Dish Network 2005 Annual Report Download - page 3

9601 S. Meridian Blvd. • Englewood, Colorado 80112 • Tel: [phone] • Fax: [phone]
April 5, 2007
To our Shareholders and Bondholders:
Our Company made great progress and accomplished multiple milestones during 2006. We continued to grow our
subscriber base even in the perceived headwind of triple- and quadruple-plays offered by cable and
telecommunications providers. Our compelling offer of the lowest digital price in America – the best value for pay-
TV in the industry – combined with our industry-leading digital video recorders and other quality products and
services helped us grow to over 13.1 million customers, generate almost $10 billion of revenue, and over $600
million of earnings.
In keeping with our entrepreneurial spirit, we continue to seek opportunities to combine advances in satellite
communications and other technologies to offer consumers even more choice and value in multi-channel television.
We ended 2006 offering local channels to over 170 markets across the country, representing more than 96 percent of
all U.S. television households. We now also offer over 30 national high definition channels, more than any of our
competitors, and we expect to offer HD local channels to more than 50 percent of U.S. households by the end of
2007. We remain the clear leader in international programming with more than 130 foreign-language channels, and
we continue to develop advanced interactive applications to remain a leading provider of iTV-enabled home media
centers. Additionally, we remain committed to enhancing our video on demand service.
Technological advances will continue to create increased opportunity as well as increased competition. We remain
at the forefront of innovation that provides consumers with more control over what, when and where they watch TV.
We were the first to provide digital video recorder functionality to satellite subscribers, and we have centered our
efforts on enhancing our industry-leading DVRs. We recently introduced the DISH DVR Advantage Package,
offering the best value in the industry, and during 2007, we expect to begin offering DVRs capable of storing up to
500 hours of programming, with the flexibility to further increase storage capacity by attaching external hard drives.
We also remain committed to growing our business by pursuing complementary strategic initiatives. In 2006, we
teamed up with WildBlue to offer satellite two-way broadband serving customers in rural areas. Through
agreements with AT&T, GetConnected, Inc. and others, we began offering consumers the option to select DSL
high-speed Internet service while signing up for DISH Network programming. We continue to pursue investment
and other business opportunities domestically and abroad. We enhanced our relationships with AT&T, Inc. and
other telecommunications providers to offer consumers the best value in programming bundled with other services,
and we will continue to pursue similar bundling opportunities throughout 2007.
Although we experienced operating inefficiencies during 2006, we remain committed to controlling costs and
gaining efficiencies wherever possible. Our performance this past year demonstrates operating momentum, and we
are enthusiastic about the future. We are focused on delivering exceptional service, high-quality programming, and
industry-leading products to our customers – and doing it better than our competitors. Thank you for your
confidence and support, as we endeavor to make 2007 an even better year.
Sincerely,
Charles W. Ergen
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer