EchoStar has divested a large part of its wireless frequency rights, selling them to AT&T for $23 billion. The move provides the heavily indebted US telecom group with much-needed liquidity but also marks the effective end of founder Charlie Ergen's decades-long attempt to build his own mobile network in the USA.

The stock market reacted euphorically: EchoStar shares jumped 70.3 percent on Tuesday to a record high, raising the market value to around $14.5 billion. At times, the price increase was nearly 85 percent.

The FCC recently put pressure on EchoStar, as the company, despite investing over $40 billion in frequency rights over decades, has made little progress in building a 5G network. Although the Boost Mobile subsidiary is considered the fourth-largest provider in the US market, it lags far behind Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile with only a few million customers. As part of the agreement, Boost will operate as a Mobile Network Operator on AT&T's existing network.

The transaction falls into a phase in which EchoStar is struggling with over $30 billion in debt. In 2024, after tough negotiations with hedge funds, the company restructured its debts while temporarily suspending due interest, sparking speculation about bankruptcy. Now the sale is intended to help allay regulatory concerns of the FCC.

With the deal, AT&T seizes an opportunity where observers had previously considered Elon Musk's SpaceX as a potential buyer of the coveted spectrum for Starlink. The acquisition is expected to be completed by summer 2026, pending FCC approval.

Ergen, who founded EchoStar in 1980 and has shaped it ever since, stated that although all deployment milestones of the FCC have been met, the sale to AT&T is a necessary step to ensure long-term planning certainty. The remaining businesses such as Dish TV, Sling, and Hughes remain unaffected by the transaction.