Earnings per Share (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2013	Mar. 31, 2012
Net income (loss) attributable to EchoStar
Net income (loss) attributable to EchoStar	$ 3,458	$ 126,588
Weighted-average common shares outstanding - Class A and B common stock:
Basic (in shares)	88,178,000	86,684,000
Dilutive impact of stock awards outstanding (in shares)	1,422,000	642,000
Diluted (in shares)	89,600,000	87,326,000
Earnings per share - Class A and B common stock:
Basic (in dollars per share)	$ 0.04	$ 1.46
Diluted (in dollars per share)	$ 0.04	$ 1.45
Performance based options | Class A common stock
Dilutive securities excluded from computation of earnings per share
Dilutive securities excluded from computation of earnings per share (in shares)	700,000	700,000
Stock awards | Class A common stock
Antidilutive Securities Excluded From Computation Of Earnings Per Share
Anti-dilutive securities excluded from computation of earnings per share (in shares)	2,100,000	4,400,000