Earnings per Share (Details 3) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2016
Net income attributable to EchoStar
Net income attributable to EchoStar	$ 6,940	$ 55,786	$ 44,655	$ 104,941
Less: Net loss attributable to EchoStar Tracking Stock	0	(347)	(1,209)	(1,866)
Net income attributable to EchoStar common stock	6,940	56,133	45,864	106,807
Net income from continuing operations	6,409	44,477	38,756	82,093
Net income from discontinued operations	$ 531	$ 11,656	$ 7,108	$ 24,714
Weighted-average common shares outstanding - Class A and B common stock:
Basic (in shares)	95,537	93,751	95,143	93,541
Dilutive impact of stock awards outstanding (in shares)	1,248	579	1,308	549
Diluted (in shares)	96,785	94,330	96,451	94,090
Earnings Per Share, Basic [Abstract]
Continuing operations (in dollars per share)	$ 0.07	$ 0.47	$ 0.41	$ 0.88
Discontinued operations (in dollars per share)	0	0.13	0.07	0.26
Total basic earnings per share (in dollars per share)	0.07	0.60	0.48	1.14
Earnings Per Share, Diluted [Abstract]
Continuing operations (in dollars per share)	0.07	0.47	0.40	0.87
Discontinued operations (in dollars per share)	0	0.13	0.08	0.27
Total diluted earnings per share (in dollars per share)	$ 0.07	$ 0.60	$ 0.48	$ 1.14