Getty Images, the world's largest stock photo company, just got larger.
Today Seattle-based Getty announced it has acquired Pixel Images of Ireland for $135 million in cash. Pixel owns Stockdisc and Stockbyte, Getty's largest image partner. Owning the content it already distributes will increase its margins and add flexibility, Getty says.
The purchase comes just two months after Getty bought iStockphoto for $50 million in a bid to enter the low-cost "micropayment" business. Both Stockbyte and iStockphoto offer royalty-free images, Stockbyte's for as little as $45 and iStockphoto's for as low as $1.