Getty Images Completes Acquisition of The Image Bank
Funding for Acquisition Completed Through a Public Offering Of 6 Million Shares of Getty Images Common Stock
SEATTLE, Nov. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Getty Images, Inc. (Nasdaq: GETY - news), the leading e-commerce provider of imagery, announced today that it has completed its acquisition of The Image Bank from Eastman Kodak Company (NYSE: EK - news). The completion of this acquisition of Getty Images' largest competitor more than doubles the Company's collection to approximately 60 million images and more than 27,000 hours of footage and serves to further emphasize the Company's leadership position in the visual content market.
The acquisition is expected to create significant opportunities for increased revenue growth as well as operating efficiencies and margin improvement for The Image Bank (www.theimagebank.com) through the application of Getty Images' e-commerce skills and the consolidation of operations.
Funding to complete the acquisition came from a public offering of 6 million shares of Getty Images' common stock on Nasdaq on November 17, 1999. The offering price for the common shares was $39 per share. The offering underwriters were Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown, Hambrecht & Quist, Robertson Stephens and Pacific Crest Securities.
''Now that we have completed our acquisition of The Image Bank, we intend to begin implementing our integration plans immediately,'' said Jonathan Klein, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Getty Images. ''Our first priority is to enhance The Image Banks' e-commerce operations, providing access to more potential markets as well as significant operating benefits.''
The Image Bank's high quality imagery collection, which includes some of the world's leading brands in stock photography and film footage, complements Getty Images' diverse brands and collections. Current plans are for The Image Bank's Archive brand, the largest archival collection in North America, to become part of the Press and Editorial channel of Getty Images, alongside the Company's Hulton Getty, Liaison, Allsport, Online USA and Newsmakers brands. The core Image Bank collection, and the Swanstock and Artville brands, will be integrated into Getty Images' Creative Professional channel, which includes the Tony Stone Images, PhotoDisc, EyeWire and Energy Film Library brands.
About Getty Images
Getty Images, Inc., with over 60 million photographs and more than 27,000 hours of film, is the leading e-commerce provider of imagery and related media products and services. The company's four channels provide high-quality, branded imagery, meeting the distinctly different needs of customers in the following market segments:
-- Creative Professional -- advertising, design agencies, web designers
and corporate marketing
-- Press and Editorial -- magazines, newspapers, book publishers and web
publishers
-- Business User -- business communications and small-office, home-office
(SOHO)
-- Consumer -- framed and unframed art and related products
The company uses its extensive web-technology expertise to create e-commerce-enabled sites that allow customers to quickly and easily access and purchase images. Headquartered in Seattle, the company has approximately 2,000 employees worldwide, and had revenues of $60.8 million in the third quarter of 1999. The company's 1998 revenues were approximately $185 million.
Additional information about Getty Images, Inc. and its market leading brands can be found on the Company's website at www.gettyimages.com.
A copy of the Prospectus relating to the US offering may be obtained from Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated, 1585 Broadway, New York, New York 10036; and a copy of the Prospectus relating to the international offering may be obtained from Morgan Stanley & Co. International Limited, 25 Cabot Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 4QA England.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state, province or jurisdiction in which such an offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state, province or jurisdiction.
CONTACT: Laurie McEachron, Public Relations Director, 206-268-1914, or laurie.mceachron@gettyimages.com, or Mary Waters-Sayer, Vice President, Investor and Public Relations, 206-268-1913, or mary.waters.sayer@getty-images.com, both of Getty Images, Inc.; or Chris Barker of Text 100, 206-381-3791, or christopherb@text100.com, for Getty Images, Inc.; or Charlie Smith, Director of Corporate Media Relations of Eastman Kodak Company, 716-724-4513, or charlie.s.smith@kodak.com. |
