The year ahead may ignite the radio deal market if the Federal Communications Commission greenlights significant rollbacks of ownership limits as part of its quadrennial review. In the meantime, the re-opening of the FCC last month after a 43-day shutdown brought twice as many stations changing hands as in October.

BIA Advisory Services says 49 radio station sales were filed in November, valued at a combined $13.9 million. That’s up from 24 station sales in September before the government shutdown, worth a combined $9.5 million.

That brings the total number of radio stations set to have new owners this year to 590 in deals valued at $242 million. The Connoisseur Media acquisition of Alpha Media accounts for a sizable portion of the radio deals announced in 2025. The combination rolled Alpha Media’s 200 stations into the Connoisseur operations.

The television deal market has been much more active this year, although it seemed to be taking a breath last month. BIA says four stations were sold in November. It brings the TV total to 156 this year, worth a combined $6.7 billion. Much of that comes from a single deal, however. Nexstar announced a $6.2 billion deal in August to buy roughly 64 local stations from Tegna.

Brokers say that interest in radio deal-making has remained fairly steady throughout the past several months, even with the government shutdown. Kalil broker Lou McDermott told Inside Radio last month that the shutdown didn’t kill any deals — it just had the buyers and sellers hitting pause.

Media Services Group’s George Reed agreed and said local ownership deregulation is something that is very much top-of-mind with buyers and sellers. “If anything is going to prompt a rush of deals, it is deregulation. Plus, many sellers favor closing deals after the first of the year for tax reasons,” Reed said.

Broker Cliff Gardiner expects that after November’s bump up in deal filings, the flow will return to previous levels in the near-term. Broker Todd Fowler predicts upcoming FCC rule changes will trigger a flurry of station swaps, but he’s skeptical they’ll prompt most broadcasters to significantly expand their holdings in markets where they already operate.