Good news on the financing front for DISH:
Monday October 6 5:00 PM EDT
Company Press Release
DBS Industries Retires Debt
MILL VALLEY, Calif., Oct. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- DBS Industries, Inc. (DBSI) (Nasdaq Bulletin Board: DBSS) announced today that it has completed an agreement with EchoStar Communications Corporation (Nasdaq:DISH) to retire three convertible debentures previously issued to EchoStar, in the aggregate principal amount of $4,640,000. In exchange for EchoStar's retirement of the debt, DBSI transferred back to EchoStar 270,414 shares of EchoStar Class A common stock valued at approximately $4,480,760 in addition to $936,000 cash for accrued interest owing on the debentures and fees related to the transaction.
The EchoStar shares were being held as security for the debentures and were received as a result of the merger of Direct Broadcasting Satellite Corporation (DBSC) and EchoStar, which was completed on January 8, 1997. DBSI received the EchoStar shares in exchange for its ownership interest in DBSC.
''Repayment of debt to EchoStar prepares the way for DBSI to enter into the next phase of our business plan -- the deployment of a Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) satellite network to provide low-cost, automated data services worldwide through E-SAT,'' stated Fred Thompson, President of DBSI.
E-SAT, owned jointly by EchoStar and DBSI, is awaiting licensing approval by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to construct and launch its LEO satellite constellation. A Joint Proposal recently signed by all LEO applicants was filed with the FCC on September 22, 1997. ''This Proposal requests that the FCC adopt the frequency spectrum sharing plan agreeable to all applicants,'' continued Mr. Thompson, ''and we believe this industry-developed consensus agreement paves the road to fast track the licensing process.''
SOURCE DBS Industries, Inc. |
