Hughesnet to Turn Customers to Starlink. Everything We Know

Surprising details in financial documents by Hughesnet have led to speculation that the 28-year-old satellite internet provider may be preparing to wind down services, with plans to start referring its customers to competitor Starlink eventually.

Hughesnet has faced fierce competition from Starlink and Viasat internet, with more on the way with Amazon Leo and AST SpaceMobile. Public financials show that Hughesnet is losing significant ground to the competition, putting it in a tough spot to continue operations and likely leading to this dramatic shift.

While no official announcement or plan has been made by Hughesnet or its parent company, Echostar, surprising details revealed in public financial documents indicate a massive shift in Hughesnet’s business strategy and its future in the home internet space. 

In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Hughesnet lays out its financial situation, which it describes as alarming. One of the most surprising parts of the report is the details surrounding a license purchase agreement with SpaceX, owner and operator of Starlink internet. 

Echostar agreed to sell SpaceX a significant portion of its radio spectrum licenses for $17 billion. While this clears the way for Echostar to help pay off its debts and for SpaceX to expand the amount of bandwidth it can use, one of the more interesting parts of the agreement is a referral program.

It is described as a fee-based referral program that allows Hughesnet to refer its current customers and new users to Starlink. This likely means Hughesnet will receive a commission for referring its customers to Starlink rather than its own service, further boosting its cash flow under the agreement. 

Another part of the agreement would allow Boost Mobile (also owned by EchoStar) customers access to Starlink Direct-to-Cell services.

Details are scarce on how the referral program will work. It’s not disclosed when the program will begin or how it will be presented to Hughesnet customers. As of November 2025, Hughesnet is still in operation and accepting new residential customers. 

It’s also not yet known if Hughesnet customers will receive special pricing for Starlink, and exactly how much Hughesnet will receive for referrals.

The SEC filing shows slowly declining revenue and subscriber numbers for Hughesnet. Within a year, Hughesnet lost about 129,000 subscribers, followed by a decline in revenue. Hughesnet itself admits in the report that, in its current state, it has only enough cash to continue operating for another 12 months, necessitating a restructuring of its business model.

The agreement with Starlink is part of a way for Hughesnet to offset the losses by selling its spectrum and now the Starlink service.

Without mentioning Starlink or Amazon, Hughesnet mentions increased competition and technological advancements it cannot deploy in time, likely referring to the surge of low-earth orbit (LEO) satellites that are currently outperforming geostationary (GEO) satellites like Hughesnet’s. 

This doesn’t ultimately mean Hughesnet is going away anytime soon. The filing makes no mention of plans to shutter its home internet business, and it remains committed to growing its business and serving its current customers. Plus, Hughesnet is just a single component of EchoStar’s massive satellite division that serves enterprise and government customers.

However, now that Hughesnet is referring customers to Starlink for a fee, it’s easy to see why many would conclude that this means Hughesnet is getting out of the home satellite internet business. Despite its financial outlook and competition, it’s a matter of waiting to see how Hughesnet’s business shifts.