Complex sentence: In December 1908, Thomas Edison formed a combination of his Edison Manufacturing Company and nine other owners of film-related patents: the Motion Picture Patents Company (MPPC), also known as the Motion Picture Patents Trust or the Edison Trust.
Split into simpler sentences: In December 1908, Thomas Edison formed a combination of his Edison Manufacturing. Co. and nine other owners of film-related patents--the Motion Picture Patents Company (MPPC), also known as the Motion Picture Patents Trust or the Edison Trust.