He entered broadcast television ownership after years of hard work, working the halls of the Fontainebleau Miami Beach during NATPE conferences, building the resources necessary to become a station owner. With properties in hand, he expressed his desire to become the single-biggest owner of over-the-air TV stations in the U.S.
Now, Byron Allen is placing some, but not all, of Allen Media Group‘s broadcast properties on the market. The decision, which is tied to a debt relief effort, comes at a moment where industry consolidation and an end date for ATSC 1.0 digital transmission are poised to reshape the TV landscape.
AMG confirmed early Monday that it has engaged independent investment bank Moelis & Company LLC as its financial advisor to assist Allen and his leadership “in evaluating various financial and strategic alternatives to position AMG for future success and to maximize the value of its assets.”
What does this mean? As part of this strategic arrangement, Moelis will advise AMG in the sale of “Big Four”-affiliated television stations across 21 U.S. markets. A company spokesperson tells RBR+TVBR that Allen Media Group is not selling all of its stations, and only these specific properties, through this initiative. That said, AMG operates in 22 markets including Honolulu, where it owns Hawaii’s ABC affiliate, KITV-4; and Tucson, where it owns and operates NBC affiliate KVOA-4, a former Cordillera Communications property.
While some may view Allen’s decision as a sign of a dream unfulfilled, AMG noted in a statement that it has invested “over $1 billion in acquiring television stations over the last six years” and today is one of the largest independent privately held owners of Big 4 network affiliated stations.
In a statement, AMG founder and Chairman/CEO Byron Allen said, “We have received numerous inquiries and written offers for most of our television stations and now is the time to explore getting a return on this phenomenal investment. We are going to use this opportunity to take a serious look at the offers, and the sale proceeds will be used to significantly reduce our debt.”
Addressing AMG’s debt maturities amid cost cutting that a source said includes permanent work-from-home arrangements for staff in New York and in Southern California was a topic that first arose in September 2024. At the time, unconfirmed reports noted both Moelis and Kirkland & Ellis as entities AMG was talking with. By February 2025, AMG announced that it had successfully refinanced its $100 million revolving credit facility.
For AMG, what is not for sale is The Weather Channel; and the Local Now “FAST” channel hub. And, according to Bloomberg, AMG is initiating the TV station sale to address a $840 million term loan with a February 2027 maturity date.
Meanwhile, the decision to part ways with nearly all of AMG’s broadcast TV stations comes after Allen in September 2023 submitted an offer to purchase ABC’s over-the-air properties — a bid that was perhaps too premature in The Walt Disney Co.’s strategic option consideration process.
Then came a January 2024 bid for a significant interest in the owner of CBS News & Stations, Paramount Global; Skydance Media ended up the party moving forward with the merger offer, which still awaits FCC approval.
Amid all of the discussions about Allen’s ambitions against debt considerations, a $100 million racial discrimination lawsuit against McDonald’s was dismissed by a California state appeals court, ending an ongoing legal battle over perceived assurances stated by AMG that it would receive a significant advertising budget as a result of statements the QSR giant made during the “Black Lives Matter” movement circa 2020.
