Hughes Bankruptcy
EchoStar's Hughes Satellite Systems Files Chapter 11 Amid $1.5 Billion Debt and Starlink Competition
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Key Points
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Hughes Satellite Systems filed for Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas.
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Hughes serves about 641,000 customers in rural communities across North and South America.
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Hughes has retained White & Case LLP and FTI Consulting as advisers to guide the restructuring.
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Hughes has been losing satellite internet subscribers for years, with many customers migrating to SpaceX’s Starlink, underscoring the competitive pressure on GEO-based services.
Hughes Satellite Systems, EchoStar's satellite internet arm, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in a Texas federal court, weighed down by roughly $1.5 billion in debt that matured on August 1, 2026. The company warned it lacked enough cash to survive the next year, with only about $102 million on hand as of late March, according to CityBiz.
The filing is the second EchoStar-linked bankruptcy in weeks, following Chapter 11 petitions by DISH DBS and Dish Wireless. Unlike those cases, Hughes entered court without a pre-negotiated restructuring plan, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Hughes Carries $1.5 Billion Debt With No Clear Exit
Hughes Satellite Systems and 11 of its subsidiaries filed voluntary Chapter 11 petitions in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, according to GuruFocus. The company listed both assets and liabilities each estimated between $1 billion and $10 billion. Its going-concern warning signals deep doubts about whether it can keep operating without a court-supervised restructuring.
Hughes has retained White & Case LLP as its legal adviser and FTI Consulting to guide the restructuring process, CityBiz reported. The company did not enter bankruptcy with a pre-packaged deal already in place, meaning negotiations with creditors are still ahead.
Starlink Ate Hughes's Customer Base for Years
Hughes currently serves about 641,000 customers in rural areas across North and South America. That number has fallen sharply in recent years. Subscribers have been leaving for SpaceX's Starlink, which uses low-Earth-orbit satellites to deliver faster, cheaper broadband. Traditional providers like Hughes rely on geostationary orbit, or GEO, satellites that sit much farther from Earth and offer slower speeds.
EchoStar also lost 241,000 pay-TV subscribers in the second quarter alone, compared to a loss of 261,000 in the same period of the prior year, The Hollywood Reporter reported. The pattern shows a company bleeding customers across multiple services at the same time.
EchoStar Says Dish TV, Sling, and Boost Will Keep Running
EchoStar stressed that the Hughes filing will not affect its other businesses. Dish TV, Sling TV, and Boost Mobile are all expected to keep operating normally. The parent company has been trying to shore up its finances through asset sales and debt cuts across its broader portfolio, according to CityBiz.
DISH DBS and Dish Wireless already filed their own prepackaged Chapter 11 cases weeks earlier. Those filings came with pre-negotiated plans, giving them a faster path through bankruptcy court. Hughes, by contrast, faces a longer and less certain road ahead.
GEO Satellite Providers Struggle as LEO Networks Take Over
The Hughes filing reflects a wider collapse in the traditional satellite internet business. GEO-based providers like Hughes sit roughly 22,000 miles above Earth. Starlink's low-Earth-orbit network flies at around 340 miles up, cutting latency dramatically and making it far more competitive for home broadband users.
Analysts see little path back for legacy GEO providers without major restructuring or a technological overhaul. Hughes's bankruptcy, coming alongside two other EchoStar filings in the same month, signals that the old model of satellite internet is rapidly giving way to a new one built around low-orbit constellations, The Wall Street Journal reported.
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