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Getty Images (GETY) Q2 FY26 earnings call: guidance

Earnings call· Jun 2026 (Q2 FY26)· Communication Services· Aug 10, 2026

Source: earnings call transcript

Executive summary

Getty Images Q2 FY26 — Strategic Reorientation Amidst Balance Sheet Focus

Getty Images reported a challenging Q2 FY26 with revenue and adjusted EBITDA declines, primarily impacted by the terminated Shutterstock merger costs and ongoing headwinds in its Agency and iStock businesses. The company is now focused on optimizing its capital structure and liquidity, having engaged Guggenheim Securities, while strategically reorienting iStock towards premium offerings and leveraging its unique content assets and AI partnerships for future growth.

Highlights

5

  • Annual subscription revenue grew 7.1% (5.6% currency-neutral), driven by Premium Access.

  • Americas region saw growth of 1.4% on a currency-neutral basis.

  • Editorial revenue increased 9.2% year-on-year (7.6% currency-neutral), boosted by strong demand for event-driven content.

  • Custom Content solutions grew over 350%, and Unsplash+ subscriptions grew over 15% year-on-year.

  • Improvements in average order value and organic sessions were observed during the quarter.

Concerns

5

  • Q2 revenue was $229.1 million, down 2.5% reported and 4.1% currency-neutral.

  • Free cash flow was negative $122.6 million, primarily due to a $110.9 million payment for warrant litigation judgment.

  • Adjusted EBITDA declined 8.4% (10.3% currency-neutral) to $62.3 million, with margin decreasing to 27.2% from 28.9%.

  • Active annual subscribers declined to 240,000 from 321,000 in the prior year period.

  • Over $100 million in professional fees and financing costs were incurred pursuing the terminated Shutterstock merger.

Guidance & targets

CategoryTargetConfidence
Financial Outlook
No guidance provided
high materiality
Low

Segment performance

SegmentRevenueYoYQoQMargin
Americas
Largest region, growth on a currency-neutral basis.
—1.4%——
EMEA
Decline on a currency-neutral basis, reflecting higher concentration in agency and challenges in e-commerce.
—-7.6%——
APAC
Decline on a currency-neutral basis, due primarily to certain non-recurring one-time project spend in the prior year and declines in agency.
—-22.1%——
Creative
Revenue decline driven by allocation shift to editorial, agency business headwinds, and iStock drag, partially offset by strong growth in Custom Content and Unsplash+.
Currency-neutral growth: -4.3%Impact from shift to editorial downloads: -380 bpsAgency business growth: -13%Custom Content solutions growth: >350%Unsplash+ subscription growth: >15%
$127.4M-2.6%——
Editorial
Revenue growth driven by strong demand for world-class coverage, including FIFA World Cup, news events, and archive content.
Currency-neutral growth: 7.6%Impact from allocation shift from creative: 550 bps
$96.5M9.2%——
Other Revenue
Compared to $15.7 million in Q2 2025, which benefited from three new deals with significant upfront revenue recognition.
$5.2M———

Product announcements

ProductTypeDetails
C2PA source verification protocolslaunch
Model Context Protocol (MCP) serverlaunch
Natural language searchexpansion
New editorial and creative single-seat subscriptionslaunch
Prompt-based editing AI modification toollaunch
Coding assistancemilestone
AI customer service chatbotslaunch

Deals & partnerships

Shutterstock Proposed strategic merger agreement, subsequently terminated. 18 months (pursuit phase)

The merger agreement was terminated due to regulatory requirements, uncertainty, and cost of execution, which were deemed not in the best interest of the company.

Guggenheim Securities Engagement for strategic financing alternatives and balance sheet management initiatives.

Hired in July to explore options for optimizing the capital structure and improving liquidity. Process expected to run through Q3 and into Q4.

Goalhanger Partnership to incorporate Getty Images visuals into their top-ranked podcasts, including The Rest Is Football and The Rest Is History.

Aims to expand Getty Images' reach to new audiences and tell new stories.

Land O'Lakes Collaboration to authentically depict and engage rural audiences using Getty Images content.

An example of serving corporate customers with tailored content solutions.

Google, OpenAI, Perplexity Integration of Getty Images content and coverage into their products and services, particularly for AI applications.

Leveraging Getty Images' content for AI-driven products and services. The multi-year OpenAI deal was signed in Q3 2025, with a large portion of revenue recognized in 2025.

Risks & headwinds

Costs and uncertainty from terminated Shutterstock merger Past 18 months

Over $100 million in professional fees and financing costs incurred.

Mitigation:Decision to terminate the merger agreement and focus on standalone path.

Warrant litigation judgment payment Q2 FY26 (paid April 22)

$110.9 million payment, including associated interest.

Mitigation:Received $31.5 million of insurance proceeds, partially offsetting the impact. Company disagrees with regulatory outcome.

Challenged balance sheet and liquidity Immediate priority, process through Q3 and into Q4

Total debt outstanding of $2.1 billion as of June 30, 2026. Balance sheet cash down $45 million QoQ to $51.6 million.

Mitigation:Hired Guggenheim Securities to explore strategic financing alternatives and balance sheet management initiatives.

Declining revenue in Agency business Ongoing

Agency business down 13% (contributing to Creative revenue decline).

Mitigation:Continue to rationalize resources; encouraged by AI transparency laws and slowing AI use in ad creative.

Challenges in iStock business from search engine changes and generative AI Ongoing, expected to affect subscriber additions through Q3

Softer traffic trends, search engine referral traffic declines, impact on new customer acquisition.

Mitigation:Reorienting site to premium offerings, rationalizing marketing spend, leveraging exclusive high-quality content.

Adverse impact on KPIs from iStock reorientation Over 2026 and into 2027

Adversely impact some business KPIs.

Mitigation:Strategic decision to build support for improved liquidity and focus on long-term customer value.

What to watch in Q3 FY26

Balance Sheet Optimization Progress

Q3 and Q4 FY26
Current Guggenheim Securities engaged, process underway.
Target Updates on strategic financing alternatives and balance sheet management initiatives.

Why it matters

Addressing the challenged balance sheet and improving liquidity is the immediate priority and critical for the company's standalone path.

We have not yet established a timeline, but I expect this process to run through Q3 and into Q4.

Find out whether GETY delivers this. Inve re-checks your case every morning.

2 min read 7 chapters

Detailed narrative

Shutterstock Merger Termination & Costs

Getty Images terminated its proposed merger with Shutterstock after 18 months, incurring over $100 million in professional fees and financing costs. The decision was driven by regulatory requirements and the uncertainty and cost of execution, which were deemed no longer in the company's best interest. This termination has led to a renewed focus on a standalone path and addressing the company's balance sheet.

Balance Sheet Optimization & Liquidity Focus

The immediate priority for Getty Images is to address its challenged balance sheet and improve liquidity. Guggenheim Securities has been hired to explore strategic financing alternatives and balance sheet management initiatives, a process expected to run through Q3 and into Q4. This initiative aims to optimize the capital structure to align with the company's standalone operating plan.

Challenges in Agency and iStock Businesses

The company continues to face declining revenue in its Agency business due to secular headwinds, industry consolidation, and internal production trends, including AI. iStock is impacted by search engine referral traffic declines and AI-generated answers, affecting new customer acquisition. The microstock category generally faces pressure from generative AI, though iStock's premium content offers some insulation.

Strategic Reorientation of iStock

To counter iStock's challenges, Getty Images will reorient the site towards its premium offerings, which demonstrate improved customer lifetime value, and rationalize marketing spend where returns do not meet required payback periods. This strategic shift is expected to adversely impact some business KPIs over 2026 and into 2027 but is intended to support improved liquidity and long-term customer quality.

Growth in Corporate and Media Services

Despite headwinds, the largest parts of the business, corporate and media services through the Getty Images brand, representing three-quarters of revenue, delivered continued growth. These segments show strength in customer adoption, consumption, and retention, highlighting the importance of Getty Images' offerings to quality-conscious customers. Unsplash also showed growth, reflecting strong engagement with long-tail creative customers.

AI Strategy and Content Integration

Getty Images is embracing AI as an enabler and partner, integrating its content into services from Google, OpenAI, and Perplexity. The company launched a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server and expanded natural language search to facilitate AI experiences. New initiatives include a prompt-based editing AI modification tool for customers and internal AI applications like coding assistance and AI customer service chatbots on iStock.

Expanding Offerings and Partnerships

The company is expanding beyond traditional customer bases by launching new editorial and creative single-seat subscriptions, bringing Premium Access power to individuals. Partnerships, such as with Goalhanger for podcast visuals, aim to tell new stories for new audiences. The focus remains on providing trustworthy, rights-cleared visuals with C2PA source verification protocols to amplify trust and transparency.

Summary of the company's earnings call; see how call summaries are prepared. Not investment advice.