By Giulia PetroniThe European Union's competition watchdog issued a statement of objections against Adobe's proposed $20 billion acquisition of Figma, saying the deal could reduce fair competition in the market of interactive product design and other creative design software. The European Commission, the EU's executive body, said late on Friday that the acquisition could significantly imperil competition for the supply of interactive product design tools and of vector and raster editing tools. "Adobe now has the opportunity to reply to the Commission's statement of objections, to consult the Commission's case file and to request an oral hearing," according to the authority. An in-depth investigation to assess Adobe's proposed acquisition of the collaborative-design platform was opened in August. The U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority is also conducting an in-depth probe into the deal.

Source: Wall Street Journal November 20, 2023 07:02 UTC