Adobe’s planned acquisition of design software maker, Figma Inc., for a record $20 billion has raised concerns over potential harm to UK’s digital design sector. The UK’s competition watchdog, Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), has provisionally found these apprehensions to be valid.
The CMA’s initial examination suggests that this prospective deal might eliminate competition between the two major rivals within the product design software industry and reduce the development of new products. In a statement published on Tuesday, the watchful body expound on these early findings.
This acquisition, the largest ever takeover of a private software company, is considered by Adobe as a huge wager on the likelihood of increased creative work handled by small businesses and everyday web users, a market that Figma has rapidly been growing in.
While this expansion strategy makes sense for Adobe, the regulators are tasked with ensuring fair competition in the market. As such, their primary concern is how this acquisition could potentially affect the competition, pricing, and product development. Experts wait anxiously for the CMA’s final decision while Adobe and Figma are likely to have lawyers working around the clock to ensure the deal passes regulatory scrutiny.