The British Competition and Markets Authority have imposed a new fine of 1.5 million pounds ($2.03 million) on Meta, the parent company of Facebook, for failing to meet its obligations in the context of its merger with the company specializing in short animation online, Giphy. The first fine of £50.5 million was imposed on Meta last October
The Authority explained the fine was due to the fact that Meta did not announce the “resignation of three employees occupying key positions” and “the filling of vacancies in their positions”, while the company was obligated to do so as part of an investigation conducted by the authority on the merger process, reports Al-Rai daily.
The authority added in a statement that “this is not the first time that (Meta) has refrained from informing the authority at the required time of changes among the employees’ ranks, as this happened several times in 2021,” noting that the fine “takes into account the nature and severity of the violation.” Meta indicated that the employee’s concerned work in the United States.
“We regret the decision of the British Competition and Markets Authority to fine us for voluntarily leaving the work of US-based employees,” a spokesman for the company said, adding that the company will pay what is required of it.
In May 2020, Facebook acquired “Giphy” for an estimated $400 million to integrate its large library into the Instagram platform, as this library allows the creation of “Giphy”, which are popular animated images on the Internet, or search for and share them.
The authority ordered Facebook in late November to separate from Giphy, saying that the merger threatened to harm online advertisers and network users as well.
The social media giant has filed an appeal against the decision, which will be heard by the British judiciary in April.
In October, the agency fined Facebook 50.5 million pounds ($68.37 million) for “intentionally breaching” a court order and refusing to provide information. And Meta, the parent company of Facebook, announced on Wednesday that it recorded a decline in its profits during the last quarter of last year, and the possibility of slowing growth in the first quarter of this year, and the next day its shares on the New York Stock Exchange lost more than a quarter of their value.
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