Europe pushes the investigation into the takeover of Figma by Adobe

In September, Adobe was delighted to have reached an agreement with the creator of the collaborative design platform Figma. To make this takeover a reality, the American paid $ 20 billion.

“The combination of the Adobe and Figma communities will bring designers and developers closer together to unlock the future of collaborative design,” argued the new owner.

Europe’s multiple concerns

However, it will have to submit to a thorough investigation in Europe. The European Commission announced its decision on August 7 on behalf of the merger legislation. Because according to her, the takeover of Figma could ultimately reduce competition.

The Commission mentions several concerns related to this takeover. In this way, it considers that it could allow Adobe to restrict competition in the global markets for the supply of interactive product design tools.

“Figma is the undisputed market leader and Adobe is one of its main competitors,” justifies the regulator. In addition, the two actors “are close competitors”. A merger would therefore mean the disappearance of an “important competitive force”.

Moreover, by giving birth to a new and even more powerful player, the acquisition would make it unlikely that other players would enter this market quickly and credibly. But the Commission also considers that such a rapprochement is likely to penalize the development of the software offer.

A decision by December 2023 at the latest

Addressing these concerns is therefore the aim of Europe’s in-depth investigation. In particular, the Commission wishes to determine whether the combination of Figma with the Creative Cloud suite is likely to exclude rival suppliers.

“The Commission will now conduct a thorough investigation into the effects of the proposed transaction in order to determine whether its initial competition concerns are confirmed,” she says.

The European authority specifies that it has until December 14, 2023 to make a decision. Finally, it recalls that the initiation of an in-depth procedure does not prejudge the outcome of the investigation.