Technically, they didn't own Star Wars at that time. Here's the timeline:
September 20, 2011: Disney announced via press conference and on the
Disney Parks Blog that they have partnered with James Cameron to develop a new land in the Animal Kingdom based on the movie Avatar. A follow up
Disney Parks Blog post featured questions and answers from Tom Staggs, the Heads of Parks and Resorts.
October 24, 2012: WDWFanBoys.com and
WDWThemeParks.com posted the same article discussing the first ride information. Later, blueprints confirming this content would appear on WDWMagic.com as well as
************.com
October 30, 2012: Disney announced the
acquisition of LucasFilm LTD and all of it's intellectual property.