Charlie Ergen’s EchoStar lost another 241,000 pay-TV subscribers in the second quarter, compared to a decrease of 261,000 in the same period of 2025.
The Dish owner ended the three months to June 30, 2026 with 6.39 million total subscribers, including 4.68 million Dish TV subscribers and 1.71 million Sling TV subscribers. Overall second-quarter revenue came in at $3.58 billion, against a year-earlier $3.72 billion, as Echostar continues to face a difficult pay TV landscape after years of cord-cutting and disputes between content companies and distributors.
But a big non-cash gain allowed Echostar, despite its subscriber and revenue declines, to post net income attributable to the company of $8.46 billion, compared to a net loss of $306 million in the year-ago quarter. Stripping out that benefit due to deconsolidation, the net income attributable to EchoStar would have been around $49.5 million, the company said.
Pay-TV revenue at Echostar, which is led by billionaire satellite TV mogul Ergen, fell to $2.24 billion, compared to $2.46 billion in the same period of 2025. Echostar continues to face increased competition from rival subscription video on-demand and streaming platforms.
The company also saw revenue for wireless and broadband and satellite services edge down. Echostar separately announced that its Hughes Network System division, which is offering satellite internet services, had filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy in a Southern District of Texas court to reorganize around $1.5 billion in debt coming due after discussions with bondholders and investors.
The company said the court-directed bankruptcy proceedings will have no impact on Dish, Sling TV or the rest of Echostar.
