In one of the most striking deals made in the entertainment industry in recent history, production giant Disney is set to purchase assets of 21st Century Fox for USD 52.4 billion, with The Walt Disney Company's CEO Bog Iger getting his contract extended for two more years.
According to Contactmusic.com, the Walt Disney Company confirmed on Thursday that they have agreed an all-stock acquisition deal for the corporation, as well as obtaining other assets from media conglomerate Rupert Murdoch's empire, whilst taking on USD 13.7 billion of Fox's credit insured debt.
Disney will scoop up Fox's movie and television studios, regional sports network and international holdings, among other investments.
This deals means the film rights to 'X-Men' and 'Deadpool' will now revert back to Disney-owned Marvel, while the studio also takes ownership of James Cameron's 'Avatar' franchise, and everything from the Fox network from 'The X-Files' to 'Empire' will now get their own Disneyland rides.
The 66-year-old executive, said, "The acquisition of this stellar collection of businesses from 21st Century Fox reflects the increasing consumer demand for a rich diversity of entertainment experiences that are more compelling, accessible and convenient than ever before."
He further added, "We're honoured and grateful that Rupert Murdoch has entrusted us with the future of businesses he spent a lifetime building, and we're excited about this extraordinary opportunity to significantly increase our portfolio of well-loved franchises and branded content to greatly enhance our growing direct-to-consumer offerings. The deal will also substantially expand our international reach, allowing us to offer world-class storytelling and innovative distribution platforms to more consumers in key markets around the world."
The acquisition was rumoured for weeks, and many fans wondered how the deal would possibly impact the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Iger just added another immense entertainment company to his collection, which includes acquiring animation giant Pixar in 2006 for USD 7.4 billion, Marvel in 2008 for USD 4 billion, and Lucasfilm and the Star Wars franchise in 2012 for another USD 4 billion.
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