EchoStar Posts Q2 Loss as It Sheds 104,000 Pay TV Subscribers

EchoStar said it lost 104,000 pay TV subscribers in the quarter, finishing with 8.07 million customers. In the first quarter, it lost 348,000 subscribers.

The company had 6.07 million Dish TV satellite-TV subscribers, down from 6.26 million at the end of Q1 and 2 million Sling TV subscribers, up from 1.92 million.

The company posted a net loss of $205.6 million, or 76 cents a share, compared to net income of $212.7 million, or 69 cents a share a year ago.

Revenue fell 9% to $3.952 billion from $4.356 billion a year ago.

Operating income before depreciation and amortization for Echostar’s pay TV business was $735 million, down from $818 million a year ago. Pay TV revenue was $2.676 million, down from $2.975 million.

“The EchoStar team continued to perform as planned in the second quarter of 2024. We directed efforts on aligning key business synergies and objectives, focusing on profitable customer acquisition and retention efforts, and making improvements in our go-to-market approach for Retail Wireless,” CEO Hamid Akhavan said. “In addition, we are in constructive discussions to address necessary financing, working to strengthen our consumer offerings and value propositions, enhancing our state-of-the-art Open RAN network, and driving profitability across the enterprise.”