Getty Images has terminated its $3.7 billion merger agreement with Shutterstock after UK regulators imposed conditions requiring the sale of Shutterstock's editorial business, despite US antitrust clearance.
<figure>
<img alt="An illustration of getty images over a brain." data-caption="Getty says it’s “not required” to accept approval conditions that would force Shutterstock to offload its editorial business. | Image: The Verge" data-portal-copyright="Image: The Verge" data-has-syndication-rights="1" src="https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/236806_Getty_Images_AI_Images_CVirginia.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100" />
<figcaption>
Getty says it’s “not required” to accept approval conditions that would force Shutterstock to offload its editorial business. | Image: The Verge </figcaption>
</figure>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Getty is planning to axe its <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2025/1/7/24338112/getty-images-shutterstock-merging-stock-photo-powerhouse">$3.7 billion merger agreement</a> with Shutterstock after a UK regulator imposed restrictions that would prevent part of Shutterstock's business from being included in the deal. The move comes despite the US Department of Justice granting the deal "<a href="https://investor.shutterstock.com/news-releases/news-release-details/getty-images-and-shutterstock-receive-unconditional-antitrust">unconditional antitrust clearance</a>" in February.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">In <a href="https://investors.gettyimages.com/static-files/e7264378-8e08-452a-adcb-0e2b7bff004d">an SEC filing</a> published on Tuesday in the US, Getty said it is "not required to accept" <a href="https://www.theverge.com/tech/931133/the-shutterstock-getty-merger-passed-a-pivotal-hurdle">approval conditions</a> outlined by the UK Competition and Markets Authority in May that require Shutterstock to sell its global editorial business, including the Backgrid and Splash paparazzi agencies.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Those conditions have proved unappe …</p>
<p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/tech/960047/getty-shutterstock-merger-agreement-termination">Read the full story at The Verge.</a></p>
# Cleared by the US, derailed by the UK: Getty’s Shutterstock merger falls apart
Source: [https://www.theverge.com/tech/960047/getty-shutterstock-merger-agreement-termination](https://www.theverge.com/tech/960047/getty-shutterstock-merger-agreement-termination)
[](https://www.theverge.com/authors/jess-weatherbed)
Jess Weatherbed
is a news writer focused on creative industries, computing, and internet culture\. Jess started her career at TechRadar, covering news and hardware reviews\.
Getty is planning to axe its[$3\.7 billion merger agreement](https://www.theverge.com/2025/1/7/24338112/getty-images-shutterstock-merging-stock-photo-powerhouse)with Shutterstock after a UK regulator imposed restrictions that would prevent part of Shutterstock’s business from being included in the deal\. The move comes despite the US Department of Justice granting the deal “[unconditional antitrust clearance](https://investor.shutterstock.com/news-releases/news-release-details/getty-images-and-shutterstock-receive-unconditional-antitrust)” in February\.
In[an SEC filing](https://investors.gettyimages.com/static-files/e7264378-8e08-452a-adcb-0e2b7bff004d)published on Tuesday in the US, Getty said it is “not required to accept”[approval conditions](https://www.theverge.com/tech/931133/the-shutterstock-getty-merger-passed-a-pivotal-hurdle)outlined by the UK Competition and Markets Authority in May that require Shutterstock to sell its global editorial business, including the Backgrid and Splash paparazzi agencies\.
Those conditions have proved unappealing enough for Getty to walk away from the deal, which aimed to combine the companies’ stock photo libraries\. Both companies face competition from AI image generators that provide fast and cheap media content on demand\. The company’s board of directors “unanimously” voted to terminate the merger agreement on July 6th, “assuming no material change in the aforementioned circumstances” occurs before July 7th\. That essentially leaves the Getty/Shutterstock merger dead in the water\.
Pressure from UK regulators has killed similar deals in the past\. Meta was[ordered to unload Giphy](https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/30/22740272/facebook-giphy-acquisition-competition-and-markets-authority-uk-regulator)in 2021 over competition concerns, which it sold to[Shutterstock in 2023](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-65684986)\.
**Follow topics and authors**from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates\.
- Jess Weatherbed
Shutterstock will pay $35 million to settle FTC allegations over deceptive subscription and cancellation practices, including failing to disclose terms and making cancellation difficult.
The UK government is likely to intervene in Paramount's $111 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, citing concerns about media plurality and ownership in the UK.
The US Department of Justice approved the Paramount/Warner Bros. merger, surprising its own lawyers, but multiple US states and the EU are planning legal challenges.
UK regulators ordered Google to add clearer links in AI Overviews and allow UK publishers to opt out of AI-generated search features, marking a significant intervention in AI search practices.
Meta has begun unwinding its $2 billion acquisition of Chinese AI startup Manus after Beijing demanded divestiture on national security grounds, cutting off data access and preparing for full separation. The move highlights China's tightening control over AI technology and foreign investment.