Latest news with #DishNetwork
Phone Arena
13 hours ago
- Business
- Phone Arena
EchoStar pays $500M to stay out of bankruptcy and to buy time for FCC talks
An 8-K filing made by EchoStar indicates that the parent company of the nation's fourth largest wireless carrier, Boost Mobile, and Dish Network, plans on making a debt-interest payment on Friday of more than $500 million. The payment is actually due on Monday and by paying the $500 million, EchoStar gets to delay filing for bankruptcy although it will not make a second payment due July 1st. EchoStar hopes that by making one of the two payments due in the coming week, it has bought itself some time to negotiate with the FCC. The regulatory agency's Chairman, Brendan Carr, has previously threatened to take away some of EchoStar's spectrum licenses. The second interest payment due July 1st, which EchoStar won't pay, comes to $114 million and by refusing to make the payment, a 30-day grace period is triggered. While EchoStar has enough cash on hand to make both interest payments on time, the company is holding off on one of them in order to gain some leverage in negotiations with the FCC. Carr wants EchoStar to give up licenses on spectrum that he says the company isn't using. The FCC Chairman said, "It's my view that right now, we are really working hard to make sure this valuable public resource of spectrum is put to use. No new news to break, but I think the status quo needs to change. There's lots of different paths forward there and all options are still on the table at the FCC." -FCC Chairman Brendan Carr Former FCC chief of staff Blair Levin, who now works as a policy analyst at New Street Research, says that Carr wants to "force a reallocation of spectrum from EchoStar to others." What Levin is talking about is the 2 GHz spectrum licensed by EchoStar which FCC Chairman Carr asked EchoStar about in a letter. Carr wants to know exactly how often EchoStar is using the 2 GHz band. The reason why Carr is so interested in EchoStar's 2 GHz usage is because Elon Musk's SpaceX has its eyes on the 2 GHz spectrum because it is superior for satellite to cellphone communications than the airwaves that SpaceX uses now. The FCC chairman had no comment about a meeting he supposedly attended at the White House earlier this month with President Donald Trump and EchoStar Chairman Charlie Ergen. Secure your connection now at a bargain price! We may earn a commission if you make a purchase Check Out The Offer
Bloomberg
3 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Ergen Seeks Reprieve on EchoStar Debt as FCC Fight Comes to Head
Charlie Ergen has asked creditors to EchoStar Corp. and its pay-TV unit Dish Network Corp. for a reprieve on the company's debt, just days before a grace period on unpaid interest payments is set to expire, according to people with knowledge of the matter. EchoStar elected to stop paying $326 million of bond coupon payments last month after the Federal Communications Commission launched an investigation into whether the company was meeting its obligations for its wireless and satellite spectrum rights. EchoStar has said the FCC's threats have 'effectively frozen our ability to make decisions' and was forcing it to conserve cash.
Phone Arena
14-06-2025
- Business
- Phone Arena
FCC Chairman Carr uses his bully pulpit to threaten EchoStar and Boost Mobile
Current FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has been threatening to take away spectrum licenses from EchoStar, the company that now owns Dish Network and Boost Mobile. To put this in perspective, you need to understand that when T-Mobile proposed to buy Sprint, it would have left the U.S. with only three major carriers. The FCC wanted to leave four facilities-based carriers competing in the country. A deal was worked out and Dish Network agreed to buy Sprint's Boost Mobile and build a standalone 5G network. Every couple of years, the FCC requires Dish to cover a certain percentage of the country with 5G signals and Dish has passed each test so far. However, as we get to the last two tests scheduled for 2026 and 2028, the areas that need to be covered are harder to reach and will be more expensive to cover. EchoStar bought Dish on the last day of 2023 but its coffers aren't exactly overflowing with cash at the moment. Current FCC Chairman Brendan Carr's threats against EchoStar are beginning to feel personal. | Image credit-X Even though EchoStar has until 2028 under renegotiated terms to meet the final coverage test, the FCC's Carr has really been handing out some threats from his bully pulpit. In a letter dated May 9th written to EchoStar Chairman Charlie Ergen, Carr threatened to revert back to the original deadlines that the FCC agreed to with Dish. If the FCC were to do that, the final goal would have to be met today, June 14th, which of course EchoStar can't do. In case you're curious, those targets, now scheduled for 2028, would require EchoStar to cover at least 70% of the population within each of its licensed geographic areas for its AWS-4 and 700 MHz licenses, and at least 75% of the population within each of its licensed geographic areas for its H Block and 600 MHz licenses. Carr's letter also pointed out that the reason for the buildout goals was to prevent spectrum warehousing. As you might have gathered by the name, this is when a company builds up a hoard of spectrum that it doesn't plan on using with the goal of selling it to a wireless firm for a profit down the road. EchoStar's Ergen always claimed to have the desire to run a wireless firm when he was Chairman of Dish Network (Dish did float a losing $25.5 billion bid for Sprint in 2013). While T-Mobile spent nearly $8 billion during FCC auction 1001 in 2017 to pick up 1,525 600MHz low-band licenses (which was used to build the carrier's nationwide 5G network), and earned the majority of the news coverage, under the radar Dish was the second biggest spender. Even though it didn't own any wireless businesses at the time, Ergen's company spent $6.2 billion for 482 licenses. This battle between the FCC and EchoStar is beginning to feel personal. In his letter, FCC Chairman Carr left a less than subtle hint that the regulatory agency isn't satisfied with the past buildout goals that were met by EchoStar. In fact, in plain English Carr wrote, "I have asked FCC staff to investigate EchoStar's compliance with its buildout milestones." Carr also writes that he has asked FCC staff to seek public comment about "reconsideration of the 2024 bureau-level extension of the 2019 Commission-level buildout." If this sounds like politics are involved, you might be right. SpaceX has been trying to get the U.S. to force EchoStar to takeaway EchoStar's 2GHz spectrum holdings claiming that EchoStar "barely" uses it. SpaceX has over 25,500MHz of spectrum it can use but it just so happens that EchoStar's airwaves are superior when it comes to providing satellite services to cell phones, a business that SpaceX has high hopes for. SpaceX is, of course, primarily owned by its founder, Elon Musk. Despite the recent breakup with President Donald Trump, a reconciliation seems likely so you can never rule out the possibility that Carr's animosity toward EchoStar is politically motivated as he is a Republican. EchoStar has yet to have the customer success it would like to have even though it has built a standalone 5G network that should soon cover 80% of the population. Last July, Boost Mobile and Boost Infinite combined and with more promotion, Boost Mobile's Infinite Access plan could be a winner. It offers subscribers an annual device upgrade along with the usual features you'd expect from a top-notch wireless plan for $65 per month for a single line. Switch to Total 5G+ Unlimited 3-Month plan or Total 5G Unlimited and get a free iPhone. We may earn a commission if you make a purchase Buy at Total Wireless
Bloomberg
07-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Musk Looms Over Latest Ergen Fight Threatening EchoStar Debt
Save Welcome to The Brink. I'm Eliza Ronalds-Hannon, a senior reporter in Atlanta, covering EchoStar's missed interest payment after the Federal Communications Commission started a review. We also have updates on Wellness Pet and auto sector distress. Follow this link to subscribe. Send us feedback and tips at debtnews@ Creditors to EchoStar and its pay-TV unit Dish Network huddled over the past eight days as they came to terms with the latest curveball thrown by Charlie Ergen.
Bloomberg
02-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
EchoStar Bond Woes Grow as Dish Network Interest Payment Skipped
EchoStar Corp., the wireless and pay-TV operator controlled by billionaire Charlie Ergen, has decided to skip interest payments on three bonds after a similar act late last week. A total of $183 million interest payments due Monday on several bonds related to its pay-TV operator unit Dish Network Corp. will not be paid, according to a regulatory filing. The company cited 'uncertainty' raised by the Federal Communications Commission review. The company has been tied up in a regulatory probe over its compliance with obligations to build a nationwide 5G network.
