EchoStar considering tech assets spin-off

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. - EchoStar Communications Corporation announced Monday that its Board of Directors has directed Management to pursue a possible separation of its businesses into two distinct publicly traded companies. EchoStar, which has technology supply contracts in Canada with Bell ExpressVu and world-wide, recently submitted a request to the Internal Revenue Service for a ruling as to the tax-free nature of the transaction. Under the proposed plan, EchoStar’s U.S. consumer pay-TV business would continue to operate as the DISH Network. Most of the company’s other technology and infrastructure assets would be spun-off in a transaction intended to be tax-free to...