Charles Ergen
Birthname Charles William Ergen Birthdate March 1, 1953 Birthplace Oakridge, Tennessee, United States Education Wake Forest University School of Business, University of Tennessee Profession Tech Mogul Net worth $11,700,000,000 Source of Wealth EchoStar, Dish, Self-made Nationality American Country United States Marital Status Married (Cantey McAdam) Children 5Quick Links
American satellite broadcasting mogul and one of the founders/Chairman of EchoStar Communications Corporation, Charles W. "Charlie" Ergen has a net worth of $11.7 billion as of April 2019. Ergen got his start as financial analyst at Frito-Lay while he also tried his hand playing pro poker. He switched to selling TV satellites from a truck with wife in 1980s. He gave up his CEO title at Dish after 30 years, handing reins to former Sirius CEO Joseph Clayton, to focus on big-picture deals.
In April 2010, Dish bought bankrupt retailer Blockbuster for $320 million, then snapped up broadband spectrum for close to $3 billion in bankruptcy auction. One scenario: Dish offers its 14 million subscribers a Netflix-like streaming service plus mobile voice and data. Ergen, a skilled poker player, is staying mum, saying his moves are like an episode of Seinfeld. "It seemed to all come together in the last couple of minutes." He settled bitter lawsuit with TiVo in May 2011 paying $500 million for patent claims.
Earnings & Financial Data
Date | Category | Description | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
2010 | Asset | Estimated value of Hughes Communications Inc. upon acquisition by EchoStar | $1,320,000,000 |
2010 | Asset | Value of the struggling DBSD North America upon acquisition by DISH to enhance its existing wireless spectrum | $1,000,000,000 |
2010 | Asset | Estimated value of bankrupt video rental chain Blockbuster LLC upon acquisition by DISH | $228,000,000 |
2010 | Asset | Value of TerreStar upon acquisition in a bid to add its mobile wireless spectrum to DISH portfolio | $1,380,000,000 |
2006 | Asset | Value of Sling Media Inc, a provider of over-the-top video solutions upon acquisition by EchoStar | $380,000,000 |
1997 | Asset | Value of the DBS assets of American Sky Broadcasting and MCI Worldcom-News Corp. venture satellite television assets that he bought after EchoStar reached a deal with Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. | $1,250,000,000 |
1992 | Asset | Net income of EchoStar that he handled | $20,400,000 |
1979 | Asset | Amount he invested when he, his future wife Candy, and Jim Defranco started a new business called EchoSphere Corporation | $60,000 |
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