Earnings per Share (Details 3) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2017	Mar. 31, 2016
Net income attributable to EchoStar
Net income attributable to EchoStar	$ 37,715	$ 49,155
Less: Net loss attributable to EchoStar Tracking Stock	(1,209)	(1,519)
Net income attributable to EchoStar common stock	38,924	50,674
Net income from continuing operations	32,347	37,616
Net income from discontinued operations	$ 6,577	$ 13,058
Weighted-average common shares outstanding - Class A and B common stock:
Basic (in shares)	94,745	93,331
Dilutive impact of stock awards outstanding (in shares)	1,148	521
Diluted (in shares)	95,893	93,852
Earnings Per Share, Basic [Abstract]
Continuing operations (in dollars per share)	$ 0.34	$ 0.40
Discontinued operations (in dollars per share)	0.07	0.14
Total basic earnings per share (in dollars per share)	0.41	0.54
Earnings Per Share, Diluted [Abstract]
Continuing operations (in dollars per share)	0.34	0.40
Discontinued operations (in dollars per share)	0.07	0.14
Total diluted earnings per share (in dollars per share)	$ 0.41	$ 0.54