Facebook is acquiring popular GIF database GIPHY used by consumers for creating and hosting short animations that can be used on various social platforms. GIPHY was a New York-based that started startup back in 2013. It is a surprise deal and is reportedly valued between $300 million to $400 million.
This acquisition represents one of Facebook’s largest deals in recent years, giving the platform a firm control over a very important content-creation tool that keeps users engaged with its features in various apps. Furthermore, the company will acquire valuable data for consumers using GIFs in competing services.
Facebook shared in a blog post that the company will be joining Facebook as a part of the Instagram team. The platform’s vast library of GIFs will continue operating separately on various platforms as well. GIPHY says that 50% of its traffic already comes from Facebook-owned applications.
GIPHY’s Reported Cost:
The deal was closed on Friday, but both companies did not disclose how much GIPHY was sold for. If the reported price is true, it would represent a steep discount to the company’s last valuation of $600 million as a private company.
Facebook executive Vishal Shah wrote in the announcement post:
“By bringing Instagram and GIPHY together, we can make it easier for people to find the perfect GIFs and stickers in Stories and Direct. A lot of people in our community already know and love GIPHY. In fact, 50% of GIPHY’s traffic comes from the Facebook family of apps, half of that from Instagram alone.”
According to CNBC, Facebook unsuccessfully tried to acquire GIPHY back in 2015. The timing of this deal may have allowed the tech giant to squeeze up a bargain with the newly bought company.
Partnering platforms that use GIF libraries in their apps include Tinder, Twitter, Snapchat, Slack and the integration will continue to work. Facebook says that it is looking forward to investing in tech developments for its new acquisition.
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