Why Is Dish Selling Out to DIRECTV?

By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man –Follow me on X.
Former editor of Satellite DIRECT magazine. Reported on DIRECTV for 30 years.

TV Answer Man, why is Dish selling out to DIRECTV? And for just $1!! I don’t understand. — Steve, town withheld.

DIRECTV announced this morning that it’s buying Dish and Sling TV for the tidy sum of $1. However, the deal is more complicated than that. DIRECTV will also assume Dish’s $20 billion debt.

And that’s why Dish is ‘selling out.’ It has little choice. The subscriber losses over the years (roughly 6 million in the last decade) combined with Dish’s investment in the 5G wireless business has left the company nearly broke. If Dish didn’t sell to DIRECTV, it likely would have had to declare bankruptcy in the coming months.

With this deal, under the EchoStar banner, Charlie Ergen can now focus exclusively on building the wireless biz which could take even more money to complete but has a more promising future.

The TV Answer Man will answer more question about the DIRECTV-Dish deal today. If you have a question, send it to The TV Answer Man at swann@tvanswerman.com Please include your first name and hometown in your message.

The TV Answer Man is veteran journalist Phillip Swann who has covered the TV technology scene for more than three decades. He will report on the latest news and answer your questions regarding new devices and services that are changing the way you watch television. See the bio for Phillip Swann here.