EchoStar Corporation is an American company, a worldwide provider of
satellite communication
A communications satellite is an artificial satellite that relays and amplifies radio telecommunication signals via a transponder; it creates a communication channel between a source transmitter and a receiver at different locations on Earth. C ...
and Internet services through its
Hughes Network Systems
Hughes Network Systems, LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of EchoStar. It is headquartered in Germantown, Maryland and provides satellite internet service. HughesNet has over 1.3 million subscribers in the Americas.
History
Hughes Communication ...
and EchoStar Satellite Services business segments. EchoStar is based out of unincorporated
Arapahoe County, Colorado
Arapahoe County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, its population was 655,070, making it the third-most populous county in Colorado. The county seat is Littleton, Colorado, Li ...
.
Prior to 2008, it operated the DISH Network service brand, which was spun off as
DISH on January 1, 2008.
History
EchoStar was originally formed in 1980 by its
chairman
The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...
Charles Ergen
Charles William Ergen (born March 1, 1953) is an American billionaire businessman. He is co-founder and chairman of Dish Network and EchoStar. He stepped down as CEO of Dish in May 2011 in favor of Joseph Clayton. Ergen resumed as CEO upon Clay ...
as a distributor of
C band TV systems. In 1987, it applied for a
direct broadcast satellite
Satellite television is a service that delivers television programming to viewers by relaying it from a communications satellite orbiting the Earth directly to the viewer's location. The signals are received via an outdoor parabolic antenna comm ...
(DBS) license with the
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...
and was granted access to orbital slot 119° west
longitude
Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east–west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek letter l ...
in 1992.
On December 28, 1995, the firm successfully launched its first satellite, EchoStar I. On March 4, 1996, it established the DISH Network brand name to
market
Market is a term used to describe concepts such as:
*Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand
*Market economy
*Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market
Geography
*Märket, an ...
its home satellite TV system.
On January 2, 2008, the DISH Network business was demerged from the technology and infrastructure side of the business. A split in the shares created two companies; the former EchoStar Communications Corporation changed its name to
DISH Network Corporation
DISH Network Corporation (DISH, an acronym for DIgital Sky Highway) is an American television provider and the owner of the direct-broadcast satellite provider Dish, commonly known as Dish Network, and the over-the-top IPTV service, Sling TV. A ...
which consisted mainly of the DISH Network business, and EchoStar Corporation, which retained ownership of the technology side including the satellites, Sling Media, and the set-top box development arm. DISH Network completed its distribution to EchoStar of its digital set-top box business, certain infrastructure, and other assets and related liabilities, including certain of their satellites, uplink and satellite transmission assets, and real estate (the "Spin-off"). Since the Spin-off, EchoStar and DISH Network have operated as separate publicly traded companies. In addition, a substantial majority of the voting power of the shares of DISH Network and EchoStar is owned beneficially by Charles W. Ergen, Chairman, and by certain trusts established by Mr. Ergen for the benefit of his family.
On February 14, 2011, EchoStar announced that it would acquire
Hughes Communications
Hughes Network Systems, LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of EchoStar. It is headquartered in Germantown, Maryland and provides satellite internet service. HughesNet has over 1.3 million subscribers in the Americas.
History
Hughes Communications ...
in a deal valued at
US$
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
1.3 billion.
On January 31, 2017, EchoStar announced that it had reached an agreement with DISH to transfer the EchoStar Technologies businesses, which designed, developed and distributed digital set-top boxes, provided satellite uplinking and broadcast services and developed and supported streaming video technology back to DISH.
The transaction was completed on January 31, 2017, substantially returning DISH to its pre-2008 status as a set-top-box hardware manufacturer.
In March 2017, after two delays caused by weather worries,
SpaceX
Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) is an American spacecraft manufacturer, launcher, and a satellite communications corporation headquartered in Hawthorne, California. It was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk with the stated goal of ...
delivered EchoStar XXIII into orbit. The satellite was launched on a
Falcon 9 Rocket
Falcon 9 is a partially reusable medium lift launch vehicle that can carry cargo and crew into Earth orbit, produced by American aerospace company SpaceX.
The rocket has two stages. The first (booster) stage carries the second stage and pay ...
and provides broadcast services for Brazil. Because EchoStar XXIII is a heavy satellite, this mission did not include a rocket landing post-takeoff, as it would require too much fuel. This was the first time a purely commercial satellite was launched from a pad that once served as the base for Apollo moon trips and space shuttle flights.
On May 20, 2019, EchoStar announced
that it had reached an agreement with
DISH Network Corporation
DISH Network Corporation (DISH, an acronym for DIgital Sky Highway) is an American television provider and the owner of the direct-broadcast satellite provider Dish, commonly known as Dish Network, and the over-the-top IPTV service, Sling TV. A ...
to transfer the portion of the business which managed and provided broadcast satellite services, referred to as the BSS (Broadcast Satellite Services) business, to DISH in order to concentrate on broadband services and other initiatives. The transaction was completed on September 10, 2019.
Satellite fleet
;Orbital locations may change
Since EchoStar frequently moves satellites among its many orbiting slots this list is not immediately accurate.
Refer t
Lyngsat.comfor detailed satellite information.
References
{{Authority control
Communications satellite operators
Telecommunications companies of the United States
Telecommunications companies established in 1980
Companies listed on the Nasdaq
2008 mergers and acquisitions
2011 mergers and acquisitions