GoPro’s previously announced plans to merge with US optics brand Starman Optical Inc. are moving forward as the action camera giant files preliminary stock market paperwork.
On October 19, GoPro filed the preliminary proxy statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, bringing the two companies closer to finalizing the proposed merger.
"Filing the preliminary proxy is the next step toward closing, and we're working closely with Starman to complete the remaining steps efficiently," GoPro founder and CEO Nicholas Woodman said.
The CEO of Starman Holding, meanwhile, says that the filing is a signal that the process is on track. “Both companies and management teams remain fully aligned and committed to completing the proposed transaction on the previously announced terms as quickly as possible,” Starman Holdings CEO Charles Tebele said in a statement.
Earlier this year, the action camera giant announced plans to merge with the US-based company that manufactures optical transceivers, a key component in building AI data centers. Woodman previously said that the merger would help GoPro become more diversified, reassuring fans of its action cameras that “Making amazing cameras for all of you is our core DNA and reason for being and that will never change!”
With the proxy statement, GoPro also released updated financial statements after an audit conducted as part of the merger indicated errors in debt accounting. The refiled quarterly and annual financial reports show that GoPro’s first-quarter loss and 2025 fiscal year loss were both better than originally reported, though the company’s second-quarter results were worse than originally reported.
GoPro says those accounting errors were for defaults on debt agreements, which do not affect the reported revenue and cash flows, and that the company has already obtained waivers.
The planned merger stems from GoPro’s announcement back in May that it was considering potential mergers or sale. Shortly after, GoPro filed stock market paperwork that warned of “substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue” if the company’s financials did not change.
If the merger proceeds as originally planned, the move would leave GoPro largely debt-free. Woodman said that the move could help GoPro "grow across consumer, commercial and defense markets."
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