Goodwill, Regulatory Authorizations and Other Intangible Assets (Details 4) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		12 Months Ended		1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Jun. 30, 2011 Hughes Acquisition	Dec. 31, 2012 Hughes Acquisition	Jun. 08, 2011 Hughes Acquisition
Estimated future amortization of intangible assets
2013	$ 69,010,000		$ 69,010,000
2014	77,599,000		77,599,000
2015	62,875,000		62,875,000
2016	42,276,000		42,276,000
2017	37,154,000		37,154,000
Thereafter	58,582,000		58,582,000
Carrying Amount	347,496,000	466,452,000	347,496,000	466,452,000
Impairment of terrestrial wireless licenses			4,000,000
Other noncurrent asset disclosures
Contractual rights to receive cash discounts on future launch services					44,000,000
Estimated fair value of future launch services							22,000,000
Impairment losses	$ 33,000,000	$ 33,000,000	$ 32,765,000	$ 32,964,000		$ 22,000,000