21st Century Fox said it agreed to expand its partnership with The National Geographic Society.

In addition to operating the National Geographic cable channels was a joint venture, the new partnership will include the National Geographic Society’s other media properties, including its magazines.

21st Century Fox is paying the society $725 million in the transaction.

The new joint venture will be called National Geographic Partners. 21st Century Fox will own 73% and the National Geographic Society will own 27%. The partnership will have equal representation on the board of directors, with the partners alternating having the chairman of the board annually.

Gary Knell, president and CEO of National Geographic Society, will be the first board chairman. Declan Moore, a 20-year veteran of the Society currently serving as chief Mmedia officer, has been appointed CEO of National Geographic Partners.

“We are privileged to have the opportunity to expand our partnership to continue to bring to audiences around the world -- ‘the world and all that is in it,’ as National Geographic Society’s second president, Alexander Graham Bell, stated more than a century ago,” James Murdoch, CEO of 21st Century Fox, said. "We believe in the Society's mission of bringing the world to audiences through science, education and exploration."

The additional resources will enable The National Geographic Society to basically double its investment in an array of science, research and education programs, the parties said.

Read more at broadcastingcable.com.