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February 25, 2008 6:11 PM PST
Getty Images goes private in $2.4 billion deal
Hellman & Friedman is acquiring Getty Images for about $2.4 billion in a deal that would make the powerful but financially troubled seller of stock photography into a privately owned company, the companies said Monday.
Getty shareholders will receive $34 per share, and Hellman & Friedman will assume the company's debt under the deal, the companies said. That price is a 29 percent premium over Friday's closing price of $24.45; on Monday, the stock closed at $31.67.
Getty's board has approved the acquisition and resolved to recommend the transaction to shareholders; the deal is expected to close in the second quarter. The Seattle-based company confirmed in January it was "exploring strategic alternatives."
Stephen Shankland covers Google, Yahoo, search, online advertising, portals, digital photography, and related subjects. He joined CNET News in 1998 and since then also has covered servers, supercomputing, open-source software, and science. E-mail Stephen.
