Adobe Systems Incorporated, the well-known American software company, could face legal action over its potential $20 billion deal to acquire Figma, a design collaboration platform. The news of the possible deal has been met with a mix of surprise and outrage, with some speculating that it may violate several antitrust laws.
Figma had been growing rapidly in the design collaboration space, quickly becoming one of the leading platforms for product design teams and web developers. The company’s software has also been crucial for Adobe’s product development teams, as Figma and its tools have been proven to be particularly effective for collaborative design management.
On April 20th, reports emerged that Adobe and Figma were finalizing the terms of a possible deal, rumored to be worth around $20 billion. The news quickly caused an uproar amongst some, as the acquisition would give Adobe control of the entire market for design collaboration tools. This could set off several anti-competitive alarms, as Adobe already owns the two largest creative software platforms, Creative Cloud and Photoshop.
This combination of products in one company could potentially create a monopoly and make it difficult for smaller companies and startups to compete in the design collaboration space. Should this potential deal be completed, many have speculated that Adobe could face legal action by government antitrust authorities or new challengers.
At the same time, others argued that such FUSF (frequent, unconstrained, and sustained competition) could be beneficial for users, as it could lead to increased innovation provided by Adobe. This argument is further strengthened by Adobe’s promise to continue operating Figma as an independent company within Adobe Creative Cloud.
Overall, speculations continue to swirl as the possibility of an Adobe-Figma deal looms closer. If the deal comes to fruition, the potential legal action that Adobe could face remains to be seen.