Organization and Business Activities

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2017

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Principal Business

EchoStar Corporation (which, together with its subsidiaries, is referred to as “EchoStar,” the “Company,” “we,” “us” and/or “our”) is a holding company that was organized in October 2007 as a corporation under the laws of the State of Nevada. We are a global provider of satellite service operations, video delivery solutions, broadband satellite technologies and broadband services for home and small office customers. We deliver innovative network technologies, managed services, and various communications solutions for enterprise and government customers. Our Class A common stock is publicly traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market (“Nasdaq”) under the symbol “SATS.”

In February 2014, EchoStar entered into agreements with certain subsidiaries of DISH Network Corporation (“DISH”) pursuant to which, effective March 1, 2014, (i) EchoStar and our subsidiary Hughes Satellite Systems Corporation (“HSS”) issued the Tracking Stock (as defined below) to subsidiaries of DISH in exchange for five satellites (EchoStar I, EchoStar VII, EchoStar X, EchoStar XI, and EchoStar XIV), including the assumption of related in-orbit incentive obligations, and $11.4 million in cash and (ii) DISH and certain of its subsidiaries began receiving certain satellite services on these five satellites from us (the “Satellite and Tracking Stock Transaction”). The Tracking Stock tracked the economic performance of the residential retail satellite broadband business of our Hughes segment, including certain operations, assets and liabilities attributed to such business (collectively, the “Hughes Retail Group” or “HRG”), and represented an aggregate 80.0% economic interest in HRG (the shares issued as EchoStar Tracking Stock represented a 51.89% economic interest in HRG and the shares issued as HSS Tracking Stock represented a 28.11% economic interest in the Hughes Retail Group). In addition to the remaining 20.0% economic interest in HRG, EchoStar retained all economic interest in the wholesale satellite broadband business and other businesses of EchoStar.

On January 31, 2017, EchoStar Corporation and certain of its subsidiaries entered into a Share Exchange Agreement (the “Share Exchange Agreement”) with DISH and certain of its subsidiaries. Pursuant to the Share Exchange Agreement, on February 28, 2017, among other things, EchoStar Corporation and certain of its subsidiaries received all of the shares of the Hughes Retail Preferred Tracking Stock issued by EchoStar Corporation (the “EchoStar Tracking Stock”) and the Hughes Retail Preferred Tracking Stock issued by HSS (the “HSS Tracking Stock”, together with the EchoStar Tracking Stock, the “Tracking Stock”) in exchange for 100% of the equity interests of certain EchoStar subsidiaries that held substantially all of our EchoStar Technologies businesses and certain other assets (collectively, the “Share Exchange”). Following consummation of the Share Exchange, EchoStar no longer operates the EchoStar Technologies business segment and the EchoStar Tracking Stock and HSS Tracking Stock were retired and are no longer outstanding and all agreements, arrangements and policy statements with respect to such tracking stock terminated and are of no further effect. As a result of the Share Exchange, the condensed consolidated financial statements of the EchoStar Technologies businesses have been presented as discontinued operations and, as such, have been excluded from continuing operations and segment results for all periods presented. See Note 3 for further discussion of our discontinued operations.

We currently operate in the following two business segments:

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Hughes — which provides broadband satellite technologies and broadband services to home and small office customers and network technologies, managed services and communication solutions to domestic and international consumers and enterprise and government customers. The Hughes segment also provides managed services, hardware, and satellite services to large enterprises and government customers, and designs, provides and installs gateway and terminal equipment to customers for other satellite systems. In addition, our Hughes segment provides satellite ground segment systems and terminals to mobile system operators.

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EchoStar Satellite Services (“ESS”) — which uses certain of our owned and leased in-orbit satellites and related licenses to provide satellite service operations and video delivery solutions on a full-time and occasional-use basis primarily to DISH Network Corporation and its subsidiaries (“DISH Network”), Dish Mexico, S. de R.L. de C.V., a joint venture we entered into in 2008 (“Dish Mexico”), United States (“U.S.”) government service providers, internet service providers, broadcast news organizations, programmers, and private enterprise customers. We also manage satellite operations for certain satellites owned by DISH Network.

Our operations also include various corporate departments (primarily Executive, Strategic Development, Human Resources, IT, Finance, Real Estate and Legal) as well as other activities that have not been assigned to our operating segments, including costs incurred in certain satellite development programs and other business development activities, our centralized treasury operations, and gains (losses) from certain of our investments. These activities, costs and income are accounted for in “Corporate and Other.”

In 2008, DISH Network completed its distribution to us of its digital set-top box business, certain infrastructure, and other assets and related liabilities, including certain of its satellites, uplink and satellite transmission assets, and real estate (the “Spin-off”). Since the Spin-off, EchoStar and DISH have operated as separate publicly-traded companies. Prior to the consummation of the Share Exchange on February 28, 2017, DISH Network held the Tracking Stock discussed above. A substantial majority of the voting power of the shares of each of EchoStar and DISH is owned beneficially by Charles W. Ergen, our Chairman, and by certain trusts established by Mr. Ergen for the benefit of his family.