On Thursday, December 14, Disney announced a merger with Twenty-First Century Fox to acquire most of the company's film and television assets, for $52.4 billion.
All details can be found at Disney's own press release.
With this merger, Disney acquires franchises such as X-Men, Avatar, and The Simpsons, in addition to some of Fox's more adult lines, such as Family Guy and, quite humorously, Deadpool.
This agreement also allows for the possible merger of Marvel characters such as the X-men and the Fantastic Four with the Avengers and other current properties of Disney.
This deal is fascinating and is sure to have great implications all entertainment in films and television, and even LEGO, as briefly outlined by this Brickset article. It is also interesting to note a contrast in certain properties acquired in the deal with Disney's traditional entertainment values. I am very interested to see what Disney will do with these assets. The prospect of X-Men and other Fox characters in the MCU (now confirmed by CEO Bob Iger) is particularly interesting.
Discuss.
[Update: 5/23/18]
Comcast (NBC, Universal) has now outbid Disney for 21st Century Fox assets and intellectual properties.