Getty Acquires Digital Vision

Getty Images has acquired Digital Vision, the London-based royalty-free stock-image company, for $165 million in cash. The majority of Digital Vision's current image collection is already available at gettyimages.com via Getty Images' Image Partner program. The company expects to increase investment in Digital Vision content to broaden the collection in terms of number of images, depth, and geography.

“Worldwide demand for royalty-free imagery has been particularly strong recently, especially in Europe, and we forecast that demand will continue to grow,” says Jonathan Klein, Getty Images' co-founder and CEO. “Additionally, this transaction gives us a wealth of wholly owned content, which will allow us to explore innovative offerings such as subscription licensing models and content for emerging broadband-enabled platforms, such as wireless.”

Founded in 1995, Digital Vision was founded in 1995. In addition to its headquarters in London, it has offices in New York and sells directly in France, Germany, Holland, and Spain. Its holdings include royalty-free stock photography, illustration, motion, and music. (Getty Images: www.gettyimages.com, Digital Vision: www.digitalvision.com)