Charlie Ergen, co-founder of EchoStar, has reportedly decided to place its wholly-owned subsidiary Hughes Network Systems into Chapter 11 bankruptcy. As of March 31st, Hughes had just $102 million in cash on hand, according to an earnings report published in May. Hughes Network is expected to file for bankruptcy in days without a prenegotiated plan in place to address its debts, a person familiar with the situation said. Hughes Network paid stock dividends to EchoStar in the first quarter of 2024 totaling nearly $1.03 billion, securities filings show. Separately, giant telco AT&T has paid $23 billion on July 28th to EchoStar for the agreed transfer of spectrum licences from EchoStar to AT&T.