Monday, February 25, 2008

Getty Images Acquired By Private Equity Firm for $2.4B

Seattle-based Getty Images, a provider of stock photographs and other digital media content, announced Monday that it has agreed to be acquired by private equity firm Hellman & Friedman LLC. The transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the second quarter of this year, is worth an estimated $2.4 billion. According to Getty, its stockholders will receive $34 in cash for each outstanding share of common stock they own—a premium of some 55 percent over the Jan. 18 closing price, which was the last trading day before the company revealed that it was exploring strategic alternatives.