Dish Network 2015 Annual Report Download - page 56

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We may need additional capital, which may not be available on acceptable terms or at all, to continue investing in our
business and to finance acquisitions and other strategic transactions.
We may need to raise significant additional capital in the future, which may not be available on acceptable terms or at
all, to among other things, continue investing in our business, construct and launch new satellites, and to pursue
acquisitions and other strategic transactions. Weakness in the equity markets could make it difficult for us to raise equity
financing without incurring substantial dilution to our existing shareholders. Adverse changes in the credit markets,
including rising interest rates, could increase our borrowing costs and/or make it more difficult for us to obtain financing for
our operations or refinance existing indebtedness. In addition, economic weakness or weak results of operations may
limit our ability to generate sufficient internal cash to fund investments, capital expenditures, acquisitions and other
strategic transactions, as well as to fund ongoing operations and service our debt. Furthermore, our borrowing costs can
be affected by short and long-term debt ratings assigned by independent rating agencies, which are based, in significant part,
on our performance as measured by their credit metrics. A decrease in these ratings would likely increase our cost of
borrowing and/or make it more difficult for us to obtain financing. A severe disruption in the global financial markets could
impact some of the financial institutions with which we do business, and such instability could also affect our access to
financing. As a result, these conditions make it difficult for us to accurately forecast and plan future business activities
because we may not have access to funding sources necessary for us to pursue organic and strategic business
development opportunities.
See “We have made substantial investments to acquire certain wireless spectrum licenses and other related assets. In
addition, we have made substantial non-controlling investments in the Northstar Entities and the SNR Entities related to
AWS-3 wireless spectrum licenses” above for more information.
From time to time a portion of our investment portfolio may be invested in securities that have limited liquidity and
may not be immediately accessible to support our financing needs, including investments in public companies that are
highly speculative and have experienced and continue to experience volatility.
From time to time a portion of our investment portfolio may be invested in strategic investments, and as a result, a
portion of our portfolio may have restricted liquidity. If the credit ratings of these securities deteriorate or there is a lack
of liquidity in the marketplace, we may be required to record impairment charges. Moreover, the uncertainty of
domestic and global financial markets can greatly affect the volatility and value of our marketable investment securities.
In addition, a portion of our investment portfolio may include strategic and financial investments in debt and equity
securities of public companies that are highly speculative and experience volatility. Typically, these investments are
concentrated in a small number of companies. The fair value of these investments can be significantly impacted by the
risk of adverse changes in securities markets generally, as well as risks related to the performance of the companies
whose securities we have invested in, risks associated with specific industries, and other factors. These investments are
subject to significant fluctuations in fair value due to the volatility of the securities markets and of the underlying
businesses. The concentration of these investments as a percentage of our overall investment portfolio fluctuates from
time to time based on, among other things, the size of our investment portfolio and our ability to liquidate these
investments. In addition, because our portfolio may be concentrated in a limited number of companies, we may
experience a significant loss if any of these companies, among other things, defaults on its obligations, performs poorly,
does not generate adequate cash flow to fund its operations, is unable to obtain necessary financing on acceptable terms,
or at all, or files for bankruptcy, or if the sectors in which these companies operate experience a market downturn. To
the extent we require access to funds, we may need to sell these securities under unfavorable market conditions, record
impairment charges and fall short of our financing needs.
We have substantial debt outstanding and may incur additional debt.
As of December 31, 2015, our total long-term debt and capital lease obligations, including the debt of our subsidiaries,
was $13.756 billion. On February 1, 2016, we redeemed the $1.5 billion principal balance of our 7 1/8% Senior Notes
due 2016 using a substantial portion of our available cash and investment securities on hand. Following repayment of
our 7 1/8% Senior Notes due 2016, our total long-term debt and capital lease obligations, including the debt of our
subsidiaries, was approximately $12.3 billion.