The Hollywood Domination Plan continues. After Lucas Arts and Marvel, Disney will make another important step with 20th Century Fox.
Walt Disney buys it for $ 52.4 billion. The deal also includes Fox's 39% stake in Sky TV and 20th Century Fox.
Fox's other assets, including Fox News and Sports, will form a new company. With that deal will end the half-century media expansion of Fox owner Rupert Murdoch, aged 86.
Murdoch turns an Australian newspaper, inherited from his father at age 21, into one of the world's biggest news and film empires. His decision to sell instead of buying is a surprise to all who expected to deliver their sons to James and Lahlan.
It is not yet clear how the deal will be accepted by US antitrust regulators. The US Department of Justice recently filed a complaint to block AT & T's $ 85.4 billion Time Warner purchase on the ground that it would raise prices for consumers and competitors.
The deal proposed by Fox to buy the rest of Sky is already being investigated by the British Competition and Markets Authority, which should publish its findings in January.
Disney's CEO, Bob Iger, will remain in office until the end of 2021.
Fox also sell their National Geographic cable channels and the Star India media company.
Disney buys Fox's share of the Hulu video streaming service, gaining majority control over its rival Netflix. Hulu is also partly owned by Comcast and Time Warner.
The deal adds to Walt Disney's huge portfolio and serious earnings films such as the original Star Wars, Avatar and Deadpool, as well as television hits including The Simpsons.