凱雷為什么收購Getty
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????凱雷集團（Carlyle Group）日前宣布，同意以33億美元向私募股權公司Hellman & Friedman收購圖像公司Getty Images。四年前， Hellman & Friedman以24億美元將Getty Images私有化，出價較當時Getty的公開市場交易價格溢價 55%。 ????下面是我與凱雷董事總經理、即將出任Getty董事的艾略特?美林就這項交易進行的對話： 《財富》（FORTUNE）雜志：這次凱雷的價格比2008年Hellman支付的價格高出了37.5%。為什么今天這家公司的價值增加了這么多？ ????美林：Getty當時和現在一直是這個行業的領頭羊，擁有極為出色的資產組合。但過去幾年它的資產構成確實發生了變化，數字和其他多元化產品大大增加。客戶群也更多樣化了。這家公司已與2008年時大不一樣了。 2008年時凱雷嘗試過收購這家公司嗎？ ????這么說吧，我們對這家公司有非常深入的了解，我們認識（Getty首席執行官）喬納森?克萊恩已經有很長時間了。 你提到了數字資產規模的擴大。然而現在，誰都可以用谷歌（Google）搜索、盜用數字圖像，Getty如何如何生存？ ????我們知道總是會存在一定的盜版。但Getty有一套非常成熟的圖像識別體系，可以幫助它找出未經授權使用的圖像。但與唱片界不同，Getty并不起訴那些盜用圖片者。相反，它努力與這些人合作，把他們轉變為客戶。 ????Getty業務的核心是找到企業代理公司和其他需要優質內容的大公司。這些買主絕大多數都是知名企業，不屑于鉆法律空子，也不愿意冒風險。 凱雷投資Getty的基本想法是什么？ ????兩部分。第一，業務持續國際化。我們認為，在這方面我們可以給Getty以幫助，因為凱雷擁有龐大的全球業務覆蓋。美國、西歐的數字化發展遠遠快于像亞洲、中東等其他很多國家，我們預計這些國家將沿著同樣的軌道快速增長。 ????第二，使用靜態圖像的數字媒體激增，我們認為這股趨勢將延續下去。人們在移動設備上觀看的屏幕越來越高端，低分辨率圖像將無法再滿足需求。 33億美元是2012年進行的一項金額很大的收購。獲得貸款有沒有碰到困難？ ????如果你看看當今整體的債券市場，你得承認，市場狀況已經算是相當不錯了。我們已經組織了5家大銀行，條款公平。 當年Hellman收購時，Getty股價曾大跌。如今，凱雷是Getty第二大直接出資人。像Getty這樣的公司是不是更適合由私募股權公司持有，而不是公開上市？ ????我們很高興成為Getty的出資人，但我也相信有一天，這家公司將再度成為一家非常出色的公開上市公司。或許日后有一些我們感興趣的戰略。 ????真正吸引人的是，Getty的兩位創始人，也就是喬納森?卡萊恩和馬克?蓋蒂，他們和我們一起再次向公司注資。這是相當有力的表態，表明了比任何人都更了解Getty的這兩個人對公司的未來有信心。 ????譯者：早稻米 |
Getting a clearer picture of today's $3.3 billion buyout. ????The Carlyle Group (CG) today announced that it has agreed to acquire stock imagery company Getty Images for $3.3 billion from fellow private equity firm Hellman & Friedman. The deal comes four years after Hellman & Friedman took the company private for $2.4 billion, a 55% premium to where Getty was trading on the public markets. ????What follows is a conversation I had about the deal with Eliot Merrill, a Carlyle managing director who will serve on the Getty board of directors: FORTUNE: You're paying a 37.5% premium to what Hellman paid in 2008. Why is the company worth so much more today? ????Merrill: Getty was then and still is a leader in its industry with a tremendous collection of assets. But the makeup of those assets has really changed over the last several years with much more digital and other product diversification. The client base also has diversified. It has evolved into a much different business than it was in 2008. Did Carlyle try buying it in 2008? ????Let's just say we have very deep knowledge of the company, and have known [Getty CEO] Jonathan Klein for a long time. You mentioned more digital assets. How does Getty survive when anyone can just use Google to search for, and steal, digital images? ????We're wise enough to the fact that there is always going to be some piracy. But the company has a very sophisticated image recognition system that helps it find when images are being used without its authority. But unlike with music, Getty is not in the business of suing those who violate. It tries to work with them to become customers. ????The core of Getty's business is to find corporate agencies and other large businesses that need premium content. The vast majority of those buyers are in the content and don't want to skirt the law, or fly too close to the sun. What is Carlyle's basic investment thesis for Getty? ????Two parts. First, the continued globalization of the business. We think we can be helpful to Getty with that because of Carlyle's large global footprint. The digitization curve is much more advanced here and in Western Europe than in a lot of other counties in places like Asia and the Middle East, which we expect to follow the same general glide-path. ????Second, there is a proliferation of digital media that uses still imagery and we don't see that as a trend that's going to stop. The screens people are using to consume media on a mobile basis are getting more sophisticated and having low-resolution images won't do anymore. $3.3 billion is a pretty large buyout for 2012. Was debt easy to secure? ????If you look at the debt markets in general, you'd have to say they're in pretty good shape. We were able to line up five great banks on terms we think are fair. Getty was getting pummeled in the stock market when Hellman bought it, and now you're the second straight sponsor to own it. Is Getty one of those companies that's better off being held by private equity rather than by the public? ????We're very happy to have it sponsor owned right now, but I also believe that it could be a very good public company again someday. And maybe there are some strategics would might be interested down the road. ????One of the things that's really attractive is that the two founders -- Jonathan Klein and Mark Getty -- are reinvesting back in the business alongside us. It's a powerful statement that the two people who know the business better than anyone else believe in its future. |
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