Moreover, according to Scott Peters, managing director at Jordan, Edmiston Group, “the M&A market is still thriving, despite the hand-wringing about tightening credit, gun-shy banks, and the troubled Clear Channel acquisition.” He added that both media companies and private equity still look for quality companies to acquire, although the market dynamic has changed, Media Post reported.

According to Peters, now buyers are shifting focus from “heavy-debt supporters” to companies with “high-quality assets, in good markets with good management, with less debt and very high growth trajectories.”

He added another shift in focus from traditional media to online companies, as well as integrated interactive marketing firms.

Nowadays M&A deals usually fall into two categories: strategic acquisitions and private-equity buyouts. Deals in the first category involved companies from small-size to gigantic, while the private-equity buyers concentrate more on mid-sized firms, Media Post reported.

“Private equity will continue to fuel a substantial number of M&A deals,” Peters said, according to Media Post.