Disney Invests $1.5 Billion in ‘Fortnite’ Developer Epic Games to Build ‘Gaming Universe’

Disney is reportedly investing $1.5 billion in Fortnite developer Epic Games to collaborate on a new persistent gaming universe bringing together Disney characters and stories with the massive reach of Epic’s hugely popular game.

VentureBeat reports that in a major move into video games, Disney is investing $1.5 billion for an equity stake in Fortnite and Unreal Engine maker Epic Games. The companies announced today a collaboration to create an expansive Disney gaming universe.

“It’s not just our parks where we’re creating new opportunities for consumers to engage with the characters and franchises they love,” said Bob Iger, CEO of Disney, in an analyst call. “In our new relationship with Epic Games, we’re creating a transformational games and entertainment universe that integrates Disney’s world-class storytelling into Epic’s cultural phenomenon Fortnite, enabling consumers to play, watch, create, and shop for both digital and physical goods.”

The multi-year project will allow Disney to bring its iconic brands like Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar into a persistent gaming world built by Epic. It offers opportunities for fans to engage with Disney IPs in new ways, unleashing their creativity and connecting Disney stories across a shared universe. Gaming might also present Disney with a way to grow its customer base as it struggles to keep Americans engaged.

As Breitbart News reported this week:

The Disney+ streaming service lost 1.3 million subscribers worldwide during the last three months of 2023 as a steep price hike took a toll on fans’ wallets. In the U.S. and Canada alone, the streamer bid goodbye to 400,000 customers — Disney+’s largest-ever reported domestic decline.

The drop represents a major hit for Disney, which has been pouring billions of dollars into its streaming services without yet reaching profitability. Domestic Disney+ subscriptions have stagnated at around 46 million for the past year, an ominous sign for a streaming service that is only four years old.

While Disney and Epic avoided using the term “metaverse” to describe the new persistent universe, it represents Disney’s biggest commitment yet to an interconnected digital world. The move is an about-face after Disney shut down its metaverse division in March 2023. The closure was seen as a sign of fading enthusiasm about the metaverse concept. But Disney evidently remains interested in bringing its properties together in a shared digital space.

Fortnite‘s tradition of player creativity and avatar customization will likely be a model for the new Disney universe. Fans will be able to personalize their avatars, make in-game purchases, and generate revenue. The collaborative digital world aligns with Disney’s shift toward a licensing model for games. Disney shut down its internal studios in 2016, but now regularly has top-selling licensed game titles across console, PC and mobile.

Read more at VentureBeat here.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.