EchoStar: Don’t pull the rug out from under us

EchoStar is in a fight for its life, and its latest salvo used Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr’s own words to explain why the agency should not backtrack after the company spent billions of dollars deploying a 5G network using spectrum the FCC authorized it to use. Then-Commissioner Carr in June 2023 appeared before a House subcommittee hearing where he was asked about calls for the FCC to reverse spectrum allocation decisions. He said those demands were cause for concern. “We should not be coming in behind after the fact and pulling the rug out from under us," he argued at the time. EchoStar’s lawyers cited that scene in an FCC filing to illustrate how it’s in the best interest of the U.S. for EchoStar to continue doing what it’s doing: building out a 5G open RAN network using spectrum the FCC gave EchoStar the rights to use. The FCC, under Chairman Carr’s instructions, is currently giving EchoStar a hard time as it tries to fulfill its obligations as a fourth facilities-based U.S. wireless operator.