- Hughes Satellite Systems filed for Chapter 11, adding another bankruptcy wrinkle to EchoStar’s already complicated court docket
- EchoStar says the Hughes bankruptcy won’t directly affect Boost Mobile, Dish TV, Sling TV or Hughes’ international subsidiaries
- EchoStar’s mobile business is still struggling, losing 118,000 subscribers in Q2 and ending the quarter with 7.38 million wireless customers
Another EchoStar business has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the Southern District of Texas in Houston. This time, it’s Hughes Satellite Systems Corporation, which provides broadband internet services to about 622,000 customers, as well as serving defense, airline and government customers.
The move wasn’t completely out of the blue as a Wall Street Journal report surfaced last week saying the consumer satellite internet company was preparing to file for Chapter 11 to avoid paying a $1.5 billion debt maturity due on August 1.
EchoStar declined to take questions on the Hughes filing during EchoStar’s Q2 earnings call today, although EchoStar Chairman Charlie Ergen said they expect to fulfill ongoing commitments to its vendors, something that is a big deal in the ongoing bankruptcy filing regarding EchoStar subsidiary Dish Wireless.
The company noted in a press release that EchoStar Corporation and Hughes’ international subsidiaries are not included in the latest Chapter 11 proceedings, and EchoStar’s other operations, like Boost Mobile, Dish TV and Sling TV are not directly impacted.
EchoStar’s DBS and Dish Wireless subsidiaries filed for bankruptcy protection on June 30 after payment from the AT&T spectrum transaction was delayed. That AT&T deal closed last week, netting EchoStar roughly $20 billion after $2.4 billion was deposited in a trust fund mandate by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to help pay people who built Dish Wireless’ 5G network.
The network termination and tax liabilities are estimated to be in the range of $5 billion to $7 billion, according to Ergen.
Boost Mobile loses more subs
In wireless, EchoStar reported that its Boost Mobile and Gen Mobile subscribers declined by about 118,000 in Q2 compared to an increase of 212,000 in the year-ago quarter. The company closed the quarter with 7.38 million wireless subscribers, which is about 2 million less than the 9 million customers Boost had when it was acquired in 2000.
“We haven’t cracked the code on how to be successful to the level we would like to in the wireless business,” Ergen said during the earnings call.
He noted that Bob Rupczynski, president of Retail Wireless at Boost Mobile, is bringing a fresh approach to the business since he joined in April, but didn’t elaborate on any turn-around plans specifically.
He was asked if they want to engage in some M&A or partnerships around the Boost Mobile business and how restrictive the MVNO contracts are with T-Mobile and AT&T.
“We think we have some strategic initiatives going forward that will reinvigorate that part of our business. All of our businesses have to run at a profit, long term," Ergen said. "We like the business. We’re disappointed that we haven’t done better in it. It’s a great challenge for us, but it’s strategically important for us.”
In total, EchoStar reported $3.58 billion in revenue for Q2 2026 compared to $3.7 billion in the prior second quarter. Net income was $8.46 billion in Q2 2026 compared to a net loss of $306 thousand in Q2 2025.
Read more stories about EchoStar and Dish:
EchoStar can’t pay itself from 5G trust fund, FCC says
Dish’s bankruptcy exposes the messy aftermath of its 5G gamble
Dish Wireless bankruptcy fight gets messier
EchoStar executives ponder how to spend billions of dollars from SpaceX