Shutterstock Inc, a leading global provider of stock photos, images, and videos, has announced its plans to acquire Giphy Inc, an animated images platform, from Meta for $53 million in cash. The acquisition comes after Meta’s agreement to divest Giphy due to concerns raised by Britain’s competition regulator regarding potential limitations on competitors’ access to Giphy’s content, such as Snapchat and Twitter.
The sale of Giphy was compelled by the Competition and Markets Authority of Britain, marking the first time a U.S. tech giant has been forced to sell an already acquired company by a regulatory body. Meta had initially acquired Giphy for $400 million in 2020, and the subsequent challenge from the British regulator led to the divestiture.
Shutterstock expects the deal to be finalized next month, and the company’s shares rose by as much as 4 per cent premarket following the announcement. The acquisition of Giphy is an exciting opportunity for Shutterstock to enhance its position as an end-to-end creative platform.
Giphy, headquartered in New York, is renowned for hosting the world’s most extensive collection of animated images, commonly known as GIFs, and web-based stickers. These visual assets are widely used on popular platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Microsoft Teams. Giphy’s extensive content repository, which includes official submissions from prominent media firms like Disney and Netflix, generates a staggering 15 billion daily impressions.
By acquiring Giphy, Shutterstock gains access to an estimated 1.7 billion daily users. While the deal is expected to contribute “minimal” revenue for Shutterstock this year, the company has outlined plans to drive revenue growth from Giphy starting in 2024.
Shutterstock CEO Paul Hennessy expressed enthusiasm about the acquisition, stating, “This is an exciting next step in Shutterstock’s journey as an end-to-end creative platform.” The strategic move aligns with Shutterstock’s vision of providing a comprehensive range of creative resources and expanding its offerings to a broader user base.
As the acquisition progresses, Shutterstock aims to leverage the vast collection of GIFs and stickers from Giphy to enhance its platform’s content library and further cater to the creative needs of its customers.
The acquisition of Giphy by Shutterstock underscores the evolving landscape of the creative industry and the increasing demand for dynamic visual content across various online platforms.
