Dish Network 2009 Annual Report Download - page 98

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DISH NETWORK CORPORATION
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
F-8
1. Organization and Business Activities
Principal Business
DISH Network Corporation is a holding company. Its subsidiaries (which together with DISH Network
Corporation are referred to as “DISH Network,” the “Company,” “we,” “us” and/or “our”) operate the
DISH Network® direct broadcast satellite (“DBS”) subscription television service in the United States
which had 14.100 million subscribers as of December 31, 2009. We have deployed substantial resources
to develop the “DISH Network DBS System.” The DISH Network DBS System consists of our licensed
Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) authorized DBS and Fixed Satellite Service (“FSS”)
spectrum, our owned and leased satellites, receiver systems, third-party broadcast operations, customer
service facilities, in-home service and call center operations and certain other assets utilized in our
operations.
Spin-off of Technology and Certain Infrastructure Assets
On January 1, 2008, we completed a tax-free distribution of our technology and set-top box business and
certain infrastructure assets (the “Spin-off”) into a separate publicly-traded company, EchoStar Corporation
(“EchoStar”). DISH Network and EchoStar now operate as separate publicly-traded companies, and neither
entity has any ownership interest in the other. However, a substantial majority of the voting power of the
shares of both companies is owned beneficially by Charles W. Ergen, our Chairman, President and Chief
Executive Officer or by certain trusts established by Mr. Ergen for the benefit of his family. The two entities
consist of the following:
x DISH Network Corporation – which retained its subscription television business, the DISH
Network®, and
x EchoStar Corporation – which sells equipment, including set-top boxes and related components,
to DISH Network and international customers, and provides digital broadcast operations and
satellite services to DISH Network and other customers.
The Spin-off of EchoStar did not result in the discontinuance of any of our ongoing operations as the cash
flows related to, among others things, purchases of set-top boxes, transponder leasing and digital broadcasting
services that we purchase from EchoStar continue to be included in our operations.
Our shareholders of record on December 27, 2007 received one share of EchoStar common stock for every five
shares of each class of DISH Network common stock they held as of the record date.