphy from Meta Platforms Inc. for $53 million. The deal happened as the Facebook owner was ordered by the UK regulators to sell the GIF database due to concerns that it may limit competitors' access to Giphy's content.
The competition regulator in Britain handed down the order last year, and Meta agreed to divest Giphy. With the sale price, Meta suffered a huge loss since it originally paid $400 million to buy Giphy in 2020.
However, in 2021, the acquisition deal was challenged by the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). In the end, Meta was forced to sell its newly-acquired asset. Just months after the social media platform complied with the order, Shutterstock announced it has acquired Giphy.
According to Reuters, Shutterstock said on Tuesday, May 23, that it will pay in cash. It will be funded by existing cash-on-hand plus an intellectual property-sharing deal that will allow Meta to keep its access to content on Giphy's database.
The deal between Meta Platforms and Shutterstock is expected to be completed next month. The new owner said that it will put in "minimal" revenue this year and then launch efforts to boost profits starting in 2024.
"This is an exciting next step in Shutterstock's journey as an end-to-end creative platform. Shutterstock is in the business of helping people and brands tell their stories," Shutterstock's chief executive officer, Paul Hennessy, said in a press release. "Through the GIPHY acquisition, we are extending our audience touch points beyond primarily professional marketing and advertising use cases and expanding into casual conversations."
The CEO added, "GIPHY enables everyday users to express themselves in memorable ways with GIF and sticker content while also enabling brands to be a part of these casual conversations. We plan to leverage Shutterstock's unique capabilities in content and metadata monetization, generative AI, studio production and creative automation to enable the commercialization of our GIF library as we roll this offering out to customers."
Photo by Mariia Shalabaieva/Unsplash


SK Hynix Targets $29.4 Billion Nasdaq Listing to Expand AI Chip Business
Trump Orders DOJ Investigation Into Exxon, Chevron Over High Gas Prices
SK Hynix Moves Closer to New York ADR Listing Amid AI Chip Boom
Bain Capital Nears Deal for Majority Stake in Volkswagen Marine Engine Unit Everllence
Apple Supplier Stocks Slide as Samsung, SK Hynix Lead Selloff After Apple Price Hikes
Samsung, SK Hynix to Unveil Record AI and Semiconductor Investment Plans Worth Over $646 Billion
Samsung and SK Hynix Shares Jump After Micron Earnings Boost AI Chip Optimism
Anthropic AI Model Uncovers Vulnerabilities in Classified U.S. Government Systems During Security Test
Micron Stock Surges on Strong AI Demand, Record Revenue, and Bullish Q4 Forecast
SpaceX Stock Rebounds After Sharp Selloff, But Valuation Concerns Persist
Amazon Prime Day 2026 Sales Top $26.4 Billion as Shoppers Chase Discounts Amid Inflation
Italy Investigates Microsoft Over Microsoft 365 AI Subscription Price Hike
Bayer Wins Major U.S. Supreme Court Roundup Lawsuit, Shares Surge
US Judge Seeks Explanation for DOJ’s Decision to Drop Gautam Adani Bribery Case
Nomura Stock Upgraded to Buy by BofA as Stronger ROE and Earnings Growth Boost Outlook
Johns Hopkins University Lays Off 110 Employees as Federal Research Funding Declines 



