8-K
Getty Images Holdings, Inc. (GETY)
UNITED
STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM
8-K
CURRENT
REPORT Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (date of earliest event reported): September 29, 2025
Getty Images Holdings, Inc.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)
| Delaware | 001-41453 | 87-3764229 |
|---|---|---|
| (State or other jurisdiction <br><br>of incorporation) | (Commission File Number) | (IRS Employer<br><br> Identification Number) |
605 5th Ave S. Suite 400
Seattle, WA 98104
(Address of Principal Executive Offices, including Zip Code)
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:
(206) 925-5000
Not Applicable
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
| ☐ | Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
|---|---|
| ☐ | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| --- | --- |
| ☐ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| --- | --- |
| ☐ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
| --- | --- |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of each exchange on which registered |
|---|---|---|
| Class A Common Stock | GETY | New York Stock Exchange |
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).
Emerging growth company ☒
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Item 8.01 Other Events
On September 29, 2025, Getty Images, Inc., (the “Issuer”), an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Getty Images Holdings, Inc. (the “Company”), announced its plan to offer, in a private offering, subject to market and other conditions, $628,400,000 aggregate principal amount of senior secured notes due 2030 (the “Notes”), pursuant to a confidential Offering Memorandum (the “Offering Memorandum”). The Notes will be senior secured obligations of the Issuer and will be jointly and severally guaranteed on a senior secured first lien basis by the same guarantors that provide guarantees for the Issuer’s outstanding senior secured notes due 2030 and its secured credit facility.
The offering is being made in connection with the previously announced proposed merger (the “Merger”) with Shutterstock, Inc. (“Shutterstock”). An amount equal to the gross proceeds will be deposited in an escrow account and will be secured by a first-priority security interest in the escrow account and all funds deposited therein. Upon release from escrow, the Company and the Issuer intend to use the net proceeds from this offering to pay fees, expenses and cash consideration to holders of Shutterstock common stock payable in connection with the Merger and to use the remaining proceeds to refinance certain indebtedness of Shutterstock and pay fees and expenses in connection with this offering.
If the agreement to complete the Merger is terminated, or the Merger is not consummated on or prior to October 6, 2026, or if the Issuer informs U.S. Bank National Association, in its capacity as escrow agent for the proceeds of the offering, that it reasonably believes the Merger will not be consummated on or prior to October 6, 2026, the Notes will be redeemed in accordance with a special mandatory redemption at a redemption price equal to 100% of the issue price of the Notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, from the date of issuance or the most recent date to which interest has been paid or provided for, to, but not including, the date of such redemption.
The Notes have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), any state securities laws or the securities laws of any other jurisdiction and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration. Accordingly, the Notes are being offered and sold only to persons reasonably believed to be qualified institutional buyers in accordance with Rule 144A under the Securities Act and outside the United States in reliance on Regulation S under the Securities Act.
A copy of the press release announcing the offering is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K.
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Forward Looking Statements
This Current Report contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), that reflect management’s current expectations, plans, and assumptions that management has made in light of their experience in the industry, as well as their perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments, and other factors they believe are appropriate under the circumstances and at such time. Forward-looking statements include information concerning possible or assumed future results of operations, including statements regarding estimates and forecasts of other financial and performance metrics and projections of market opportunity, the offering, the expected use of proceeds from the offering, the escrow agreement and the Merger. These statements often include words such as “anticipate,” “expect,” “suggests,” “plan,” “believe,” “intend,” “estimates,” “targets,” “projects,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “may,” “will,” “forecast,” and other similar expressions or the negative of these words and phrases, other variations of these words and phrases or comparable terminology, but not all forward-looking statements include such identifying words.
These forward-looking statements are subject to and involve risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that may cause the Company’s actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could lead to such material differences include, but are not limited to, satisfaction of the conditions described in the Offering Memorandum.
You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which represent management’s beliefs and assumptions only as of the date of this Current Report. Actual future results may differ materially from what the Company expects. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company’s expectations are discussed in the section entitled “Risk Factors” set forth in the Offering Memorandum, as well as under the heading “Risk Factors” included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). These factors should not be considered exhaustive and should be read together with other cautionary statements included in the Company’s filings with the SEC.
The Company expressly disclaims any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this Current Report, whether as a result of new information, future developments, or otherwise, except as required by applicable federal securities law.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
| Exhibit No. | Description |
|---|---|
| 99.1 | Press Release announcing the proposed offering of Notes, dated September 29, 2025 |
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document) |
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SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| Getty Images Holdings, Inc. | ||
|---|---|---|
| By: | /s/ Kjelti Kellough | |
| Name: | Kjelti Kellough | |
| Title: | Senior Vice President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary |
Date: September 29, 2025
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Exhibit 99.1
Getty Images Announces Proposed Offering of Senior Secured Notes due 2030
NEW YORK, Sept. 29, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) – Getty Images Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: GETY) (“Getty Images”) announced today that its indirect wholly owned subsidiary, Getty Images, Inc. (the “Issuer”), plans to offer, in a private offering, subject to market and other conditions, $628,400,000 aggregate principal amount of senior secured notes due 2030 (the “Notes”). The Notes will be senior secured obligations of the Issuer and will be jointly and severally guaranteed on a senior secured first lien basis by the same guarantors that provide guarantees for the Issuer’s outstanding senior secured notes due 2030 and its secured credit facility.
The offering is being made in connection with the previously announced proposed merger (the “Merger”) with Shutterstock, Inc. (“Shutterstock”), to create a premier visual content company.
An amount equal to the gross proceeds will be deposited in an escrow account and will be secured by a first-priority security interest in the escrow account and all funds deposited therein. Upon release from escrow, Getty Images and the Issuer intend to use the net proceeds from this offering to pay approximately $350,000,000 of fees, expenses and cash consideration to holders of Shutterstock common stock payable in connection with the Merger and to use the remaining proceeds to refinance certain indebtedness of Shutterstock and pay fees and expenses in connection with this offering.
However, in the event that the Merger is not consummated on or prior to October 6, 2026 or the agreement to complete the Merger is terminated, or if the Issuer informs U.S. Bank National Association, in its capacity as escrow agent for the proceeds of the offering, that it reasonably believes the Merger will not be consummated on or prior to October 6, 2026, the Notes will be redeemed in accordance with a special mandatory redemption at a redemption price equal to 100% of the issue price plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, from the date of issuance or the most recent date to which interest has been paid or provided for, to, but not including, the date of such redemption.
The Notes have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), any state securities laws or the securities laws of any other jurisdiction and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration. Accordingly, the Notes are being offered and sold only to persons reasonably believed to be qualified institutional buyers in accordance with Rule 144A under the Securities Act and outside the United States in reliance on Regulation S under the Securities Act.
This press release does not constitute an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, any security and shall not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.
Forward Looking Statements
Certain statements included in this press release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of the words such as “believe,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “expect,” “should,” “would,” “plan,” “project,” “forecast,” “predict,” “potential,” “seem,” “seek,” “future,” “outlook,” “target” or similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding estimates and forecasts of other financial and performance metrics and projections of market opportunity, the offering, the expected use of proceeds from the offering, the escrow agreement and the Merger. These statements are based on various assumptions, whether or not identified in this press release, and on the current expectations of our management and are not predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as, and must not be relied on by any investor as, a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction or a definitive statement of fact or probability. Actual events and circumstances are difficult or impossible to predict and will differ from assumptions. Many actual events and circumstances are beyond the control of the Company.
These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including: the risks and uncertainties associated with the offering of the Notes, the risk of termination of the offering of the Notes or termination of the agreement to complete the Merger and any adverse effects on the Company of any such termination, our ability to close the Merger and other risks and uncertainties identified in “Item 1A. Risk Factors” of our most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K (the “2024 Form 10-K”). If any of these risks materialize or our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements.
These and other factors that could cause actual results to differ from those implied by the forward-looking statements in this press release are more fully described under the heading “Item 1A Risk Factors” in our 2024 Form 10-K and in our other filings with the SEC. The risks described under the heading “Item 1A Risk Factors” in our 2024 Form 10-K and other filings with the SEC are not exhaustive. New risk factors emerge from time to time and it is not possible to predict all such risk factors, nor can we assess the impact of all such risk factors on our business or the extent to which any factor or combination of factors may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. All forward looking statements attributable to us or persons acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the foregoing cautionary statements. We undertake no obligations to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
In addition, the statements of belief and similar statements reflect our beliefs and opinions on the relevant subject. These statements are based upon information available to us, as applicable, as of the date of this press release, and while we believe such information forms a reasonable basis for such statements, such information may be limited or incomplete, and statements should not be read to indicate that we have conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all potentially available relevant information. These statements are inherently uncertain and you are cautioned not to unduly rely upon these statements.
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About Getty Images
Getty Images (NYSE: GETY) is a preeminent global visual content creator and marketplace that offers a full range of content solutions to meet the needs of any customer around the globe, no matter their size. Through its Getty Images, iStock and Unsplash brands, websites and APIs, Getty Images serves customers in almost every country in the world and is the first-place people turn to discover, purchase and share powerful visual content from the world’s best photographers and videographers. Getty Images works with almost 600,000 content creators and more than 355 content partners to deliver this powerful and comprehensive content. Each year Getty Images covers more than 160,000 news, sport and entertainment events providing depth and breadth of coverage that is unmatched. Getty Images maintains one of the largest and best privately-owned photographic archives in the world with millions of images dating back to the beginning of photography.
Through its best-in-class creative library and Custom Content solutions, Getty Images helps customers elevate their creativity and entire end-to-end creative process to find the right visual for any need. With the adoption and distribution of generative AI technologies and tools trained on permissioned content that include indemnification and perpetual, worldwide usage rights, Getty Images and iStock customers can use text to image generation to ideate and create commercially safe compelling visuals, further expanding Getty Images capabilities to deliver exactly what customers are looking for.
For company news and announcements, visit our Newsroom.
Investor Contact Getty Images:
Steven Kanner
Investorrelations@gettyimages.com
Media Contact Getty Images:
Julia Holmes
Julia.Holmes@gettyimages.com
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