10-K – 2026-03-02 – tmb-20251231x10k.htm

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HUMAN CAPITAL
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We believe that our future success will depend to a significant extent upon the performance of Charles W. Ergen, our Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer and certain other executives. The loss of Mr. Ergen or of certain other key executives could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Although all of our executives have executed agreements with certain non-competition restrictions that apply if they leave us, we generally do not have employment agreements with them.
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We believe that our business is dependent on our ability to identify, hire, develop, motivate and retain a team of highly skilled personnel with knowledge of our industries. Our business will be adversely affected if we fail to effectively identify, hire, develop, motivate and retain highly skilled personnel with knowledge of our industries.
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We had approximately 12,100 employees at December 31, 2025, the majority of whom were located in the United States and approximately 600 internationally. We generally consider relations with our employees to be good. Approximately 170 of our employees located in Italy and Brazil are represented by a union. Our mission is to be a global connectivity provider for people, enterprises and things.
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WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
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We are subject to the informational requirements of the Exchange Act and accordingly file our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. As an electronic filer, our public filings are also maintained on the SEC’s Internet site that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC. The address of that website is http://www.sec.gov.
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WEBSITE ACCESS
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Our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act also may be accessed free of charge through our website as soon as reasonably practicable after we have electronically filed such material with, or furnished it to, the SEC. The address of that website is https://ir.echostar.com/.
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We have adopted a written code of ethics that applies to all of our directors, officers and employees, including our principal executive officer and principal financial officers, in accordance with Section 406 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules of the SEC promulgated thereunder. Our code of ethics is available on our corporate website at https://ir.echostar.com/corporate-governance. In the event that we make changes in, or provide waivers of, the provisions of this code of ethics that the SEC requires us to disclose, we intend to disclose these events on our website.
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INFORMATION ABOUT OUR EXECUTIVE OFFICERS
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(furnished in accordance with Item 401(b) of Regulation S-K, pursuant to General Instruction G(3) of Form 10-K)
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The following table and information below sets forth the name, age and position with EchoStar of each of our executive officers, the period during which each executive officer has served as such, and each executive officer’s business experience during the past five years:
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Name
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Age
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Position

Charles W. Ergen
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73
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Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer

Hamid Akhavan
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64
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Chief Executive Officer, EchoStar Capital

Paul Gaske
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72
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Chief Operating Officer, Hughes

Dean A. Manson
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59
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Chief Legal Officer and Secretary

Paul W. Orban
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57
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Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

John W. Swieringa
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48
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President, Technology and Chief Operating Officer

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Charles W. Ergen. Mr. Ergen has served as our Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer since November 2025 . Mr. Ergen has served as our executive Chairman since November 2009 and Chairman of the Board of Directors since our formation in 2007. Mr. Ergen served as our Chief Executive Officer from our formation in 2007 until November 2009. Mr. Ergen serves as executive Chairman and has been Chairman of the Board of Directors of DISH Network Corporation (“DISH”) since its formation and, during the past five years, has held executive officer and director positions with DISH and its subsidiaries (together with DISH, “Dish Network”) serving as the Chief Executive Officer of DISH from March 2015 to December 2017.
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Hamid Akhavan. Mr. Akhavan has served as Chief Executive Officer, EchoStar Capital since November 2025. Mr. Akhavan served as our Chief Executive Officer and President from April 2022 to November 2025. Following the announcement of the agreement to enter into the business combination with DISH Network, Mr. Akhavan served as DISH Network’s Chief Executive Officer from November 2023 to December 2023. Prior to joining EchoStar, Mr. Akhavan has accumulated extensive leadership experience at major telecommunications and technology companies, including Chief Executive Officer of Unify, Inc, and Chief Executive Officer of T-Mobile International, where he also served as a member of the Board of Management of Deutsche Telekom. In recent years, Mr. Akhavan has been active in private equity and serving on the board of directors of several public and private companies.
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Paul Gaske. Mr. Gaske became Chief Operating Officer, Hughes effective January 1, 2023, reporting to the Company’s Chief Executive Officer. Prior to becoming the Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Gaske was the Executive President and General Manager of the North American Division of Hughes Network Systems, LLC since 1999. Mr. Gaske also oversees Hughes manufacturing.
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Dean A. Manson . Mr. Manson has served as our Chief Legal Officer and Secretary since November 2011 and is responsible for all our legal, government affairs and corporate information security. Mr. Manson joined our subsidiary Hughes Network Systems, LLC in 2000 and was appointed its General Counsel in 2004. He was previously with the law firm of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP, where he focused on international project finance and corporate transactions.
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Paul W. Orban . Effective February 26, 2026, Mr. Orban has served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of EchoStar and continues to be responsible for all aspects of our finance, accounting, tax, treasury, internal audit and supply chain departments. Mr. Orban previously served as our Principal Financial Officer since the effective date of the Merger in December 2023 and continues to serve as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of DISH Network since July 2019. As Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of DISH Network, Mr. Orban also has responsibility for all aspects of DISH Network’s finance, accounting, tax, treasury, internal audit and supply chain departments. Previously, Mr. Orban served as Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer of DISH Network from December 2015 to July 2019, Senior Vice President and Corporate Controller from September 2006 to December 2015 and as Vice President and Corporate Controller from September 2003 to September 2006. He also served as EchoStar’s Senior Vice President and Corporate Controller pre-Merger from 2008 to 2012 pursuant to a management services agreement between DISH Network and EchoStar. Since joining DISH Network in 1996, Mr. Orban has held various other positions of increasing responsibility in our accounting department. Prior to DISH Network, Mr. Orban was an auditor with Arthur Andersen LLP.
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John W. Swieringa. Mr. Swieringa has served as President of Technology and Chief Operating Officer since December 2023 and is responsible for all the technology and operational aspects of our business. Mr. Swieringa previously served as the President of Technology and Chief Operating Officer of DISH Network since August 2023. Mr. Swieringa previously served as President and Chief Operating Officer of DISH Network’s Wireless business segment from January 2022 to August 2023 and has had responsibility for all operational aspects of DISH Network’s Wireless business segment. Mr. Swieringa previously served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of DISH Network since December 2017 and as Group President, Retail Wireless since July 2020 and has had responsibility for all aspects of DISH Network’s Retail Wireless business. Mr. Swieringa previously served as Executive Vice President, Operations from December 2015 to December 2017, as Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer from March 2014 to December 2015 and as Vice President of Information Technology Customer Applications from March 2010 to March 2014. Mr. Swieringa joined DISH Network in December 2007 serving in our finance department.
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There are no arrangements or understandings between any executive officer and any other person pursuant to which any executive officer was selected as such. Pursuant to the Bylaws of EchoStar, executive officers serve at the discretion of the Board of Directors.
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Item 1A. RISK FACTORS
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The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones facing us. If any of the following events occur or evolve in a way different than expected, our business, financial condition, or results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.
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Risks Relating to Pending Transactions
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The timing and closing of the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions are not certain, and are subject to certain conditions, some of which we cannot control, which could result in the AT&T Transactions or SpaceX Transactions, respectively, not being completed or being completed later than we expect, which could have a material adverse impact on our expected leverage and available cash-on-hand, as well as costs and revenues, or otherwise reduce the anticipated benefits of the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions, respectively.
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The transaction agreements governing the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions (together, the “Transaction Agreements”) are subject to certain closing conditions including the satisfaction of certain antitrust, FCC and other regulatory approvals, none of which have been satisfied yet. Governmental agencies might not approve the AT&T Transactions and/or the SpaceX Transactions or may impose conditions to any such approval or require changes to the terms of such transactions. Any such condition or change could have the effect of delaying completion of the AT&T Transactions and/or SpaceX Transactions, imposing costs on or otherwise reduce the anticipated benefits of the transactions. Furthermore, under the Transaction Agreements, each party’s obligation to consummate the transactions are also subject to the accuracy of the representations and warranties of the other party (subject to certain qualifications and exceptions) and the performance in all material respects of the other party’s covenants under the Transaction Agreements.
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As a result of these conditions, among other factors, we cannot provide assurance that the AT&T Transactions and/or SpaceX Transactions will be completed on the terms or timeline currently contemplated, or at all. If such conditions are not fulfilled by the deadlines in the applicable Transaction Agreements (including applicable extensions provided under the Transaction Agreements), the Transaction Agreements may be terminated and the AT&T Transactions and/or SpaceX Transactions may not be completed.
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Because each of the AT&T Transactions and the SpaceX Transactions are independently reviewed by the applicable government agencies, we cannot guarantee that any of the above risks are only subject to one of the transactions and not the other. Neither the AT&T Transactions nor the SpaceX Transactions are contingent on the other. Conditions, delays or other changes placed on one transaction may only affect that transaction, but nonetheless, may adversely impact our business, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity or the market value of our securities. If completed, both the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions would result in significant cash and/or assets being recognized by us and as a result, our future results and success depend on the completion of such transactions. Any delay in completion of the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions, material conditions imposed or other event or condition which negatively impacts those transactions may adversely impact our business, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity or the market value of our securities.
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We do not expect approval of the AT&T Transactions or SpaceX Transactions during a government shutdown, and the existence of a government shutdown may materially delay our ability to consummate the AT&T Transactions and/or SpaceX Transactions. Any delay in approval may adversely impact our business, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity or the market value of our securities.
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Risks Related to Our Potential Investment in SpaceX
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Investor expectations regarding our potential investment in SpaceX may be currently influencing our stock price, and, if so, any adverse developments relating to SpaceX, changes in market perception of SpaceX or failure to complete the SpaceX Transaction could materially and negatively impact the market price of our Class A common stock.
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A portion of the recent appreciation in the trading price of our Class A common stock may appear to reflect market speculation and investor expectations regarding our potential equity investment in SpaceX. We cannot make any prediction if our potential investment may continue to influence our stock price. Because the potential SpaceX Transaction has attracted substantial investor attention, our stock price may not currently reflect the fundamentals of our business, but instead may be materially influenced by external perceptions of SpaceX’s valuation, growth prospects, media narrative and anticipated liquidity events. As a result, our stock price may become increasingly volatile and subject to factors entirely outside our control.
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There is also no assurance that the potential SpaceX Transaction will be completed, including, but not limited to, because it remains subject to various closing conditions, regulatory considerations and other uncertainties. If the transaction is delayed, restructured or fails to close, our stock price could decline materially.
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Even if the transaction is completed, our resulting minority, non-controlling position would limit our ability to influence SpaceX’s operations, strategic decisions, governance or risk-management practices. The valuation of any investment in SpaceX would remain inherently uncertain due to, among other factors, the absence of a public market for its shares, the need to rely on subjective valuation methodologies and the volatility typical of private-market technology ventures. Accordingly, any decline in SpaceX’s business, valuation, financing environment or perceived market trajectory may materially and adversely affect both the value of our investment and the market price of our Class A common stock.
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Competition and Economic Risks
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We face intense and increasing competition from providers of video, broadband and/or wireless services, which may require us to further increase subscriber acquisition and retention spending or accept lower subscriber activations and higher subscriber churn.
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Our Pay-TV business faces substantial competition from established pay-TV providers and broadband service providers and increasing competition from companies providing/facilitating the delivery of video content via the Internet to computers, televisions and other streaming and mobile devices, including, but not limited to, wireless service providers. In recent years, the traditional pay-TV industry has matured, and industry consolidation and convergence have created competitors with greater scale and multiple product/service offerings. Some of these services charge nominal or no fees for access to their content, which could adversely affect demand for our Pay-TV services. Moreover, new technologies have been, and will likely continue to be, developed that further increase the number of competitors we face with respect to video services, including, but not limited to, competition from piracy-based video offerings. These developments, among others, have contributed to intense and increasing competition, which we expect to continue.
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We face increasing competition from content providers and other companies who distribute video directly to consumers over the Internet. These content providers and other companies, as well as traditional satellite television providers, cable companies and large telecommunication companies, are rapidly increasing their Internet-based video offerings. See “Item 1. Business – Overview – Competition” and “ Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations – Trends in our Pay-TV Segment ” in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.
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Mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and alliances among cable television providers, telecommunications companies, programming providers and others may result in, among other things, greater scale and financial leverage and increase the availability of offerings from providers capable of bundling video, broadband and/or wireless services in competition with our services and may exacerbate the risks described herein. Such providers may be able to, among other things, utilize their increased leverage over third-party content owners and programmers to withhold online rights from us and reduce the price they pay for programming at the expense of other MVPDs, including us; thwart our ability to compete in the wireless market, by, among other things, refusing to enter into data roaming agreements; underutilize key orbital spectrum resources that could be more efficiently used by us; foreclose or degrade our online video offerings at various points in the broadband pipe; and impose data caps on consumers who access our online video offerings. See “ Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations – Trends in our Pay-TV Segment – Programming ” in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.
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We believe that the availability and extent of programming, including, but not limited to, unique programming services such as foreign language, sports programming and original content, and other value-added services such as access to video via mobile devices, continue to be significant factors in consumers’ choice among pay-TV providers. Other pay-TV providers may have more successfully marketed and promoted their programming packages and value-added services and may also be better equipped and have greater resources to increase their programming offerings and value-added services to respond to increasing consumer demand.
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We may be required to make substantial additional investments in infrastructure to respond to competitive pressure to deliver enhanced programming and other value-added services, and there can be no assurance that we will be able to compete effectively with offerings from other pay-TV providers.
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Furthermore, this increasingly competitive environment may require us to increase subscriber acquisition and retention spending or accept lower subscriber activations and higher subscriber churn. Increasingly, we must seek to attract a greater proportion of new subscribers from our competitors’ existing subscriber bases rather than from first-time purchasers of pay-TV services. In addition, because other pay-TV providers may be seeking to attract a greater proportion of their new subscribers from our existing subscriber base, we may be required to increase retention spending and/or provide greater discounts or credits to acquire and retain subscribers who may spend less on our services. Our SLING TV subscribers on average purchase lower-priced programming services than DISH TV subscribers. Accordingly, an increase in SLING TV subscribers has a negative impact on our Pay-TV average monthly revenue per subscriber (“Pay-TV ARPU”). If our Pay-TV ARPU decreases or does not increase commensurate with increases in programming or other costs, our margins may be reduced and the long-term value of a subscriber would then decrease and could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
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In addition, as a result of this increased competitive environment and the maturation of the pay-TV industry, future growth opportunities of our DISH TV business may be limited and our margins may be reduced, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. Our gross new DISH TV subscriber activations continue to be negatively impacted by stricter subscriber acquisition policies (including, but not limited to, a focus on attaining higher quality subscribers) and increased competitive pressures, including, but not limited to, aggressive marketing, more aggressive retention efforts, bundled discount offers combining broadband, video and/or wireless services and other discounted promotional offers. In addition, we face increased competitive pressures from content providers and other companies who distribute video directly to consumers over the Internet. These content providers and other companies, as well as traditional satellite television providers, cable companies and large telecommunication companies, are rapidly increasing their Internet-based video offerings and direct-to-consumer exclusive and non-exclusive content. There can be no assurance that our gross new DISH TV subscriber activations, net DISH TV subscriber additions and DISH TV churn rate will not continue to be negatively impacted and that the pace of such negative impact will not accelerate. In the event that our DISH TV subscriber base continues to decline or such decline accelerates, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
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Changing consumer behavior and new technologies in our Pay-TV business may reduce our subscriber activations and may cause our subscribers to purchase fewer services from us or to cancel our services altogether, resulting in less revenue to us.
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New technologies, products and services are driving rapid changes in consumer behavior as consumers seek more control over when, where and how they consume content and access communication services. In particular, through technological advancements and with the large increase in the number of consumers with broadband service, a significant amount of video content has become available through online content providers for users to stream and view on their personal computers, televisions, phones, tablets, video game consoles and other devices, in some cases without a fee required to access the content. While our subscribers can use their traditional video subscription to access mobile programming, an increasing number of subscribers are also using mobile devices as the sole means of viewing video, and an increasing number of non-traditional video providers is developing content and technologies to satisfy that demand, including, but not limited to, certain exclusive content. For example, these technological advancements, changes in consumer behavior and the increasing number of choices available to consumers regarding the means by which consumers obtain video content may cause DISH TV subscribers to disconnect our services (“cord cutting”), downgrade to smaller, less expensive programming packages (“cord shaving”) or elect to purchase through online content providers a certain portion of the services that they would have historically purchased from us.
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These technological advancements and changes in consumer behavior and/or our failure to effectively anticipate or adapt to such changes, could reduce our gross new Pay-TV subscriber activations and increase our subscriber churn rate and could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
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New technologies could also create new competitors for us. For instance, we face increasing consumer demand for the delivery of digital video services via the Internet. We expect to continue to face increased competition from companies who use the Internet to deliver digital video services as the speed and quality of broadband and wireless networks continue to improve.
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We face certain risks competing in the wireless services industry and operating a facilities-based wireless services business.
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As a result of certain acquisitions, we have entered the wireless business. We have made substantial investments to acquire certain wireless spectrum licenses. We originally planned to commercialize our wireless spectrum licenses through the completion of our 5G Network Deployment. However, we were forced to stop that effort based on the FCC’s unequivocal position that: (i) EchoStar’s utilization of its spectrum was not acceptable based on the relatively small number of subscribers using the Boost Mobile MNO network, and (ii) that EchoStar’s continued operations failed to best serve the public interest. Due to severe uncertainty as to whether EchoStar could recoup its multibillion-dollar investments following potential FCC investigations and forfeitures, EchoStar had to abandon its plans to grow its facilities-based MNO operations and instead has pivoted to selling certain wireless spectrum licenses. As a result of, among other factors, the AT&T Transactions and the SpaceX Transaction, we have transitioned to a Hybrid MNO wireless business. A wireless services business presents certain risks. Any of the following risks, among others, may have a material adverse effect on our future business, results of operations and financial condition.
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● The wireless services industry is dominated by incumbents . We have limited experience in the wireless services industry, which is an industry with increasing subscriber demands for data services that require increasing capital resources to maintain a robust network. The wireless services industry has incumbent and established competitors such as Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile, each with substantial market share. These companies have, among other things, greater financial, marketing and other resources than us, and have existing cost and operational advantages that we lack. Market saturation is expected to continue to cause subscriber growth rates in the wireless services industry to moderate in comparison to historical growth rates, leading to increased competition for subscribers. As the industry matures, competitors increasingly must seek to attract a greater proportion of new subscribers from each other’s existing subscriber bases rather than from first-time purchasers of wireless services. Furthermore, the cost of attracting a new subscriber is generally higher than the cost associated with retaining an existing subscriber. In addition, we face increasing competition from wireless telecommunications providers who offer mobile video offerings or partner with others to create bundled offerings. Wireless mobile video offerings have become more prevalent in the marketplace as wireless telecommunications providers have expanded the fifth generation of wireless communications continued to partner with providers of live and on-demand video content. As previously noted, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and alliances among cable television providers, telecommunications companies, programming providers and others may result in, among other things, greater scale and financial leverage and increase the availability of offerings from providers capable of bundling video, broadband and/or wireless services in competition with our services. Such companies may be able to, among other things, pressure third-party content owners and programmers to withhold online rights from us; utilize their increased leverage over third-party content owners and programmers to reduce the price they pay for programming at the expense of other MVPDs, including us; thwart our ability to compete in the wireless market, by, among other things, refusing to enter into data roaming agreements with us; foreclose or degrade our online video offerings at various points in the broadband pipe; and impose data caps on consumers who access our online video offerings. See “Item 1. Business – Overview – Wireless - Business Strategy – Wireless” and “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations – Wireless Segment” in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.
● Our ability to compete effectively in the wireless services industry is dependent on a number of factors. Our ability to compete effectively in the wireless services industry depends on, among other things, our network quality, capacity and coverage; the pricing of our products and services; the quality of subscriber service; our development of new and enhanced products and services; the reach and quality of our sales and distribution channels; our ability to predict and adapt to future changes in technologies and changes in consumer demands; and our capital resources. It also depends on how successfully we anticipate and respond to various competitive factors affecting the industry, including, among others, new technologies and business models, products and services that may be introduced by competitors, changes in consumer preferences, the demand for and usage of data, video and other voice and non-voice services, demographic trends, economic conditions and discount pricing and other strategies that may be implemented by competitors. It may be difficult for us to differentiate our products and services from other competitors in the industry, which may limit our ability to attract and retain subscribers. Our success also may depend on our ability to access and deploy adequate spectrum, deploy new technologies and offer attractive products and services to subscribers. For example, we may not be able to obtain and offer certain technologies, features or services that are subject to competitor patents or other exclusive arrangements. Our success and financial results also depend on, among other factors, our ability to achieve a lower cost structure in our Hybrid MNO. As we continue to transition our business to a Hybrid MNO from an MVNO, our results of operations and financial performance will depend in part on our ability to offer wireless services more cost effectively than we are able to do so through the use of our current MVNO agreements.
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● We depend on certain third parties to provide us with infrastructure and products and services . We depend on various key suppliers and vendors to provide us, directly or through other suppliers, with infrastructure, equipment and services, such as switch and network equipment, handsets and other devices and equipment that we would need in order to operate a wireless services business and provide products and services to our subscribers. For example, handset and other device suppliers often rely on one vendor for the manufacture and supply of critical components, such as chipsets, used in their devices. If these suppliers or vendors fail to provide equipment or services on a timely basis, or at all, or fail to meet performance expectations, we may be unable to provide products and services as and when expected by our subscribers. Any difficulties experienced with these suppliers and vendors could result in additional expense and/or delays in operating our wireless services. Our efforts involve significant expense and require strategic management decisions on, and timely implementation of, among other things, equipment choices, network deployment and management and service offerings. In addition, these suppliers and vendors may also be subject to litigation with respect to technology on which we depend, including, but not limited to, litigation involving claims of patent infringement. In addition, from time to time, we may make certain changes to these products. Failure to successfully implement the changes may result in, among other things, increased operating costs, increased capital expenditures and reduced network performance, each of which, individually or in the aggregate, could adversely affect our operating results and financial condition. 
● Wireless services and our wireless spectrum licenses are subject to government regulation. Wireless services and our wireless spectrum licenses are subject to regulation by the FCC and other federal, state and local, as well as international, governmental authorities. These governmental authorities could adopt regulations or take other actions that would adversely affect our business prospects, making it more difficult and/or expensive to further commercialize our wireless spectrum licenses or acquire additional licenses. The licensing, construction, operation, sale and interconnection arrangements of wireless telecommunications systems are regulated by the FCC and, depending on the jurisdiction, other federal and international, state and local regulatory agencies. In particular, the FCC imposes significant regulation on licensees of wireless spectrum with respect to, among other things, how radio spectrum is used by licensees, the nature of the services that licensees may offer and how the services may be offered and resolution of issues of interference between spectrum bands. The FCC grants wireless licenses for terms of generally 10-12 years that are subject to acceleration, renewal or revocation based on certain factors depending on the license including, among others, public interest considerations, level and quality of services and/or operations provided by the licensee, frequency and duration of any interruptions or outages of services and/or operations provided by the licensee, and the extent to which service is provided to, and/or operation is provided in, rural areas and tribal lands. For example, the FCC currently has an open proceeding considering whether to permit MVDDS licensees to become Fixed Service operators. We cannot predict either the outcome of this proceeding or any potential impact it might have on our operations. There can be no assurances that our wireless spectrum licenses will be renewed or that we will be able to obtain additional licenses. Failure to comply with FCC requirements in a given license area could result in revocation of the license for that license area. In addition, the FCC uses its transactional “spectrum screen” to identify prospective wireless transactions that may require additional competitive scrutiny. If a proposed transaction would exceed the spectrum screen threshold, the FCC undertakes a more detailed analysis of relevant market conditions in the impacted geographic areas to determine whether the transaction would reduce competition without offsetting public benefits. If a proposed spectrum acquisition exceeds the spectrum screen trigger, such additional review could extend the duration of the regulatory review process and there can be no assurance that such proposed spectrum acquisition would ultimately be completed, in whole or in part. In addition, from time to time, we may seek modification and/or waiver of certain build out or other requirements of our licenses from the applicable government agency. Historically, we have successfully negotiated such modifications and/or waivers. However, there can be no guarantee that we will continue to be successful and that failure to meet requirements of our license may result in, among other things, adverse government action, including, but not limited to, acceleration of build out deadlines or cancellation or revocation of our licenses. 
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Our pay-TV competitors may be able to leverage their relationships with programmers to reduce their programming costs and/or offer exclusive content that will place them at a competitive advantage to us.
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The cost of programming represents the largest percentage of our overall Pay-TV costs. Certain of our competitors own directly, partner with and/or are affiliated with companies that own programming content that may enable them to obtain lower programming costs or offer exclusive programming that may be attractive to prospective or existing subscribers. Unlike our larger cable and satellite competitors, some of which also provide internet or broadband based pay-TV services, we have not made significant investments in programming providers. In addition, certain programmers have begun offering a greater amount of their content on a direct-to-consumer basis, including, but not limited to, exclusive and non-exclusive content. As a result, it may be more difficult for us to obtain access to such programming networks on nondiscriminatory and fair terms, or at all. See “ Item 1. Business – Government Regulations – FCC Regulations Applicable to Our Operations – Cable Act and Program Access ” in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.
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Through the MNSA and the NSA, we depend on T-Mobile and AT&T to provide network services to our Wireless subscribers. Our failure to effectively manage these relationships, including without limitation, our minimum commitments, any system failure in their wireless networks, interruption in the services provided to us and/or the termination of the MNSA or the NSA could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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In July 2021, we entered into the NSA with AT&T to provide us with wireless network services. Under the NSA, we have committed to activate on AT&T a minimum percentage of certain of our Wireless subscribers and to utilize AT&T’s network for a minimum specified percentage of our domestic roaming data usage. In connection with the AT&T Transactions, we entered into an amended NSA (the “Amended NSA”), which provides for, among other things, reduced rates if we meet certain minimum data thresholds while transitioning to a hybrid MNO. In the fourth quarter of 2025, we notified AT&T that we met the minimum data thresholds and have transitioned to a hybrid MNO.
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In 2020 in connection with the Asset Purchase Agreement, we entered into a master network services agreement with T-Mobile to provide us with wireless network services for a period of seven years (the “Prior MNSA”). In June 2022, we and T-Mobile entered into the MNSA, which amended the Prior MNSA. Under the MNSA, we agreed to a minimum purchase commitment to T-Mobile, subject to certain terms and conditions.
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As a result, failure to meet the minimum commitments to AT&T or T-Mobile could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. For example, failure to meet our minimum commitments could result in, among other things, the acceleration of financial commitments and potential termination of the NSA or the MNSA, respectively.
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As a Hybrid MNO, we currently depend on T-Mobile and AT&T to provide us with network services pursuant to the MNSA and the NSA, respectively. We rely on T-Mobile and AT&T to, among other things, maintain their wireless facilities and government authorizations and to comply with government policies and regulations. If T-Mobile or AT&T fails to do so, our subscriber activations and churn rate could be negatively impacted, which in turn could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. As a result, failure to manage these relationships, including, but not limited to, effectively activating subscribers on the optimal network, transitioning subscribers to a different network, managing the existing subscriber base and vendor relationships and meeting certain minimum commitments could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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In the event that a termination under the NSA or the MNSA were to occur, our Wireless subscribers may need to obtain a new device, a new SIM card or receive a software update to continue receiving Wireless services from us. These required measures could cause significant disruption to our Wireless subscriber base which could result in, among other things, a significant increase in our churn rate. A termination of either the NSA or the MNSA, respectively, could result in significant financial and operational challenges to mitigate such termination, and there can be no assurances that any attempts to mitigate a termination event would be successful on an acceptable timeframe or at all.
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We compete with the MNOs whose networks we rely on to provide wireless services to our customers, and they may seek to limit, reduce or terminate our network access to the extent that it becomes competitively advantageous to do so.
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We are able to offer wireless services to our customers through our Hybrid MNO, and through our existing agreements with AT&T and T-Mobile, both of whom are competitors of ours. While our agreements with AT&T and T-Mobile had fixed terms from the date of signing that have since been amended, to the extent that either network service provider experiences, among other things, network capacity challenges or other challenges, it is possible that our subscribers could be de-prioritized for access to those networks. Further, AT&T and/or T-Mobile may decide not to renew their agreements with us at acceptable rates, or at all or impose other obligations that we are unable or unwilling to accept. Any reduction in, or loss of, access to those networks in the future could significantly impact our ability to provide services to our subscribers and in turn have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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Changes in how network operators handle and charge for access to data that travels across their networks could adversely impact our Pay-TV business.
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With respect to our Pay-TV business, we rely upon the ability of consumers to access our SLING TV services and certain DISH TV functionality through the Internet. If network operators block, restrict, slow-down or throttle or otherwise impair access to our services over their networks, our business could be negatively affected. To the extent that network operators implement usage-based pricing including, but not limited to, meaningful bandwidth caps, or otherwise try to monetize access to their networks by data providers, we could incur greater operating expenses and our SLING TV subscriber count could be negatively impacted.
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Furthermore, to the extent network operators create tiers of Internet access service and either charge us for or prohibit us from being available through these tiers, our SLING TV business could be negatively impacted. In addition, many network operators that provide consumers with broadband service also provide these consumers with video programming, and these network operators may have an incentive to use their network infrastructure in a manner adverse to our continued growth and success. These risks may be exacerbated to the extent network operators are able to provide preferential treatment to their data, including, for example, by offering wireless subscribers access to owned or preferred video content over the Internet without counting against a subscriber’s monthly data caps, which may give an unfair advantage to the network operator’s own or partners video content.
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We cannot predict with any certainty the impact to our business that may result from changes in how network operators handle and charge for access to data that travels across their networks.
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Economic weakness and uncertainty may adversely affect our ability to grow or maintain our business.
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Our ability to grow or maintain our business may be adversely affected by economic weakness and uncertainty, which could result in the following:
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● Fewer subscriber activations and increased subscriber churn rate. We could face fewer subscriber activations and increased subscriber churn rate due to, among other things: (i) certain economic factors that impact consumers, including, among others, inflation, rising interest rates, a potential downturn in the housing market in the United States (including a decline in housing starts) and higher unemployment, which could lead to a lack of consumer confidence and lower discretionary spending; (ii) increased price competition for our products and services; and (iii) the potential loss of independent third-party retailers, who generate a meaningful percentage of our gross new DISH TV and Wireless subscriber activations, because many of them are small businesses that are more susceptible to the negative effects of economic weakness. In particular, our DISH TV churn rate and Wireless churn rate may increase with respect to subscribers who purchase our lower tier programming packages and Wireless services, and who may be more sensitive to economic weakness.
● Higher subscriber acquisition and retention costs . Our profits may be adversely affected by increased subscriber acquisition and retention costs necessary to attract and retain high-quality subscribers during a period of economic weakness.
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We are also subject to inflationary cost pressures, and if inflation continues or worsens, it could negatively impact us by increasing, among other things, our operating expenses. Inflation may lead to cost increases in multiple areas across our business, for example, rises in the prices of raw materials and manufactured goods, increased energy rates, as well as increased wage pressures and other expenses related to our labor, programming and other costs. While we attempt to increase our revenue to offset increases in costs, there is no assurance that we will be able to do so on an acceptable timeline or at all. Therefore, costs could rise faster than associated revenue, thereby resulting in a negative impact on our operating results, cash flows and liquidity.
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We are facing increasing competition which could impact demand for, and result in, increasing pricing pressures with respect to, our products and services.
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Our Broadband and Satellite Services segment operates in an intensely competitive, consumer- and enterprise-driven and rapidly changing environment and competes with a growing number of companies that provide similar products and services to consumer and enterprise customers. There can be no assurance that we will be able to effectively compete against our competitors due to, among other factors, their significant resources and operating history. Material competitive risks to our business include, but are not limited to, the following:
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● competition from new or different technology compared to our offerings;
● competition from existing or new competitors entering the same markets we serve;
● government funding for competing products and services, reducing demand for our products and services; and
● competitive pressures to provide enhanced functionality for the same or lower price with each new generation of technology.
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If we are unable to take advantage of technological developments on a timely basis, or at all, we may experience a decline in demand for our services or face challenges in implementing or evolving our business strategy.
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In order to grow and remain competitive, we will need to adapt to changes in available technology, including, but not limited to, artificial intelligence and machine learning, continually invest in our Hybrid MNO, increase 5G Network capacity, enhance our existing service offerings and introduce new offerings to meet our current and potential subscribers’ changing service demands. Enhancing our 5G Network is subject to risks related to, among other things, equipment choices, network deployment and management and service offerings, including, but not limited to, working with our MVNO partners.
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As a result, adopting new and sophisticated technologies may result in implementation issues, such as scheduling and supplier delays, unexpected or increased costs, technological constraints, regulatory permitting issues, actual or perceived subscriber dissatisfaction and other issues that could cause delays in launching new technological capabilities, which in turn could result in significant costs or reduce the anticipated benefits of the upgrades. If our new services fail to retain or gain acceptance in the marketplace or if costs associated with these services are higher than anticipated, this could have a material adverse effect on our operating results.
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Operational and Service Delivery Risks
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Any deterioration in our operational performance and subscriber satisfaction could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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If our operational performance and subscriber satisfaction with respect to our Pay-TV, Wireless, and/or Broadband and Satellite Services businesses were to deteriorate, we may experience a decrease in subscriber activations and an increase in our subscriber churn rate, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. To improve our operational performance, we continue to make investments in staffing, training, information systems and other initiatives, primarily in our call center and in-home service operations, and our Broadband and Satellite Services and Wireless business operations.
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These investments are intended to, among other things, help combat inefficiencies introduced by the increasing complexity of our business, improve subscriber satisfaction, reduce subscriber churn, increase productivity and allow us to scale better over the long run. We cannot, however, be certain that our spending will ultimately be successful in improving our operational performance, and if unsuccessful, we may have to incur higher costs to improve our operational performance. While we believe that such costs will be outweighed by longer-term benefits, there can be no assurance when or if we will realize these benefits at all.
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If our subscriber activations decrease, or if our subscriber churn rate, subscriber acquisition costs or retention costs increase, our financial performance will be adversely affected.
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We may incur increased costs to acquire new subscribers and retain existing subscribers to some or all of our Pay-TV, Wireless or Broadband and Satellite Services businesses. For example, with respect to our Pay-TV business, our gross new DISH TV subscriber activations, net DISH TV subscriber additions, and DISH TV churn rate continue to be negatively impacted by stricter subscriber acquisition and retention policies for our DISH TV subscribers, including, but not limited to, our emphasis on activating and retaining higher quality subscribers. Retention costs with respect to our DISH TV services may be driven higher by, among other things, increased upgrades of existing subscribers’ equipment.
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Although we expect to continue to incur expenses, such as providing retention credits and other subscriber acquisition and retention expenses, including, but not limited to, device subsidies and upgrade discounts, to attract and retain subscribers, there can be no assurance that our efforts will generate new subscribers or result in a lower churn rate. Our subscriber acquisition costs and our subscriber retention costs can vary significantly from period to period and can cause material variability to our net income (loss) and free cash flow. Any material increase in subscriber acquisition or retention costs from current levels could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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With respect to our Pay-TV business, programming expenses are increasing, which may adversely affect our future financial condition and results of operations.
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Our programming costs represent a significant component of our total expense and we expect these costs to continue to increase on a per subscriber basis. The pay-TV industry has continued to experience an increase in the cost of programming, especially local broadcast channels and sports programming. In addition, certain programming costs are rising at a much faster rate than wages or inflation. These factors may be exacerbated by, among other factors, the increasing trend of consolidation in the media industry, partnerships between companies that offer pay-TV services and programmers and increased direct-to-consumer offerings of both exclusive and non-exclusive content, which may further increase our programming expenses. Our ability to compete successfully will depend, among other things, on our ability to continue to obtain desirable programming and deliver it to our subscribers at competitive prices.
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In addition, increases in programming costs cause us to increase the rates that we charge our Pay-TV subscribers, which could in turn cause our existing Pay-TV subscribers to disconnect service. Therefore, we may be unable to pass increased programming costs on to our subscribers, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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We depend on others to provide the programming that we offer to our Pay-TV subscribers and, if we fail to obtain or lose access to certain programming, our Pay-TV subscriber activations and our subscriber churn rate may be negatively impacted.
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We depend on certain third parties to provide us with programming services. Our programming agreements have remaining terms ranging from less than one to up to several years and contain various renewal, expiration and/or termination provisions. We may not be able to renew these agreements on acceptable terms or at all, and these agreements may be terminated prior to expiration of their original terms.
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In addition, our ability to provide services under these agreements and negotiate acceptable terms depends on, among other things, the number of Pay-TV subscribers we have, our actual, perceived or anticipated financial condition and our negotiating power against each programmer, which can vary depending on the size and scale of such programmer.
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Negotiations over programming carriage contracts are generally contentious, and certain programmers have, in the past, limited our access to their programming in connection with those negotiations and the scheduled expiration of their programming carriage contracts with us. In recent years, our net Pay-TV subscriber additions have been negatively impacted as a result of programming interruptions and threatened programming interruptions in connection with the scheduled expiration of programming carriage contracts with content providers. In addition, certain content providers have begun making a greater percentage of their content available as a stand-alone product available direct-to-consumer and acceleration of this trend may result in lower net Pay-TV subscriber additions, higher net Pay-TV subscriber losses and increased DISH TV churn rate.
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We cannot predict with any certainty the impact to our net Pay-TV subscriber additions, gross new DISH TV subscriber activations and DISH TV churn rate resulting from programming interruptions or threatened programming interruptions that may occur in the future. As a result, we may at times suffer from periods of lower net Pay-TV subscriber additions or higher net Pay-TV subscriber losses.
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We typically have a few programming contracts with major content providers up for renewal each year and if we are unable to renew any of these agreements on acceptable terms or at all, or the other parties terminate the agreements, there can be no assurance that we would be able to obtain substitute programming, or that such substitute programming would be comparable in quality or cost to our existing programming. In addition, failure to obtain access to certain programming or loss of access to programming, particularly programming provided by major content providers and/or programming popular with our subscribers, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations, including, among other things, our net Pay-TV subscriber additions. Our programming signals in our Pay-TV business are subject to theft, and we are vulnerable to other forms of fraud that could require significant expenditures to remedy. Increases in theft of our signal or our competitors’ signals could, in addition to reducing gross new DISH TV subscriber activations, also cause our DISH TV churn rate to increase.
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We may not be able to obtain necessary retransmission consent agreements at acceptable rates, or at all, from local network stations.
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The Copyright Act generally gives satellite companies a statutory copyright license to retransmit local broadcast channels by satellite back into the market from which they originated, subject to obtaining the retransmission consent of local broadcast television stations that do not elect “must carry” status, as required by the Communications Act. If we fail to reach retransmission consent agreements with such broadcasters, we cannot carry their signals. This could have an adverse effect on our strategy to compete with cable and other satellite companies that provide local signals. While we have generally been able to reach retransmission consent agreements with most of these local network stations, from time to time there are stations with which we have not been able to reach an agreement, resulting in the removal of their channels primarily from our DISH TV lineup. There can be no assurance that we will secure these agreements or that we will secure new agreements on acceptable terms, or at all, upon the expiration of our current retransmission consent agreements, some of which are short-term.
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In recent years, national broadcasters have used their ownership of certain local broadcast stations to require us to carry additional cable programming in exchange for retransmission consent of their local broadcast stations. These requirements may place constraints on available capacity on our satellites for other programming. Furthermore, the rates we are charged for retransmitting local channels have been increasing substantially and may exceed our ability to increase our prices to our subscribers, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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We have limited satellite capacity and failures or reduced capacity could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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Operation of our Pay-TV and Broadband and Satellite Services businesses requires that we have adequate satellite transmission capacity for the programming and services we offer. While we generally have had in-orbit satellite capacity sufficient to transmit our existing channels and provide satellite internet coverage and some backup capacity to recover the transmission of certain critical programming and coverage, our backup capacity is limited.
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Our ability to earn revenue from our Pay-TV and Broadband and Satellite Services businesses depends on, among other things, the usefulness of our owned and leased satellites, each of which has a limited useful life. A number of factors affect the useful lives of the satellites, including, among other things, the quality of their construction, the durability of their component parts, the ability to continue to maintain proper orbits and control over the satellites’ functions, the efficiency of the launch vehicles used and the remaining on-board fuel following in-orbit insertion. Generally, the minimum design life of each of our owned and leased satellites ranges from 12 to 15 years. We can provide no assurance, however, as to the actual useful lives of any of these satellites. Our operating results could be adversely affected if the useful life of any of our owned or leased satellites was significantly shorter than the minimum design life.
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See “ Item 1A. Risk Factors – Risks Related to our Satellites” in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.
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Extreme weather may result in risk of damage to our infrastructure and therefore our ability to provide services, and may lead to changes in federal, state and foreign government regulation, all of which could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
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Extreme weather has the potential to directly damage our network facilities and other infrastructure and/or disrupt our ability to build and maintain portions of our network and could potentially disrupt suppliers’ ability to, among other things, provide the products and services we require to support our operations. Any such disruption could delay our Hybrid MNO plans, interrupt service for our customers, increase our costs and have a negative effect on our operating results and financial condition. The potential physical effects of extreme weather, such as storms, floods, fires, freezing conditions, sea-level rise and other adverse weather events could negatively affect our operations and infrastructure and, as a result, our financial results. Operational impacts resulting from extreme weather, such as, among other things, damage to our Hybrid MNO and/or Pay-TV infrastructure, could result in increased costs and loss of revenue. We could be required to incur significant costs to improve the resiliency of our infrastructure and otherwise prepare for, respond to and mitigate such weather events. It is impossible to accurately predict the materiality of any potential losses or costs associated with extreme weather.
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Our failure to effectively invest in, introduce and implement new competitive products and services could cause our products and services to become obsolete and could negatively impact our business.
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Technology in the pay-TV, wireless and broadband and satellite services industries changes rapidly as new technologies are developed, which could cause our products and services to become obsolete. We and our suppliers may not be able to keep pace with technological developments. Our operating results are dependent to a significant extent upon our ability to continue to introduce new products and services, to upgrade existing products and services on a timely basis and to reduce costs of our existing products and services. We may not be able to successfully identify new product or service opportunities or develop and market these opportunities in a timely or cost-effective manner.
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The research and development of new, technologically advanced products is a complex and uncertain process requiring high levels of innovation and investment. The success of new product and service development depends on many factors, including among others, the following:
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● the difficulties and delays in the development, production, timely completion, testing and marketing of products and services;
● the cost of the products and services;
● the proper identification of current and projected subscriber needs and subscriber acceptance of products and services;
● the development of, approval of and compliance with industry standards;
● the amount of resources we must devote to the development of new technologies; and
● the ability to differentiate our products and services and compete with other companies in the same markets.
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If the new technologies on which we focus our research and development investments fail to achieve acceptance in the marketplace, our competitive position could be negatively impacted, causing a reduction in our revenues and earnings. For example, our competitors could use proprietary technologies that are perceived by the market as being superior. In addition, delays in the delivery of components or other unforeseen problems associated with our technology may occur that could materially and adversely affect our ability to generate revenue, offer new products and services and remain competitive. Furthermore, after we have incurred substantial costs, one or more of the products or services under our development, or under development by one or more of our strategic partners, could become obsolete prior to it being widely adopted.
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If our products and services are not competitive or perceived as not competitive, our business could suffer and our financial performance could be negatively impacted. Our products and services may also experience quality problems, including, but not limited to, outages and service slowdowns, from time to time. If the quality of our products and services does not meet our subscribers’ expectations, then our business, and ultimately our reputation, could be negatively impacted.
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We rely on a single vendor or a limited number of vendors to provide certain key products or services to us, and the inability of these key vendors to meet our needs could have a material adverse effect on our business.
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Historically, we have contracted with and rely on a single vendor or a limited number of vendors to provide certain key products or services to us such as information technology support, billing systems, security access devices and many components that we provide to subscribers in order to deliver services from our Pay-TV, Wireless or Broadband and Satellite Services businesses. We also rely on a limited number of vendors to supply our wireless devices and wireless network equipment used in connection with our Hybrid MNO. If these vendors are unable to meet our needs because, among other things, they fail to perform adequately, are no longer in business, are experiencing shortages or supply chain issues or discontinue a certain product or service we need, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected.
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We have experienced in the past and may continue to experience shortages driven by raw material availability (which may be negatively impacted by, among other things, trade protection policies such as tariffs and or/escalating trade tensions, particularly with countries in Asia), manufacturing capacity, labor shortages, industry allocations, natural disasters, logistical delays and significant changes in the financial or business conditions of its suppliers that negatively impact our operations.
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While alternative sources for these products and services exist, we may not be able to develop these alternative sources quickly and cost-effectively, or at all, which could materially impair our ability to timely deliver our products to our subscribers or operate our business. Furthermore, our vendors may request changes in pricing, payment terms or other contractual obligations, which could require us to make substantial additional investments or find alternative arrangements.
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Changes in trade policies, including, but not limited to, tariffs and other restrictions, could, among other things, increase our costs, disrupt our supply chain and negatively affect our business, operations and financial condition.
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We depend on suppliers, including suppliers with manufacturing in China and other countries, for various materials in our Hybrid MNO, satellite and related infrastructure, Pay-TV and Wireless businesses. Changes in U.S. or foreign trade policies, including, but not limited to, new or increased tariffs, export controls, trade restrictions or sanctions, have resulted, and may continue to result, in higher costs for the wireless devices and other equipment we procure.
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Supply chain disruptions, customs delays, new compliance requirements and other challenges may cause delays in deploying network infrastructure and customer equipment, increase our operational expenses and impact our ability to meet customer demand. Although we attempt to mitigate these risks through alternative sourcing and operational efficiencies, these efforts may not be successful or sufficient.
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If we are unable to pass increased costs to customers without negatively impacting demand, or offset them through other measures, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.
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We depend on independent third parties to solicit orders for our services that represent a meaningful percentage of our total gross new subscriber activations.
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While we offer products and services through direct sales channels, a meaningful percentage of our total gross new subscriber activations are generated through independent third parties such as small retailers, direct marketing groups, local and regional consumer electronics stores, nationwide retailers and telecommunications companies. Most of our independent third-party retailers are not exclusive to us and some of our independent third-party retailers may favor our competitors’ products and services over ours based on the relative financial arrangements associated with marketing our products and services and those of our competitors. Furthermore, most of these independent third-party retailers are significantly smaller than we are and may be more susceptible to economic weaknesses that make it more difficult for them to operate profitably. From time to time, we may adjust the economic terms of agreements with our independent third-party retailers to, among other things, further align our interests with theirs. It may be difficult to better align our interests with our independent third-party retailers because of their capital and liquidity constraints. In addition, any changes we may make may not result in the intended benefits on an acceptable timeline or at all and as a result, negatively affect our operating results. Loss of these relationships could have an adverse effect on our subscriber base and certain of our other key operating metrics because we may not be able to develop comparable alternative distribution channels.
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Risks Related to our Human Capital
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We rely on highly skilled personnel for our business, and any inability to hire and retain key personnel or to hire qualified personnel may negatively affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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We believe that our future success depends to a significant extent upon the performance of Mr. Charles W. Ergen, our Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer and certain other key executives. The loss of Mr. Ergen or certain other key executives, the ability to effectively provide for the succession of our senior management or the ability of Mr. Ergen or such other key executives to devote sufficient time and effort to our businesses could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Although some of our key executives may have agreements relating to their equity compensation that limit their ability to work for or consult with competitors, we generally do not have employment agreements with them.
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Our business growth and customer retention strategies rely in part on the work of technically skilled employees.
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Our response to technological developments depends, to a significant degree, on the work of technically skilled employees. In addition, we have made and will continue to make significant investments in, among other things, research, development and marketing for new products, services, satellites and related technologies, as well as entry into new business areas. Investments in new technologies, satellites and business areas are inherently dependent on these technically skilled employees as well. Competition for the services of such employees has become more intense as demand for these types of employees grows. We compete with other companies for these employees and although we strive to attract, retain, motivate and manage these employees, we may not succeed in these respects. Additionally, if we were to lose certain key technically skilled employees, the loss of knowledge and intellectual capital might have an adverse impact on our business. Furthermore, we believe that our wireless business, including, but not limited to, our ability to operate our Hybrid MNO, is dependent on our ability to identify, hire, develop, motivate and retain a team of highly skilled personnel with knowledge of the wireless industry. Our wireless business will be adversely affected if we fail to effectively hire, develop, motivate and retain highly skilled personnel with knowledge of the wireless industry.
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The success of our business is also dependent on our ability to recruit engineers and other professionals, including those who are citizens of other countries. Immigration laws in the U.S. and other countries in which we operate are subject to legislative and regulatory changes, as well as variations in the standards of application and enforcement due to, among other things, political forces and economic conditions. It is difficult to predict the political and economic events that could affect immigration laws, or the restrictive impact they could have on obtaining or renewing work visas for our professionals. If immigration laws are changed or if new and more restrictive government regulations are enacted or increased, our access to qualified and skilled professionals may be limited.
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Risks Related to our Satellites
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Our owned and leased satellites in orbit are subject to significant operational and environmental risks that could limit our ability to utilize these satellites.
 
Satellites are subject to significant operational risks while in orbit. These risks include, but are not limited to, malfunctions, commonly referred to as anomalies, which have occurred and may occur in the future in our satellites and the satellites of other operators. Any single anomaly could materially and adversely affect our ability to utilize the satellite. Anomalies may also reduce, among other things, the expected capacity, commercial operation and/or useful life of a satellite, thereby reducing the revenue that could be generated by that satellite, or create additional expenses due to the need to provide replacement or back-up satellites or satellite capacity earlier than planned and could have a material adverse effect on our business. We may not be able to prevent or mitigate the impacts of anomalies in the future.
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Meteoroid events, decommissioned satellites, increased solar activity and other adverse events also pose a potential threat to all in-orbit satellites. We may be required to perform maneuvers to avoid collisions and these maneuvers may prove unsuccessful or could reduce the useful life of the satellite through the expenditure of fuel to perform these maneuvers.
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Generally, the minimum design life of each of our satellites is 15 years. We can provide no assurance, however, as to the actual operational lives of our satellites, which may be shorter or longer than their design lives. Our ability to earn revenue depends on the continued operation of our satellites, each of which has a limited useful life.
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We generally do not carry in-orbit insurance on our satellites or payloads because we have assessed that the cost of insurance is not economical relative to the risk of failures. If one or more of our in-orbit uninsured satellites or payloads fail, we could be required to record significant impairment charges for the satellite or payload.
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Our satellites under construction are subject to risks related to, among other things, construction, technology, regulations and launch that could limit our ability to utilize these satellites, increase costs and adversely affect our business.
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Satellite construction and launch are subject to significant risks, including, but not limited to, manufacturing and delivery delays, anomalies, launch failure and incorrect orbital placement. The technologies in our satellite designs are very complex and difficulties in constructing our designs could result in delays in the deployment of our satellites or increased or unanticipated costs. There can be no assurance that the technologies in our existing satellites or in new satellites that we design, acquire and build will work as we expect, will not become obsolete, that we will realize any or all of the anticipated benefits of our satellite designs or our new satellites and/or that we will obtain all regulatory approvals required to operate our new or acquired satellites on an acceptable timeline, or at all. Launch anomalies and failures can result in significant delays in the deployment of satellites because of the need both to construct replacement satellites, which can take significant amounts of time and to obtain other launch opportunities.
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Such significant delays have and could in the future materially affect, among other things, our business, our ability to meet regulatory or contractual required milestones, the availability and our use of other or replacement satellite resources and our ability to provide services to customers. In addition, significant delays in a satellite program could give customers who have purchased or reserved capacity on that satellite a right to terminate their service contracts relating to the satellite. We may not be able to accommodate affected customers on other satellites until a replacement satellite is available. In addition, we generally do not carry in-orbit insurance on our satellites or payloads because we have assessed that the cost of insurance is not economical relative to the risk of failures. If we do obtain launch or in-orbit insurance, it may not cover the full cost of constructing and launching or replacing a satellite nor fully cover our losses in the event of a launch failure or significant degradation.
 
Our use of certain satellites is often dependent on satellite coordination agreements, which may be difficult to obtain.
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Satellite operators are required to enter into international spectrum coordination agreements with other affected satellite operators and must be approved by the relevant governments. If a required agreement cannot be negotiated, we may have to operate the applicable satellite(s) in a manner that does not cause harmful radio frequency interference with the affected satellite. If we cannot do so, we may have to cease operating such satellite(s) at the affected orbital locations.
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We may face interference from other services sharing satellite spectrum .
 
The FCC and other national, state, local and international regulators have adopted rules or may adopt rules in the future that require us to share spectrum on a basis with other radio services. There can be no assurance that these operations would not interfere with our operations and adversely affect our business. In the event that the FCC and/or another regulator determines that our spectrum interferes with another service, we may be required to, among other things, find or develop a solution. We cannot make any assurance that we will be able to do so on an acceptable timeline or at all, or that such solution will not adversely affect our business.
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Risks Related to our Products and Technology
 
Our business depends on certain intellectual property rights and on not infringing the intellectual property rights of others. 
 
We rely on our patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secrets, as well as licenses and other agreements with our vendors and other parties, to use our technologies, conduct our operations and sell our products and services. Legal challenges to our intellectual property rights and claims of intellectual property infringement by third parties could require that we enter into royalty or licensing agreements on unfavorable terms, incur substantial monetary liability or be enjoined preliminarily or permanently from further use of the intellectual property in question or from the continuation of our business as currently conducted, which could require us to change our business practices or limit our ability to compete effectively or could have an adverse effect on our results of operations.
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Even if we believe any such challenges or claims are without merit, they can be time consuming and costly to defend and divert management’s attention and resources away from our business. Moreover, because of the rapid pace of technological change, we rely on technologies developed by or licensed from third parties, and if we are unable to obtain or continue to obtain licenses from these third parties on reasonable terms or at all, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected.
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In addition, we work with certain third parties such as vendors, contractors and suppliers for the development and manufacture of components that are integrated into our products and services, and our products and services may contain technologies provided to us by these third parties or other third parties. We may have little or no ability to determine in advance whether any such technology infringes the intellectual property rights of others. Our vendors, contractors and suppliers may not be required to indemnify us if a claim of infringement is asserted against us, license the potential infringing technology from other third parties or they may be required to indemnify us only up to a maximum amount, above which we would be responsible for any further costs or damages.
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Legal challenges to these intellectual property rights may impair our ability to use the products, services and technologies that we need in order to operate our business and may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Furthermore, our digital content offerings depend in part on effective digital rights management technology to control access to digital content. If the digital rights management technology that we use is compromised or otherwise malfunctions, content providers may be unwilling to provide access to their content. Changes in the copyright laws or how such laws may be interpreted could impact our ability to deliver content and provide certain features and functionality, particularly over the Internet. 
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We are, and may become, party to various lawsuits which, if adversely decided, could have a significant adverse impact on our business, particularly lawsuits regarding intellectual property.
 
We are, and may become, subject to various legal proceedings and claims which arise in the ordinary course of business, including, among other things, intellectual property disputes. Any adverse finding in such legal proceedings, could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. See Note 15 “ Contingencies – Litigation ” in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.
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In addition, many entities, including some of our competitors, have or may in the future obtain patents and other intellectual property rights that may cover or affect products or services related to those that we offer. In general, if a court determines that one or more of our products or services infringes on intellectual property held by others, we may be required to cease developing or marketing those products or services, to obtain licenses from the holders of the intellectual property at a material cost or to redesign those products or services in such a way as to avoid infringing the intellectual property.
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If those intellectual property rights are held by a competitor, we may be unable to obtain the intellectual property at any price, which could adversely affect our competitive position. See “ Item 1. Business – Patents and Other Intellectual Property”  in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information. We may not be aware of all intellectual property rights that our services or the products used in connection with our services may potentially infringe. In addition, patent applications in the United States are confidential until the Patent and Trademark Office either publishes the application or issues a patent (whichever arises first). Therefore, it is difficult to evaluate the extent to which our services or the products used in connection with our services may infringe claims contained in pending patent applications. Furthermore, it is sometimes not possible to determine definitively whether a claim of infringement is valid.
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If our products contain defects, we could be subject to significant costs to correct such defects and our product and network service contracts could be delayed or cancelled, which could adversely affect our revenue.
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Our products and networks we deploy are highly complex, and some may contain defects when first introduced or when new versions or enhancements are released, despite testing and our quality control procedures. Defects may also occur in components and products that we purchase from third parties. In addition, many of our products and network services are designed to interface with our customers’ existing networks and end-user devices, each of which has different specifications and utilizes multiple protocol standards. Our products and services must interoperate with the other products and services within our customers’ networks, as well as with future products and services that might be added to these networks, to meet our customers’ requirements. There can be no assurance that we will be able to detect and fix all defects in the products and networks we sell, in a timely manner or at all. The occurrence of, and failure to remedy, any defects, errors or failures in our products or network services could materially affect our business. As a result, any defect or other problem may adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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Risks Related to Cybersecurity
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Any failure or inadequacy of our information technology infrastructure and communications systems or those of third parties that we use in our operations, including, without limitation, those caused by cyber-attacks or other malicious activities, could disrupt or harm our business.
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The capacity, reliability and security of our information technology hardware and software infrastructure (including, but not limited to, our billing systems) and communications systems, or those of third parties that we use in our operations, are important to the operation of our business, which has in the past and would in the future suffer in the event of system failures or cyber-attacks. Likewise, our ability to expand and update our information technology infrastructure in response to, among other things, our growth and changing needs is important to the continued implementation of our new service offering initiatives. Our inability to expand or upgrade our technology infrastructure could have adverse consequences, which could include, among other things, the delayed implementation of new service offerings, service or billing interruptions and the diversion of management and developmental resources.
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We rely on certain third parties for developing key components of our information technology and communications systems and ongoing service, all of which affect our Pay-TV, Wireless and Broadband and Satellite Services businesses. Some of our key systems and operations, including, but not limited to, those supplied by certain third-party providers, are not fully redundant and our disaster recovery planning cannot account for all eventualities. Interruption and/or failure of any of these systems could, among other things, disrupt our operations, interrupt our services, result in significant financial expenditures and damage our reputation, thus adversely impacting our ability to provide our services, retain our current subscribers and attract new Pay-TV, Wireless, and Broadband subscribers.
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In addition, although we take protective measures designed to secure our information technology systems and endeavor to modify such protective measures as circumstances warrant, our information technology hardware and software infrastructure and communications systems, or those of third parties that we use in our operations, may be vulnerable to a variety of interruptions, including, without limitation, natural disasters, terrorist attacks, telecommunications failures, cyber-attacks and other malicious activities such as unauthorized access, physical or electronic break-ins, misuse, computer viruses or other malicious code, computer denial of service attacks and other events that could disrupt or harm our business. These protective measures may not be sufficient for all eventualities and may themselves be vulnerable to hacking, malfeasance, system error or other irregularities.
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For example, certain parties may attempt to fraudulently induce employees or subscribers into disclosing usernames, passwords or other sensitive information, which may in turn be used to access our information technology systems. In addition, third-party providers of some of our key systems may also experience interruptions to their information technology hardware and software infrastructure and communications systems that could adversely impact us and over which we may have limited or no control. We may obtain certain confidential, proprietary and personal information about our subscribers, personnel and vendors, and may provide this information to third parties in connection with our business. If one or more of such interruptions or failures occur to us or our third-party providers, it potentially could jeopardize such information and other information processed and stored in, and transmitted through, our or our third-party providers’ information technology hardware and software infrastructure and communications systems, or otherwise cause interruptions or malfunctions in our operations, which could result in, among other things, lawsuits, government claims, investigations or proceedings, significant losses or reputational damage. Due to the fast-moving pace of technology, it may be difficult to detect, contain and remediate every such event on an acceptable timeline or at all.
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We may be required to expend significant additional resources to modify our protective measures or to investigate and remediate vulnerabilities or other exposures, and we may be subject to financial losses. In addition, this may divert management’s attention and resources away from our business, and therefore adversely affect our business. Furthermore, the amount and scope of insurance we maintain may not cover all expenses related to such activities or all types of claims that may arise.
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As a result of the increasing awareness concerning the importance of safeguarding personal information, the potential misuse of such information and legislation that has been adopted or is being considered regarding the protection, privacy and security of personal information, the potential liability associated with information-related risks is increasing, particularly for businesses like ours that handle personal subscriber data. The occurrence of any network or information system related events or security breaches could have a material adverse effect on, among other things, our reputation, business, financial condition and results of operations. Significant incidents could result in a disruption of our operations, subscriber dissatisfaction, damage to our reputation or a loss of subscribers and revenues.
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We have experienced and may experience in the future cyber-attacks and other attempts to gain unauthorized access to our systems on a consistent basis.
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We have experienced and may experience in the future security issues, whether due to, among other things, insider error or malfeasance or system errors or vulnerabilities in our or our third parties’ systems, which could result in, among other things, substantial legal and financial exposure, government inquiries and enforcement actions, litigation, diversion of management time and attention from our existing businesses and unfavorable media coverage. We may be unable to anticipate or detect attacks or vulnerabilities or implement adequate preventative measures on an acceptable timeframe or at all. Attacks and security issues could also compromise trade secrets and other sensitive information.
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We are subject to persistent cybersecurity threats to our networks and systems. Although we take protective measures designed to secure our information technology systems and endeavor to modify such protective measures as circumstances warrant, our information technology hardware and software infrastructure and communications systems, or those of third parties that we use in our operations, may be vulnerable to a variety of interruptions, including, without limitation, natural disasters, terrorist attacks, telecommunications failures, cyber-attacks and other malicious activities such as unauthorized access, physical or electronic break-ins, misuse, computer viruses or other malicious code, computer denial of service attacks and other events that could disrupt or harm our business. The protective measures we take may not be sufficient for all eventualities and may themselves be vulnerable to hacking, malfeasance, system error or other irregularities.
For example, certain parties may attempt to fraudulently induce employees or subscribers into disclosing usernames, passwords or other sensitive information, which may in turn be used to access our information technology systems.
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In addition, cybersecurity threat actors are increasingly sophisticated through various techniques that involve social engineering and/or misrepresentation. Techniques used in cyber-attacks to obtain unauthorized access to, disable or sabotage information technology systems are increasingly diverse and sophisticated, including as a result of emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence and machine learning. Data breaches and other cybersecurity events have become increasingly commonplace, including, but not limited to, as a result of the intensification of state-sponsored cyber-attacks during periods of geopolitical conflict. Various events described above have occurred in the past and may occur in the future. Although impacts of past events have been immaterial, the impacts of such events in the future may be material, including, but not limited to, increase in our DISH TV and Wireless churn rates, reduced new subscriber activations and reputational harm which could increase or accelerate any of the above risks.
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The confidentiality, integrity and availability of our services and products depends on the continuing operation of our information technology and other enabling systems.
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Our systems run the risk of damage, intrusion or disruption from, among other things, criminal and/or terrorist attacks, telecommunications failures, computer viruses, ransomware attacks, digital denial of service attacks, phishing and/or other attempts to injure or maliciously access our systems. Some of our systems are not fully redundant and disaster recovery planning cannot account for all possibilities. In addition, our products and services are highly technical and complex and may contain errors or vulnerabilities, which could result in interruptions in or failure of our services or systems. Failure to respond, mitigate and/or remedy any cyber-attack or other information technology failure on a timely basis or at all, could materially affect our business.
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Our international businesses expose us to additional risks that could harm our business.
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Our Broadband and Satellite Services businesses have international operations. In addition to risks described elsewhere herein, the different regions and countries in which we operate our businesses outside of the U.S. expose us to increased risks due to different privacy and cyber-related laws in each of these locations. The same cyber-related issue could have different consequences depending on, among other factors, the region or country of occurrence, the laws applicable in each case and the different levels of enforcement by regulatory and governmental authorities in each jurisdiction. These risks include, but are not limited to, the following:
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● data privacy and security concerns relating to our technology and practices could, among other things, damage our reputation, cause us to incur significant liability and deter current and potential users or customers from using our products and services;
● software bugs or defects, security breaches and attacks on our systems could result in the improper disclosure of our user data which could harm, among other things, our business reputation and result in legal and/or government action;
● concerns about our practices about the collection, use, disclosure or security of personal information or other data-privacy-related matters, even if unsubstantiated, could harm our reputation and financial condition;
● our policies and practices may change over time as expectations regarding privacy and data change.
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Our ongoing investments in security will likely continue to identify new vulnerabilities within our services and products.
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In addition to our efforts to, among other things, mitigate the risk of cyber-attacks and improve our products and services, we are making significant investments to assure that our products are resistant to compromise. As a result of these efforts, we could discover new vulnerabilities within our products and systems that would be undesirable for our users and customers.
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We have discovered and remediated, and may discover new vulnerabilities due to the scale of activities on our platforms, and may not be able to mitigate or fix such vulnerabilities on acceptable timeframes or at all, due to other factors, including, but not limited to, issues outside of our control such as natural disasters/climate change such as sea level rise, drought, flooding, wildfires, increased storm severity, power loss, and we may be notified of such vulnerabilities via third parties. Any of the foregoing developments may, among other things, negatively affect user and customer trust, harm our reputation and brands and adversely affect our business and financial results.
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Any such developments may also subject us to litigation and regulatory inquiries, which could result in monetary penalties and damages, distract management’s time and attention and lead to enhanced regulatory oversight.
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Acquisition and Capital Structure Risks
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We, and certain of our subsidiaries, currently do not have the necessary cash on hand, projected future cash flows or committed financing to fund our obligations over the next twelve months, which raises substantial doubt about our, and certain of our subsidiaries, ability to continue as a going concern.
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As of the date of this report, we and certain of our subsidiaries, currently do not have the necessary cash on hand, projected future cash flows or committed financing to fund our anticipated working capital needs, capital expenditures, interest payments, debt maturities and other contractual obligations over the next twelve months. These conditions raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern and, as a result, a ‘going concern’ disclosure appears in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
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We expect completion of either of the AT&T Transactions or SpaceX Transactions to fully resolve our going concern qualification, except for our Hughes Satellite Systems Corporation subsidiary. However, failure to complete the transactions or a significant reduction in consideration from the transactions may result in the continuation of our going concern qualification.
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The presence of a going concern uncertainty may also adversely impact the price of our securities, harm our current, future and potential relationships with suppliers, vendors, customers, employees and creditors, and may limit our ability to access additional financing on acceptable terms or at all. There can be no assurance that management’s plans to mitigate these risks will be successful on a timely basis or at all. If we are unable to secure adequate liquidity on an acceptable timeline or at all, we may not be able to continue as a going concern, which could result in a total loss of your investment. In addition, as our cash and cash equivalents balance declines, the risks described above may continue, increase or accelerate at any time and with or without notice.
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In the event that the going concern qualification continues after the completion or non-completion of the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions, we may take additional actions to protect our interest in our wireless spectrum licenses and other assets that may negatively impact the value of your investment in our securities, including, under certain circumstances, filing for relief under Chapter 11 of Title 11 of the United States Code, if we determine that such an action is in the best interests of the Company and our stakeholders.
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In addition, even if we complete the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions, due to government action and creditor claims, our RAN-related infrastructure subsidiary, DISH Wireless L.L.C. (“DWLLC”), may not be able to operate as a going concern.
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Certain actions that we, or certain of our subsidiaries, may take, including a potential voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing could have material adverse consequences to us and such subsidiaries, including, but not limited to: (i) disruption of relationships with vendors, suppliers, employees and customers; (ii) limitations on the ability to access capital markets or otherwise obtain financing on favorable terms or at all; (iii) limitations on the ability to take advantage of business opportunities; (iv) reputational harm; (v) potential delisting of securities from trading exchanges; and (vi) significant administrative costs and diversion of management attention. Furthermore, the outcome of any of the actions that we, or certain of our subsidiaries, may take, including a filing for relief under Chapter 11, is inherently uncertain and may result in a loss of control by our principal stockholder or a material reduction in the value or change in the relative priority of existing equity or debt securities.
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We have substantial debt outstanding and may incur additional debt, and covenants in our Indentures could limit our ability to undertake certain types of activities and adversely affect our liquidity.
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As of December 31, 2025, our total debt, finance lease and other obligations (including current portion) outstanding, including the debt of our subsidiaries, was $25.980 billion. Our debt levels could have significant consequences, including, but not limited to;
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● making it more difficult to satisfy our obligations;
● a dilutive effect on our outstanding equity capital or future earnings;
● increasing our vulnerability to general adverse economic conditions, including, but not limited to, changes in interest rates;
● requiring us to devote a substantial portion of our cash to make interest and principal payments on our debt, thereby reducing the amount of cash available for other purposes. As a result, we would have limited financial and operating flexibility to changing economic and competitive conditions;
● limiting our ability to raise additional debt because it may be more difficult for us to obtain debt financing on attractive terms or at all; and
● placing us at a disadvantage compared to our competitors that are less leveraged or can borrow funds at a lower interest rate.
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In addition, we may incur additional debt in the future. The terms of the indentures relating to our senior notes, senior secured notes and our convertible notes permit us to incur additional debt. If new debt is added to our current debt levels, the risks we now face could intensify.
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We depend upon our subsidiaries’ earnings to make payments on our indebtedness.
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Since we are a holding company and our operations are conducted through our subsidiaries, our ability to service our debt obligations may depend upon the earnings of our operating subsidiaries and their ability to distribute cash or other property to us. We have few assets of significance other than the capital stock of our subsidiaries. Furthermore, creditors of our subsidiaries will have a superior claim to certain of our subsidiaries’ assets. In addition, our subsidiaries’ ability to make any payments to us will depend on, among other factors, their earnings, the terms of their indebtedness, business and tax considerations and legal restrictions. We cannot assure you that our subsidiaries will be able to pay dividends or that our subsidiaries will be able to otherwise distribute funds to us in an amount sufficient to pay the principal of or interest on the indebtedness owed by us.
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We have made substantial investments to acquire certain wireless spectrum licenses and other related assets, and may be unable to realize a return on these assets.
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We have invested a total of over $30 billion to acquire certain wireless spectrum licenses. We may need to make significant additional investments or partner with others to, among other things, further commercialize, build-out and integrate these licenses and related assets and any additional acquired licenses and related assets, as well as to comply with regulations applicable to such licenses. Depending on the nature and scope of such activities, any such investments or partnerships could vary significantly. In addition, as we continue our Hybrid MNO, we have and may continue to incur significant additional expenses related to, among other things, research and development, wireless testing and ongoing upgrades to the wireless network infrastructure, software and third-party integration. As a result of these investments, among other factors, we may need to raise additional capital, which may not be available on favorable terms or at all.
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There is no assurance that the FCC will find our buildout activities sufficient to meet the build-out requirements to which our wireless spectrum licenses are subject. Failure to comply with FCC build-out requirements and/or renewal requirements in a given license area could result in, among other things, acceleration of the build-out deadlines or revocation of the license for that license area. The revocation of a material portion of our wireless spectrum licenses would have a significant material adverse effect on our future business, results of operations and financial condition. As a result of the unforeseeable actions by the FCC, as detailed in “ Recent Developments – FCC Review ” in Note 1 in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, we entered into the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions, whereby we agreed to sell a material amount of our spectrum licenses. In August 2025, following these transactions, we terminated our deployment of our 5G Network, after meeting certain interim and final build-out requirements established by the FCC, and we began the abandonment and decommission process for certain portions of our 5G Network that will not be utilized in the Wireless segment’s Hybrid MNO business.
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We may need to raise additional capital in the future, which may not be available on favorable terms or at all, to fund the efforts described above, as well as, among other things, make any potential Northstar Re-Auction Payment and SNR Re-Auction Payment for the AWS-3 licenses retained by the FCC. There can be no assurance that we will be able to complete all build-out requirements or profitably deploy our Wireless spectrum licenses, which may affect the carrying amount of these assets and our future financial condition or results of operations.
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Furthermore, the fair values of Wireless spectrum licenses may vary significantly in the future. In particular, valuation swings could occur if:
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● the consolidation in the wireless industry allows or requires wireless carriers to sell significant portions of their wireless spectrum holdings, which could in turn reduce the value of our spectrum holdings;
● the sale of spectrum by one or more wireless providers occurs;
● the FCC pursues certain policies designed to increase the number of Wireless spectrum licenses available in each of our markets; or
● the FCC conducts additional wireless spectrum auctions.
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If the fair value of our wireless spectrum licenses were to decline significantly, the value of these licenses could be subject to impairment charges. We assess potential impairments to our indefinite-lived intangible assets annually or more often if indicators of impairment arise to determine whether there is evidence that indicates an impairment condition may exist.
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We may pursue acquisitions, dispositions, capital expenditures, the development, acquisition and launch of new satellites and other strategic initiatives to complement or expand our business, which may not be successful and we may lose a portion or all of our investment in these acquisitions and transactions.
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Our future success may depend on opportunities to buy or otherwise invest in other businesses or technologies that could complement, enhance or expand our current business or products or that might otherwise offer us growth opportunities. To pursue this strategy successfully, we must identify attractive acquisition or investment opportunities and successfully complete transactions, some of which may be large and complex. We may not be able to identify or complete attractive acquisition or investment opportunities due to, among other things, the intense competition for these transactions. If we are not able to identify and complete such acquisition or investment opportunities, our future results of operations and financial condition may be adversely affected.
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We may be unable to obtain in the anticipated time frame, or at all, any regulatory approvals required to complete proposed acquisitions and other strategic transactions. Furthermore, the conditions imposed for obtaining any necessary approvals could delay the completion of such transactions for a significant period of time or prevent them from occurring at all. We may not be able to complete such transactions, and such transactions, if executed, may pose significant risks and could have a negative effect on our operations. Any transactions that we are able to identify and complete may involve a number of risks, including, but not limited to:
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● t he risks associated with developing and constructing new satellites;
● the diversion of management’s attention from our existing business onto a strategic initiative ;
● the possible adverse effects on our and our targets’ and partners’ business, financial condition or operating results during the integration process;
● the high degree of risk inherent in these transactions, which could become substantial over time, and higher exposure to significant financial losses if the underlying ventures are not successful on an acceptable timeline or at all;
● the possible inability to achieve the intended objectives of the transaction;
● the risks associated with complying with contractual provisions and regulations applicable to the acquired business, which may cause us to incur substantial expenses ;
● t he disruption of relationships with employees, vendors or customers; and
● t he risks associated with foreign and international operations and/or investments or dispositions.
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In addition, we may not be able to successfully or profitably integrate, operate, maintain and manage our newly acquired operations or employees on an acceptable timeline or at all. We may not be able to maintain uniform standards, controls, procedures and policies, and this may lead to, among other things, operational inefficiencies. In addition, the integration process may strain our financial and managerial controls and reporting systems and procedures.
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New acquisitions, joint ventures and other transactions may require the commitment of significant capital that would otherwise be directed to investments in our existing business. To pursue acquisitions and other strategic transactions, we may need to raise additional capital in the future, which may not be available on favorable terms or at all.
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In addition to committing capital to complete the acquisitions, substantial capital may be required to operate the acquired businesses following their acquisition. These acquisitions may result in significant financial losses if the intended objectives of the transactions are not achieved. Some of the businesses that we have acquired have experienced significant operating and financial challenges in their recent history, which in some cases resulted in these businesses commencing bankruptcy proceedings prior to our acquisition. We may acquire similar businesses in the future.
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There is no assurance that we will be able to successfully address the challenges and risks encountered by these businesses following their acquisition. If we are unable to successfully address these challenges and risks, our business, financial condition and/or results of operations may suffer.
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We will need additional capital, which may not be available on favorable terms or at all, to fund current obligations, continue investing in our business and to finance acquisitions and other strategic transactions.
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Weakness in the equity markets could make it difficult for us to raise equity financing without incurring substantial dilution to our existing shareholders. Adverse changes in the credit markets including, but not limited to, rising interest rates and macro-economic conditions, could increase our borrowing costs and/or make it more difficult for us to obtain financing for our operations or for us to refinance existing indebtedness on favorable terms. 
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Continued or prolonged higher interest rates could increase our cost of capital and require us to devote a higher percentage of our cash flow to interest payments, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial results.
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In addition, economic weakness, weak results of operations or other factors may limit our ability to, among other things, generate sufficient internal cash to fund investments, capital expenditures, acquisitions and other strategic transactions, as well as to fund ongoing operations and service our debt. We may be unable to generate cash flows from operating activities sufficient to pay the principal, premium, if any, and interest on our debt and other obligations. If we are unable to service our debt and other obligations from cash flows from operating activities, we may need to refinance or restructure all or a portion of such obligations prior to maturity.
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Any refinancing or restructuring could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and/or financial condition. In addition, we cannot guarantee that any refinancing or restructuring would sufficiently meet any debt or other obligations then due. If we do not pay interest or otherwise fulfill our debt obligations when due, our business, cash flows, results of operations and financial condition would be materially adversely impacted.
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Furthermore, our borrowing costs can be affected by short and long-term debt ratings assigned by independent rating agencies, which are based, in significant part, on, among other factors, our performance as measured by their credit metrics. A decrease in these ratings would likely increase our cost of borrowing and/or make it more difficult for us to obtain financing. 
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A severe disruption in the global financial markets could impact some of the financial institutions with which we do business, and such instability could also affect our access to financing. As a result, these conditions could make it difficult for us to accurately forecast and plan future business activities because we may not have access to funding sources necessary for us to pursue organic and strategic business development opportunities.
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The conditional conversion features of our convertible notes, if triggered, may adversely affect our financial condition.
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In the event the conditional conversion features of the convertible Notes are triggered, holders of these instruments will be entitled to convert their convertible notes at any time during specified periods at their option. If one or more holders elect to convert their convertible notes, unless we elect to satisfy our conversion obligation by delivering solely shares of our Class A common stock which would dilute equity holders, we would be required to make cash payments to satisfy all or a portion of our conversion obligation based on the conversion rate, which could adversely affect our liquidity.
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In addition, even if holders do not elect to convert their convertible notes, we could be required under applicable accounting rules to reclassify all or a portion of the outstanding principal of the convertible notes as a current rather than long-term liability, which could result in a material reduction of our net working capital.
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From time to time a portion of our investment portfolio may be invested in securities that have limited liquidity and may not be immediately accessible to support our financing needs.
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From time to time a portion of our investment portfolio may be invested in strategic investments, and as a result, a portion of our portfolio may have restricted liquidity. If the credit ratings of these securities deteriorate or there is a lack of liquidity in the marketplace, we may be required to record impairment charges. Moreover, the uncertainty of domestic and global financial markets can greatly affect the volatility and value of our marketable investment securities. In addition, a portion of our investment portfolio may include strategic and financial investments in debt and equity securities of public companies that are highly speculative and that may experience volatility. Typically, these investments are concentrated in a small number of companies.
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The fair value of these investments can be significantly impacted by the risk of adverse changes in securities markets generally, as well as risks related to the performance of the companies whose securities we have invested in, risks associated with specific industries and other factors. These investments are subject to significant fluctuations in fair value due to the volatility of the securities markets and of the underlying businesses. The concentration of these investments as a percentage of our overall investment portfolio fluctuates from time to time based on, among other things, the size of our investment portfolio and our ability to liquidate these investments.
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In addition, because our portfolio may be concentrated in a limited number of companies, we may experience a significant loss if any of these companies, among other things, defaults on its obligations, performs poorly, does not generate adequate cash flow to fund its operations, is unable to obtain necessary financing on acceptable terms, or at all, or files for bankruptcy, or if the sectors in which these companies operate experience a market downturn. To the extent we require access to funds, we may need to sell these securities under unfavorable market conditions, record impairment charges and fall short of our financing needs.
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Covenants in our and our subsidiaries’ Indentures restrict our business in many ways.
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There are restrictive covenants in our and our subsidiaries’ Indentures that restrict us and our subsidiaries (as applicable), under certain circumstances, from taking certain actions such as, among other things:
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● incur or guarantee additional debt;
● allow to exist certain restrictions on certain subsidiaries’ ability to pay dividends, make distributions, make other payments or transfer assets;
● restrict our ability to make investments or make other payments in respect of our equity securities or our other indebtedness;
● limit our ability to incur indebtedness that is senior to, equal or subordinate to certain Indebtedness, or to engage in certain sale/leaseback transactions;
● enter into certain transactions with affiliates;
● merge or consolidate with another company;
● restrict our ability to repurchase or prepay any other of our securities or other indebtedness;
● restrict our ability to enter into highly leveraged transactions;
● incur liens; and
● restrict guarantors’ ability to engage in new activities .
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Our ability to, among other things, recapitalize, incur additional debt, secure existing or future debt or take a number of other actions may be limited by the terms of our Indentures, business and tax considerations and legal restrictions, including, but not limited to, repurchasing indebtedness or capital stock or paying dividends and could have the effect of diminishing our ability to make payments on our outstanding Indebtedness when due.
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Risks Related to the Regulation of Our Business
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Our services depend on FCC licenses that can expire or be revoked or modified and applications for FCC licenses that may not be granted.
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If the FCC were to cancel, revoke, suspend, restrict, significantly condition, or fail to renew any of our licenses or authorizations, or fail to grant our applications for FCC licenses that we may file from time to time, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. As an example, a loss of a frequency authorization would reduce the amount of spectrum available to us, potentially reducing the amount of DISH TV, Wireless and/or Broadband and Satellite Services offerings available to our subscribers. The materiality of such a loss of authorizations would vary based upon, among other things, the location of the frequency used or the availability of replacement spectrum.
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In addition, Congress and other Administrative and Regulatory agencies often consider and enact legislation that affects us and FCC proceedings to implement the Communications Act and enforce its regulations are ongoing. We cannot predict the outcomes of these legislative or regulatory proceedings or their effect on our business.
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Wireless services and our wireless spectrum licenses are subject to regulation by the FCC and, depending on the jurisdiction, other federal, state and local, as well as international, governmental authorities and regulatory agencies, including, among other things, regulations governing the licensing, construction, operation, sale and interconnection arrangements of wireless telecommunications systems. In particular, the FCC imposes significant regulation on licensees of wireless spectrum with respect to, among others, how radio spectrum is used by licensees, the nature of the services that licensees may offer and how the services may be offered, and resolution of issues of interference between spectrum bands. The FCC grants wireless licenses for terms of generally 10-12 years that are subject to renewal or revocation.
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There can be no assurances that our wireless spectrum licenses will be renewed. Failure to comply with FCC build-out requirements in a given license area may result in acceleration of other build-out requirements or in the modification, cancellation, or non-renewal of licenses. See Note 15 in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.
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The risk of non-compliance with laws and regulations, including, but not limited to, the risk of changes to laws and regulations, could adversely affect our business.
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Our business is regulated by numerous governmental agencies and other regulatory bodies, both domestically and internationally. Also, our international operations are subject to the laws and regulations of many different jurisdictions that may differ significantly from U.S. laws and regulations. Violations of these laws and regulations could result in fines or penalties or other sanctions which could have a material adverse impact on our business. Additionally, our ability to operate and grow our business depends on laws and regulations that govern the frequency bands and/or orbital locations we operate in or may operate in in the future.
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These laws and regulations are subject to the administrative and political process and do change from time to time. We may be affected by changes to government leadership and policy changes resulting from new leaders. We have been subject to such changes in the past and may be subject to such changes in the future and those changes may negatively impact us, including but not limited to, the addition of new regulations, the modification or rescission of past regulations which may be favorable and the increase or decrease of government programs which us or our subscribers may be recipients.  Our business could suffer a material adverse impact if laws and regulations change and we are not able to adapt to these changes efficiently. 
​
Additionally, we are subject to emerging and evolving regulatory requirements and frameworks regarding environmental, social and governance matters, including, but not limited to, potential new or revised disclosure rules proposed by the SEC and recently enacted or proposed legislation in jurisdictions such as California. The ultimate scope of these regulations may change as they are finalized, and they may not be uniform across jurisdictions. Meeting these obligations may require significant investments of time, capital and personnel.
​
If our internal controls are not effective, our business, our stock price and investor confidence in our financial results may be adversely affected.
​
We periodically evaluate and test our internal control over financial reporting to satisfy the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Our management has concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2025. We depend on our third-party vendors’ internal controls and rely on these controls when evaluating the effectiveness of our internal controls. If in the future we are unable to report that our internal control over financial reporting is effective (or if our auditors do not agree with our assessment of the effectiveness of, or are unable to express an opinion on, our internal control over financial reporting), investors, subscribers and business partners could lose confidence in the accuracy of our financial reports, which could in turn have a material adverse effect on our business.
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Risks Related to Ownership of our Common Stock
​
We are controlled by one principal stockholder who is our Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
​
Charles W. Ergen, our Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, beneficially owns approximately 51.3% of our total equity securities (assuming conversion of the Class B common stock beneficially owned by Mr. Ergen into Class A common stock and giving effect to the exercise of options held by Mr. Ergen that are either currently exercisable as of, or may become exercisable within 60 days) and beneficially owns approximately 90.4% of the total voting power of all classes of shares (assuming no conversion of any Class B common stock and giving effect to the exercise of options held by Mr. Ergen that are either currently exercisable as of, or may become exercisable within 60 days).  Through his beneficial ownership of our equity securities, Mr. Ergen has the ability to elect a majority of our directors and to control all other matters requiring the approval of our stockholders.  As a result of Mr. Ergen’s voting power, we are a “controlled company” as defined in the NASDAQ listing rules and, therefore, are not subject to NASDAQ requirements that would otherwise require us to have (i) a majority of independent directors; (ii) a nominating committee composed solely of independent directors; (iii) compensation of our executive officers determined by a majority of the independent directors or a compensation committee composed solely of independent directors; (iv) a compensation committee charter which provides the compensation committee with the authority and funding to retain compensation consultants and other advisors; and/or (v) director nominees selected, or recommended for the Board of Directors selection, either by a majority of the independent directors or a nominating committee composed solely of independent directors.
​
Pursuant to the Amended Support Agreement (which was signed as part of the completed acquisition on December 31, 2023 of DISH Network by us pursuant to the Amended and Restated Agreement and Plan of Merger, (the “Merger”)), Mr. Ergen and the other Ergen Stockholders have agreed not to vote, or cause or direct to be voted, the shares of EchoStar Class A Common Stock owned by them, other than with respect to any matter presented to the holders of EchoStar Class A Common Stock on which holders of EchoStar Class B Common Stock are not entitled to vote, for three years following the closing of the Merger. As a result, Mr. Ergen’s effective total voting power is approximately 89.5%.
​
It may be difficult for a third-party to acquire us, even if doing so may be beneficial to our shareholders, because of our capital structure.
​
Certain provisions of our articles of incorporation and bylaws may discourage, delay or prevent a change in control of our Company that a shareholder may consider favorable. These provisions include the following:
 
● a capital structure with multiple classes of common stock: a Class A that entitles the holders to one vote per share; a Class B that entitles the holders to ten votes per share; a Class C that entitles the holders to one vote per share, except upon a change in control of our company in which case the holders of Class C are entitled to ten votes per share; and a non-voting Class D;
● a provision that authorizes the issuance of “blank check” preferred stock, which could be issued by our Board of Directors to increase the number of outstanding shares and thwart a takeover attempt;
● a provision limiting who may call special meetings of shareholders; and
● a provision establishing advance notice requirements for nominations of candidates for election to our Board of Directors or for proposing matters that can be acted upon by shareholders at shareholder meetings.
​
As discussed above, Mr. Ergen beneficially owns approximately 51.3% of our total equity securities and approximately 90.4% of the total voting power of all classes of shares and such ownership may make it impractical for any third-party to obtain control of us.
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In addition, pursuant to our articles of incorporation we have a significant amount of authorized and unissued stock that would allow our Board of Directors to issue shares to persons friendly to current management, thereby protecting the continuity of management, or which could be used to dilute the stock ownership of persons seeking to obtain control of us.
​
Future issuances of our Class A common stock and hedging activities may depress the trading price of our Class A common stock.
​
Any issuance of equity securities, including the issuance of shares of Class A common stock upon conversion of our convertible notes, could dilute the interests of our existing stockholders, and could substantially decrease the trading price of our Class A common stock. We may issue equity securities in the future for a number of reasons, including to finance our operations and business strategy (including in connection with acquisitions, strategic collaborations or other transactions), to adjust our ratio of debt to equity, to satisfy our obligations upon the exercise of outstanding warrants or options or for other reasons. A substantial number of shares of our Class A common stock is reserved for issuance upon the exercise of stock options and settlement of restricted share units and stock units. In addition, the price of our Class A common stock could also be affected by possible sales of our Class A common stock, including sales by investors who view our convertible notes as a more attractive means of equity participation in our company and by hedging or arbitrage trading activity that we expect to develop involving our Class A common stock.
​
Our Class A common stock price and trading volume has been and may continue to be volatile or may decline regardless of our operating performance, which could cause purchasers of our Class A common stock to incur substantial losses.
​
Volatility in the market price of our Class A common stock may prevent you from being able to sell your shares at or above the price you paid for them. The market price of our Class A common stock has fluctuated, and may continue to fluctuate widely due to many factors, some of which may be beyond our control. Many factors may cause the market price of our Class A common stock to fluctuate significantly, including those described elsewhere in this “Risk Factors” section as well as the following:
​
● pandemics, crises or disasters;
● our operating and financial performance and prospects; our quarterly or annual earnings or those of other companies in our industry compared to market expectations; future announcements or press coverage concerning our business or our competitors’ businesses;
● the public’s reaction to our press releases, other public announcements and filings with the SEC;
● the size of our public float;
● coverage by or changes in financial estimates by securities analysts or failure to meet their expectations;
● market and industry perception of our success, or lack thereof, in pursuing our business strategies;
● strategic actions by us or our competitors, such as acquisitions or restructurings;
● changes in laws or regulations which adversely affect our industry or us;
● changes in accounting standards, policies, guidance, interpretations or principles;
● changes in senior management or key personnel;
● issuances, exchanges or sales, or expected issuances, exchanges or sales of our capital stock or other securities;
● adverse resolution of new or pending litigation against us; and
● changes in general market, economic and political conditions in the United States and global economies or financial markets, including, but not limited to, those resulting from natural disasters, terrorist attacks, acts of war and responses to such events.
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As a result, volatility in the market price and trading volume of our Class A common stock may prevent investors from being able to sell their shares of Class A common stock at or above their purchase price, or at all. These fluctuations may be unrelated or disproportionate to our operating performance or prospects and may materially reduce the market price of our Class A common stock. If the market price of our Class A common stock experiences significant volatility, including substantial decreases, you could incur a substantial or complete loss on your investment.
​
General Risks
​
Sociopolitical volatility and polarization may adversely affect our business operations and reputation.
​
The current sociopolitical environment is characterized by deep complexity, volatility and polarization on various social and political issues. The increasing intersection of technology and politics has led to rapid and unpredictable shifts in public sentiment. Social media and digital platforms have amplified the voices of various stakeholders, creating the potential for swift change in public opinion and stronger reactions to corporate actions. As a company that sells products and services across the nation to millions of customers, these dynamics increase the risk of negative government and customer reactions, including, but not limited to, potential reputational damage, boycotts and shifts in consumer behavior that could adversely affect our brand, sales and profitability. Our ability to respond effectively, sensitively and authentically to the expectations and concerns of our customers, employees and other stakeholders is key to mitigating these risks. If we are unable to manage these challenges effectively, there may be adverse impacts to our business, reputation, financial condition and operating results.
​
Our articles of incorporation designate the Eighth Judicial District Court of Clark County of the State of Nevada as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or agents.
​
Any person purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in any shares of our capital stock shall be deemed to have notice of and to have consented to this provision of our articles of incorporation. This choice of forum provision may limit our stockholders’ ability to bring certain claims, including, but not limited to, claims against our directors, officers or employees, in a judicial forum that the stockholder finds favorable and therefore the choice of forum provision may discourage lawsuits or increase costs with respect to such claims.
​
We may face other risks described from time to time in periodic and current reports we file with the SEC.
​
Item 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
​
None.
​
Item 1C. CYBERSECURITY
​
We recognize the importance of assessing, identifying, reviewing and managing material risks associated with cybersecurity threats, as such term is defined in Item 106(a) of Regulation S-K. These risks include, among other things: operational and legal risks including intellectual property theft or loss, fraud, extortion, harm to employees or customers and violation of data privacy or security regulation. Our framework is informed in part by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework, although this does not imply that we meet all requirements under NIST.
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We have a cybersecurity security program designed to identify, detect, and respond to threats and vulnerabilities, and protect the enterprise and respond and recover from cybersecurity events and incidents when they do occur. Our cybersecurity risk management program contributes significantly to the overall resilience and integrity of our business by, among other things, integrating the risk identification process in all major company initiatives and deployment processes, implementing a unified approach to managing both digital and traditional business risks, making continuous improvements and regularly reporting to management and the Board of Directors as a whole to ensure senior-level visibility.
​
We regularly assess risks from cybersecurity and technology threats and monitor our information systems for potential vulnerabilities. We and certain third parties conduct regular reviews and tests of our information security program and also leverage, among other things, audits, tabletop exercises, penetration and vulnerability testing, cybersecurity maturity assessments, simulations and other exercises to evaluate the effectiveness of our information security program and improve our security measures and planning. In addition, we evaluate third-party risks and perform third-party risk management to assess, identify and mitigate risks from third parties such as vendors, suppliers and other business partners.
​
We have experienced cyber-attacks and other malicious activities that disrupted our business in the past. Any future failure or disruption of our information technology infrastructure and communications systems or those of third parties that we use in our operations could harm our business in the future.
​
We describe if and how risks from identified cybersecurity threats, including, but not limited to, as a result of any previous cybersecurity incidents, have materially affected or are reasonably likely to materially affect us , including our business strategy, results of operations or financial condition included as part of our risk factor disclosures at Item 1A of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
​
The Chief Information Security Officer (“ CISO ”) leads our information security organization responsible for overseeing our information security program. Our CISO has over 25 years of experience in various roles involving information security, including risk management and security leadership. Team members who support our information security program have relevant education, professional certifications and industry experience, including but not limited to, holding similar positions at large enterprises. The Cybersecurity team provides regular briefings, no less frequently than monthly, to senior management and other relevant teams on preparation for and, where possible prevention of cybersecurity incidents. These briefings involve risk remediation measures that should be taken to decrease, among other things, the likelihood and severability of incidents and to mitigate and manage their effects. The senior management and other members of management receive detailed updates on cybersecurity risks on a regular basis, no less frequently than monthly, or when significant risks or incidents are identified. These briefings enable the management team to, among other things, stay informed of the latest threats, assess the effectiveness of current security measures and make timely decisions on strategic security initiatives. In addition, the Board of Directors is regularly briefed, no less frequently than quarterly, on cybersecurity risks as part of its oversight functions and to ensure that cybersecurity practices align with the company’s overall risk management framework and business objectives.
​
We anticipate that we will continue to evaluate and address as needed our cybersecurity risk management, policies, structure, strategies and governance in order to meet our needs as the cybersecurity threat landscape evolves.
​
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Item 2. PROPERTIES
​
The following table sets forth certain information concerning our principal properties related to our business segments.
​
​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​
  ​ ​ ​
Segment(s) 
Using Property
  ​ ​ ​
Owned
  ​ ​ ​
Leased

Corporate headquarters, Englewood, Colorado
​
All
​
X
​
​

General offices, Littleton, Colorado
​
Wireless/Other
​
​
​
X

General offices, engineering offices, network and manufacturing operations and shared hubs, Germantown, Maryland
​
Broadband and Satellite Services
​
X
​
​

General offices and warehouse, Griesheim, Germany
​
Broadband and Satellite Services
​
X
​
​

Customer call center, warehouse, service, and remanufacturing center, El Paso, Texas
​
Pay-TV
​
X
​
​

Data center, gateways, equipment and operations, Cheyenne, Wyoming
​
All
​
X
​
​

Digital broadcast operations center, Cheyenne, Wyoming
​
Pay-TV
​
X
​
​

Digital broadcast operations center and gateways, Gilbert, Arizona
​
Pay-TV/Broadband and Satellite Services
​
X
​
​

Engineering offices and service center, Englewood, Colorado
​
Pay-TV
​
X
​
​

Warehouse, Denver, Colorado
​
Pay-TV
​
X
​
​

Warehouse and distribution center, Spartanburg, South Carolina
​
Pay-TV/Wireless/Other
​
​
​
X

Warehouse and distribution center, Denver, Colorado
​
Pay-TV/Wireless/Other
​
​
​
X

Warehouse and distribution center, Atlanta, Georgia
​
Pay-TV/Wireless/Other
​
​
​
X

​
In addition to the principal properties listed above, we operate numerous facilities for, among other things, our in-home service operations, customer call centers, digital broadcast operations centers strategically located in regions throughout the United States, manufacturing and testing facilities, shared hubs, regional network management centers and backup network operation and control centers. We also have several general offices in foreign countries. Furthermore, our Pay-TV segment owns or leases capacity on eight satellites, with an additional two satellites under construction, which are a major component of our DISH TV services and our Broadband and Satellite Services segment currently owns or leases capacity on seven satellites, which are a major component of the Broadband and Satellite Services segment. See Note 8 in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.
​
Item 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
​
See Note 15 in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for information regarding certain legal proceedings in which we are involved.
​
Item 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES
​
Not applicable.
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PART II
​
Item 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
​
Market Information
​
Our Class A common stock is quoted on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “SATS.” As of February 25, 2026, there were approximately 8,093 holders of record of our Class A common stock, not including stockholders who beneficially own Class A common stock held in nominee or street name. As of February 25, 2026, all of the 131,348,468 outstanding shares of our Class B common stock were beneficially held by Charles W. Ergen, our Chairman, and by certain entities established by Mr. Ergen for the benefit of his family. There is currently no trading market for our Class B common stock.
​
Dividends
​
We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock in the past two years. We currently do not intend to declare dividends on our common stock. Payment of any future dividends will depend upon our earnings, capital requirements, contractual restrictions and other factors the Board of Directors considers appropriate. Our ability to declare dividends is affected by the covenants in our and our subsidiaries’ indentures. See Note 10 in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.
​
Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
​
See “ Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters ” in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
​
Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers
​
Stock Repurchase Program
​
The following table provides information regarding purchases of our Class A common stock made by us for the period from October 1, 2025 through December 31, 2025.
​
​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​
​
​
​
​
​
​
Total Number of
​
Maximum Approximate

​
​
Total
​
​
​
​
Shares Purchased
​
Dollar Value of Shares

​
​
Number of
​
Average
​
as Part of Publicly
​
that May Yet be

​
​
Shares
​
Price Paid
​
Announced
​
Purchased Under the

Period
  ​ ​ ​
Purchased
  ​ ​ ​
per Share
  ​ ​ ​
Programs
  ​ ​ ​
Programs (1)

​
​
(In thousands, except share data)

October 1, 2025 - October 31, 2025
​
—
​
$
—
​
—
​
$
1,000,000

November 1, 2025 - November 30, 2025
​
1,789,020
​
$
27.12
​
1,789,020
​
$
951,488

December 1, 2025 - December 31, 2025
​
—
​
$
—
​
—
​
$
951,488

Total
​
1,789,020
​
$
27.12
​
1,789,020
​
$
951,488

(1) Our Board of Directors previously authorized stock repurchases of up to $1.0 billion of our outstanding Class A common stock through and including December 31, 2026. On February 26, 2026, our Board of Directors extended the plan such that we are currently authorized to repurchase up to $2.0 billion of our outstanding shares of our Class A common stock through and including December 31, 2026. Purchases under our repurchase program may be made through open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions, or Rule 10b5-1 trading plans, subject to market conditions and other factors. We may elect not to purchase the maximum amount of shares allowable under this program and we may also enter into additional share repurchase programs authorized by our Board of Directors.
​
Item 6. [RESERVED]
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Item 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
​
You should read the following Management’s Discussion and Analysis of our Financial Condition and Results of Operations together with the audited consolidated financial statements and notes to our financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. This management’s discussion and analysis is intended to help provide an understanding of our financial condition, changes in financial condition and results of our operations and contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but rather are based on current expectations, estimates, assumptions and projections about our industry, business and future financial results. Our actual results could differ materially from the results contemplated by these forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including those discussed under the caption “Item 1A. Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Furthermore, such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this Annual Report on Form 10-K and we expressly disclaim any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
​
Overview
​
Recent Developments
​
FCC Review
​
In the third quarter of 2025, we resolved the review by the Federal Communications Commission (the “FCC”) into EchoStar’s compliance with its build-out milestones and other obligations regarding EchoStar’s federal spectrum licenses. We had previously received a letter from the FCC on May 9, 2025, indicating that the FCC was beginning a review of our compliance with certain obligations to provide 5G broadband service and raising certain questions regarding the September 2024 build-out extension granted by the FCC and mobile-satellite service (“MSS”) utilization in the 2 GHz band (the “May 9 Letter”). We responded to the FCC’s subsequent public notices with filings on May 27, 2025 and June 6, 2025.
​
During the second quarter and the beginning of the third quarter of 2025, the potential ramifications of the FCC review to our business required us to, among other things, reevaluate the deployment of our resources and as a result, we elected not to make interest payments on a certain portion of our long-term senior notes on their respective scheduled due dates. We subsequently made such payments, including interest on the defaulted interest, within the applicable 30-day grace periods. See Note 10 in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.
​
The FCC review introduced the possibility of reversing prior FCC grants of authority to us. The FCC made it clear that it viewed our spectrum as being underutilized and deemed our continued ownership of such spectrum licenses inconsistent with the public interest, and that we must sell a material amount of spectrum licenses or face a wide-ranging license revocation. Accordingly, as a result of these unforeseeable actions by the FCC that were outside of our control, we entered into the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions, as defined below, whereby we agreed to sell a material amount of our spectrum licenses for cash and an Amended Equity Amount, as defined below. In August 2025, following these transactions, we began the abandonment and decommission process for certain portions of our 5G Network that will not be utilized in our Hybrid MNO business, as defined in “ Segments-Wireless ” below. Furthermore, we believe the FCC’s actions and the resulting AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions constitute one or more force majeure events under certain of our 5G Network-related contracts.
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On September 8, 2025, we received a follow-up letter from the FCC (the “September 8 Letter”). The September 8 Letter states, among other things, that FCC Chairman Carr has “asked FCC staff to bring the agency’s investigation to conclusion” by directing FCC staff to: “(1) dismiss VTel Wireless’s petition for reconsideration; (2) confirm that EchoStar holds exclusive terrestrial and MSS rights over the AWS-4 spectrum to which it is currently licensed; and (3) find that relevant FCC buildout and other related obligations have been satisfied by EchoStar in view of the company’s current FCC milestones.”
​
AT&T License Purchase Agreement
​
On August 25, 2025, we and AT&T Mobility II LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, and subsidiary of AT&T Inc. (“AT&T”) entered into a License Purchase Agreement (the “AT&T License Purchase Agreement,” and the transactions contemplated thereby, the “AT&T Transactions”).
​
Pursuant to the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the AT&T License Purchase Agreement, we have agreed to sell all our 3.45–3.55 GHz and 600 MHz spectrum licenses, including licenses exchanged as part of the Omega License Purchase Agreement, as defined and detailed in Note 15 in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K , (collectively, the “3.45 GHz and 600 MHz Licenses”), and to a 99-year extension of existing leases for AT&T’s exclusive use of certain wireless spectrum licenses in Hawaii for an aggregate purchase price of $22.650 billion in cash, subject to certain potential adjustments (the “Closing Purchase Price”). The AT&T License Purchase Agreement also extends to AT&T the right to lease certain 3.45 GHz licenses from us, which AT&T exercised, subject to a short-term spectrum manager lease, at the end of the third quarter of 2025.
​
The Closing Purchase Price is subject to downward adjustment in the event certain 3.45 GHz and 600 MHz Licenses are ultimately excluded by either us or AT&T under certain circumstances. We are not obligated to consummate the AT&T Transactions if the Closing Purchase Price, after giving effect to the aggregate amount of any such adjustments, is less than $18.6 billion (the “Minimum Purchase Price”). However, if the aggregate amount of such reductions would otherwise reduce the Closing Purchase Price below the Minimum Purchase Price, AT&T may elect to pay the Minimum Purchase Price at closing, in which case this condition will be deemed satisfied.
​
The AT&T License Purchase Agreement provides that, at the closing of the AT&T Transactions, any amounts outstanding under that certain Loan and Security Agreement, dated November 26, 2021, between DISH DBS as lender and DISH Network will be repaid in full using proceeds from the AT&T Transactions to the respective holders of the DISH 2021 Intercompany Loan (the “DISH 2021 Intercompany Loan Payoff”). The DISH 2021 Intercompany Loan Payoff includes $2.844 billion due to DISH DBS as of December 31, 2025 for the DISH 2021 Intercompany Loan 2028 Tranche. The DISH 2021 Intercompany Loan is secured by the 3.45 GHz Licenses and certain other wireless spectrum licenses. See Note 10 in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for definitions and further information.
​
In addition, all outstanding 11 3/4% Senior Secured Notes due November 15, 2027 issued pursuant to that certain Secured Indenture, dated November 15, 2022 (“DISH Secured Indenture”), by and among DISH Network Corporation, the Guarantors identified therein, and U.S. Bank Trust Company, National Association, as trustee and collateral agent, will be redeemed concurrently with the closing in accordance with the terms of the DISH Secured Indenture (the “Redemption”). As of December 31, 2025, the aggregate principal amount outstanding of our 11 3/4% Senior Secured Notes due November 15, 2027 was $3.5 billion and is secured by the 600 MHz Licenses.
​
The AT&T Transactions are subject to a number of terms and conditions set forth in the AT&T License Purchase Agreement. The completion of the AT&T Transactions are subject to the satisfaction or waiver of customary closing conditions, including, but not limited to, certain government approvals, including, among other things, receipt of certain consents and approvals from the FCC and the United States Department of Justice (the “DOJ”). The AT&T License Purchase Agreement also provides for specified termination rights by each party in certain circumstances. The closing is expected to occur in the first half of 2026.
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The description of the AT&T License Purchase Agreement is not complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the License Purchase Agreement filed as an exhibit to our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2025.
​
Amendments to the Network Services Agreement
​
Simultaneously with the execution of the AT&T License Purchase Agreement, DISH Wireless L.L.C., our subsidiary and AT&T Mobility LLC, a subsidiary of AT&T, entered into the Fifth Amendment (the “Fifth Amendment”) and the Sixth Amendment (the “Sixth Amendment”) to the Network Services Agreement dated as of July 14, 2021 by and among DISH Wireless L.L.C. and AT&T Mobility LLC (as amended, the “NSA”).
​
The Sixth Amendment sets forth new terms including reduced rates if we meet certain minimum data thresholds while transitioning to a Hybrid MNO. Under a Hybrid MNO, we operate certain portions of the network infrastructure such as the network core and billing and provisioning software, while our network partner, AT&T, provides certain elements including base stations, radios, radio access network (RAN) software and spectrum frequencies. We were not obligated to transition to a Hybrid MNO or meet the specified data thresholds, but were not entitled to the terms of the Sixth Amendment unless we met such thresholds. In the fourth quarter of 2025, we gave notice to AT&T that we had met such thresholds, triggering the Sixth Amendment rates and AT&T agreed to provide these services to us through December 31, 2031.
​
During the term of the Sixth Amendment, we have the option to extend the Sixth Amendment up to two times for additional extension terms of 2-years each, until either December 31, 2033 or December 31, 2035 (each an “Extension Term”). The Fifth and Sixth Amendments, in addition to any Extension Term we exercise, also contain certain minimum purchase commitments.
​
SpaceX License Purchase Agreement
​
On September 7, 2025, we, Space Exploration Technologies Corp., a Texas corporation (“SpaceX”), and Spectrum Business Trust 2025-1, a Nevada Business Trust (“Trust”), entered into a License Purchase Agreement (the “SpaceX License Purchase Agreement,” and the transactions contemplated thereby, the “Initial SpaceX Transactions”).
​
Pursuant to the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the SpaceX License Purchase Agreement, we agreed to sell to SpaceX our rights and licenses related to an aggregate of 50 MHz of spectrum in frequency ranges 2000–2020, 2180–2200, 1915–1920 and 1995– 2000 (the “ AWS-4 and H-Block Licenses” and such spectrum, “the Spectrum”) granted by the FCC, together with certain international authorizations, filings, concessions, licenses, rights and priorities related to that spectrum and certain assets associated therewith (collectively, the “Foreign Assets”).
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The transfer of the AWS-4 and H-Block Licenses will occur in two steps: first, the AWS-4 and H-Block Licenses will be transferred by us to the Trust (the “Spectrum Transfer Closing”), and second, the AWS-4 and H-Block Licenses will be transferred by the Trust to SpaceX (the “Spectrum Acquisition Closing”). The Foreign Assets will be transferred directly to SpaceX at the Spectrum Acquisition Closing, to the extent the required regulatory approvals have been obtained by such date; provided, however, that the failure to obtain such approvals will not delay or prevent the Spectrum Acquisition Closing.
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The consideration for the Initial SpaceX Transactions payable at the Spectrum Acquisition Closing is $17 billion (the “Total Consideration Amount”). A portion of the Total Consideration Amount (such amount, the “Total Payoff Consideration Amount”) will be used to: (i) fully pay off all outstanding amounts owed on the 10 3/4% Senior Secured Notes due 2029 (the “10 3/4% Secured Notes”) and the 6 3/4% Senior Secured due 2030 (the “6 3/4% Secured Notes”) and (ii) settle the anticipated redemption and conversions of the 3 7/8% Convertible Secured Notes due 2030 (the “Convertible Notes due 2030” and, together with the 10 3/4% Secured Notes and the 6 3/4% Secured Notes, the “Seller Notes”). The remaining amount after paying off the Seller Notes (the “Purchase Price”) will be paid by SpaceX to us as follows: (i) up to $8.5 billion will be paid in SpaceX’s Class A Common Stock, valued at $212 per share (the “Equity Amount”); and (ii) any amount of the Purchase Price exceeding $8.5 billion will be paid in cash. If the Total Payoff Consideration Amount exceeds $8.5 billion, we may elect to pay the excess in cash, our Class A Common Stock (with respect to the Convertible Notes due 2030), or both, to maintain our receipt of the full Equity Amount. However, if we elect not to pay such excess amount, the Equity Amount will be reduced dollar-for-dollar to ensure that the combined Equity Amount and Total Payoff Consideration Amount do not exceed the Total Consideration Amount. As of December 31, 2025, the aggregate principal amount outstanding of the Seller Notes was $9.821 billion and is secured by the AWS-4 and AWS-3 Licenses.
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The Spectrum Transfer Closing is expected to occur in the first half of 2026. The Spectrum Acquisition Closing is expected to occur on or about November 30, 2027, following the expiration of the make-whole period for the Seller Notes and the date on which the Convertible Notes due 2030 become eligible for redemption. If SpaceX elects to proceed with the Spectrum Acquisition Closing prior to November 30, 2027, SpaceX will be responsible for any additional amounts required to satisfy the Seller Notes, other than additional amounts payable as a result of a default under the Seller Notes.
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Additionally, in connection with the SpaceX License Purchase Agreement and the Initial SpaceX Transactions, on September 7, 2025, SpaceX and the Trust entered into a Credit Agreement, pursuant to which SpaceX has agreed upon the Spectrum Transfer Closing to loan to the Trust (via automatically cancellable loans) amounts sufficient to make debt service payments on the Seller Notes through at least November 30, 2027 (the “Interim Debt Service”), which will be secured on a junior lien basis by the AWS-4 and H-Block Licenses. The aggregate amount of payments for the Interim Debt Service through November 30, 2027 will equal approximately $2 billion and will be settled via a loan between us and SpaceX that automatically cancels upon the completion of the Spectrum Acquisition Closing. The Credit Agreement is generally on standard commercial terms and conditions and, as a beneficiary of the Credit Agreement, we have the ability to enforce the parties obligations under the Agreement. As of December 31, 2025, we have made approximately $414 million in cash interest payments on the Seller Notes, which is subject to reimbursement from SpaceX upon the Spectrum Transfer Closing.
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The SpaceX License Purchase Agreement also provides for future long-term commercial agreements that will enable us to offer our Wireless subscribers access to SpaceX’s next-generation Starlink Direct to Cell text and voice and broadband services utilizing certain rights and licenses related to the Spectrum that are to be conveyed by us to SpaceX at the Spectrum Acquisition Closing. The commercial agreements will also provide for a fee-based referral program that lets us refer existing HughesNet customers and new Starlink customers to SpaceX. As of December 31, 2025, we had begun to utilize certain of the rights conveyed under the SpaceX License Purchase Agreement. In addition, we also have begun performing installation and other services for new Starlink customers.
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The description of the SpaceX License Purchase Agreement is not complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the License Purchase Agreement filed as an exhibit to our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2025.
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Amended and Restated License Purchase Agreement
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On November 5, 2025, we, SpaceX and Trust, entered into an Amended and Restated License Purchase Agreement (the “Amended and Restated SpaceX License Purchase Agreement,” and the transactions contemplated thereby, the “Amended SpaceX Transactions”), and, together with the Initial SpaceX Transactions, (the “SpaceX Transactions”). The Amended and Restated License Purchase Agreement amends and restates in its entirety the SpaceX License Purchase Agreement, dated as of September 7, 2025, by and among us, SpaceX and Trust.
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Pursuant to the Amended and Restated SpaceX License Purchase Agreement, we and SpaceX have agreed to revise the terms of the previously announced transaction to include the transfer of up to an aggregate of 15 MHz of AWS spectrum in the frequency range of 1695–1710 MHz for each relevant license area (the “AWS-3 Licenses”) from us to SpaceX in exchange for additional consideration of $2.6 billion, all of which will be paid in SpaceX’s Class A Common Stock, valued at $212 per share. As a result of this change, the total consideration for the SpaceX Transactions has increased from $17 billion to approximately $20 billion, with up to $11 billion to be paid in SpaceX’s Class A Common Stock, valued at $212 per share (the “Amended Equity Amount”).
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Except as set forth above, the material terms of the Amended and Restated SpaceX License Purchase Agreement are substantially the same as the terms of the SpaceX License Purchase Agreement.
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The SpaceX Transactions are subject to a number of terms and conditions set forth in the SpaceX License Purchase Agreement. The completion of the SpaceX Transactions are subject to the satisfaction or waiver of customary closing conditions, including, among others, receipt of certain consents and approvals from the FCC and DOJ. The SpaceX License Purchase Agreement also provides for specified termination rights.
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The foregoing description of the Amended and Restated SpaceX License Purchase Agreement does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Amended and Restated SpaceX License Purchase Agreement, filed as an exhibit to this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
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Future Capital Requirements
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The consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles on a going concern basis, which contemplates the realization of assets and the satisfaction of liabilities in the normal course of business.
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Our cash and cash equivalents and marketable investment securities totaled $2.984 billion as of December 31, 2025 (“Cash on Hand”). As reflected in the consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2025, we have $2.0 billion of debt maturing in July 2026, $1.377 billion of debt maturing in August 2026 and $2.750 billion of debt maturing in December 2026. In addition, the re-auction of certain AWS-3 licenses previously awarded to Northstar Wireless and SNR Wireless has been designated as Auction 113 and the FCC is required to initiate Auction 113 by June 23, 2026. We cannot predict with any degree of certainty the outcome of Auction 113, however, we may be required to make a maximum payment up to approximately $2.921 billion for the Northstar Re-Auction Payment and SNR Re-Auction Payment. See Note 15 in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10 K for definitions and further information.
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As detailed above, upon the closing of the AT&T Transactions, subject to certain conditions and adjustments, we will receive $22.650 billion in cash and upon the closing of the SpaceX Transactions, subject to certain conditions, we will receive approximately $22 billion in consideration which includes $20 billion upon the Spectrum Acquisition Closing in a combination of cash and the Amended Equity Amount (as defined above in “ SpaceX Transactions ”), and payments for the Interim Debt Service of approximately $2 billion effective with the Spectrum Transfer Closing. These transactions also contemplate the repayment of certain of our debt as described above in “ AT&T Transactions ” and “ SpaceX Transactions, ” respectively. However, until the closing of these transactions, which are subject to receipt of government approvals and other customary conditions, funding is not deemed committed and because we do not currently have the necessary Cash on Hand and/or projected future cash flows or committed financing to fund our obligations for at least twelve months from the issuance of these consolidated financial statements, substantial doubt exists about our ability to continue as a going concern.
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We cannot provide assurances that the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions will be approved and consummated on the predicted timeline or at all.
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The consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments to the amount and classification of assets and liabilities that may be necessary should we not continue as a going concern.
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Impairments and Other
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During the third quarter of 2025, as a result of the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions, we began the abandonment and decommission process for certain portions of our 5G Network that will not be utilized in our Hybrid MNO business, as defined below, resulting in a significant adverse change in the intended use of such assets. These developments were considered triggering events and resulted in an impairment assessment. As a result, we recorded a charge for non-cash asset impairments and other expenses related to the termination of our 5G Network deployment in “Impairments and other” on our Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss) in our Other and Broadband and Satellite Services Segments.
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In addition, in connection with our annual impairment testing during the fourth quarter of 2025, we recorded a charge for non-cash asset impairments in “Impairments and other” on our Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss) in our Broadband and Satellite Services Segment related to indefinite-lived and definite-lived intangible assets and tangible assets supporting that segment.
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During the year ended December 31, 2025, we recorded a total charge of $17.632 billion, $16.481 billion and $1.151 billion during the third and fourth quarters of 2025, respectively, for non-cash asset impairments and other expenses in “Impairments and other” on our Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss) in our Other and Broadband and Satellite Services Segments. See Note 1 i n the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.

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Segments
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Historically, we reported three primary business segments: (1) Pay-TV; (2) Wireless; and (3) Broadband and Satellite Services.
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We were operating our Wireless segment primarily as an MVNO and secondarily as an MNO, each defined below, as we continued to commercialize our wireless spectrum licenses through the completion of our 5G Network and grow customer traffic on our 5G Network. As a mobile virtual network operator (“MVNO”), we depended on either T-Mobile or AT&T to provide us with network services under the amended Master Network Services Agreement (as amended, the “MNSA”) and Network Services Agreement (as amended, the “NSA”), respectively. We had commenced our transition to a mobile network operator (“MNO”) as our 5G Network became commercially available and we grew our customer base on our 5G Network.
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As a result of the unforeseeable actions by the FCC, as detailed above in “ Recent Developments – FCC Review, ” we entered into the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions, whereby we agreed to sell a material amount of our spectrum licenses. In August 2025, following these transactions, we terminated our deployment of our 5G Network, after meeting certain interim and final build-out requirements established by the FCC, and we began the abandonment and decommission process for certain portions of our 5G Network that will not be utilized in the Hybrid MNO business.
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To align with management’s view of the business, we separated the historical Wireless segment into two segments, the “Wireless” segment and the “Other” segment.
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We currently operate four primary business segments: (1) Pay-TV; (2) Wireless; (3) Broadband and Satellite Services; and (4) Other.
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Our Pay-TV segment offers pay-TV services under the DISH® brand and the SLING® brand (collectively “Pay-TV” services). The DISH branded pay-TV service consists of, among other things, FCC licenses authorizing us to use direct broadcast satellite (“DBS”) and Fixed Satellite Service (“FSS”) spectrum, our owned and leased satellites, receiver systems, broadcast operations, a leased fiber optic network, in-home service and call center operations and certain other assets utilized in our operations (“DISH TV”). We also design, develop and distribute receiver systems and provide digital broadcast operations, including satellite uplinking/downlinking, transmission and other services to third-party pay-TV providers. The SLING branded pay-TV services consist of, among other things, multichannel, live-linear and on-demand streaming over-the-top (“OTT”) Internet-based domestic, international, Latino and Freestream video programming services (“SLING TV”). We market our SLING TV services to consumers who do not subscribe to traditional satellite and cable pay-TV services, as well as to current and recent traditional pay-TV subscribers who desire a lower cost alternative.
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Our Wireless segment provides wireless communication services (“Wireless” services) and products. We offer nationwide Wireless services to subscribers primarily under our Boost Mobile® and Gen Mobile® brands. We currently offer a broad range of premium wireless devices, including the latest generation iPhones, as well as a wide selection of Samsung, Motorola and other premium devices. Prior to November 15, 2025, we were operating primarily as an MVNO utilizing network services under the MNSA and the NSA and secondarily as an MNO. In light of the AT&T Transactions, we transitioned to a hybrid MNO business model under which we continue to operate our 5G Network core and utilize AT&T’s network services (“Hybrid MNO”) and secondarily as an MVNO utilizing network services under the MNSA and the NSA. We migrated all customer traffic from our 5G Network to AT&T’s network as we transitioned to a Hybrid MNO, which we completed as of November 15, 2025.
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Our Broadband and Satellite Services segment offers broadband satellite technologies and broadband internet products and services to consumer customers. We provide broadband network technologies, managed services, equipment, hardware, satellite services and communications solutions to government and enterprise customers. We have leveraged the EchoStar XXIV satellite to deliver satellite services to unserved and underserved consumer markets in the Americas as well as enterprise, aeronautical and government markets. We also design, provide and install gateway and terminal equipment to customers for other satellite systems. In addition, we design, develop, construct and provide telecommunication networks comprising satellite ground segment systems and terminals to mobile system operators and our enterprise customers.
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Our Other segment primarily consists of our legacy 5G Network and 5G Network deployment operations that will not be utilized in the Wireless segment’s Hybrid MNO business. As a result of the unforeseeable actions by the FCC, as detailed above in “ Recent Developments – FCC Review, ” we entered into the AT&T Transactions and SpaceX Transactions, whereby we agreed to sell a material amount of our spectrum licenses. In August 2025, following these transactions, we terminated our deployment of our 5G Network, after meeting certain interim and final build-out requirements established by the FCC, and we began the abandonment and decommission process for certain portions of our 5G Network that will not be utilized in the Wireless segment’s Hybrid MNO business. As of November 15, 2025, we have no customer traffic on our 5G Network.
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Our wireless spectrum licenses are subject to certain interim and final build-out requirements, as well as certain renewal requirements. In September 2024, the FCC conditionally granted our requests to extend the 5G deployment deadlines for certain of our wireless spectrum licenses based on several commitments and in a January 10, 2025 filing to the FCC , we certified to meeting the accelerated build-out (Commitments #2 and #3 of the Extension Request) and the nationwide 80% coverage obligations (Commitment #1 of the Extension Request) due by December 31, 2024. Thus, pursuant to the Extension Request, the final deployment deadlines for the licenses subject to the Extension Request (listed in Appendix G) shall be extended to December 14, 2026.
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While the FCC has not yet updated the build-out deadlines in the Universal Licensing System, the licenses remain in effect based upon the submission of our build-out certifications. In addition, the final deployment deadlines for the licenses subject to the Extension Request (listed in Appendix G) shall be further extended to June 14, 2028 since we satisfied the remaining Extension Request commitments. See Note 15 in the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for definitions and further information. Also see above in “ Recent Developments – FCC Review, ” for further information on the FCC’s recently completed review of our compliance with our obligations regarding our federal spectrum licenses.
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Economic Environment
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During 2024 and 2025, we experienced inflationary pressures in our commodity and labor costs resulting from the macroeconomic environment in the United States, which has impacted our overall operating results. In addition, changes in trade policies, including, but not limited to, tariffs and other restrictions, could increase, among other things, our costs, disrupt our supply chain and negatively affect our business, operations and financial condition.
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