EchoStar is close to finalizing a deal to sell Dish Network with a $2 billion debt payment impending.

• According to sources, EchoStar is in advanced negotiations to sell Dish Network to its competitor DirecTV.
• No deal is guaranteed, and the negotiations may collapse, according to sources, even though the sides aim to finalize an agreement by Monday.
• EchoStar is seeking to pay off $1.98 billion of debt that matures in November by driving the deal, according to two people familiar with the process. As of June 30, EchoStar had only $521 million in cash and cash equivalents and marketable investment securities.

The pay-TV business founded by Charlie Ergen more than 40 years ago is nearing sale.

According to sources, Dish Network is in advanced negotiations to sell to DirecTV, a pay TV operator owned by private-equity firm TPG. While both sides are hopeful to finalize a deal by Monday, no agreement is guaranteed, and the talks may still collapse, the sources said, requesting anonymity due to the confidential nature of the discussions.

EchoStar is reportedly driving the rumored combination of Dish and DirecTV to pay off $1.98 billion of debt that matures in November. Despite having just $521 million in cash and cash equivalents and marketable investment securities as of June 30, EchoStar forecasted negative cash flows for the remainder of 2024, according to public filings.

The possibility of EchoStar going bankrupt and obtaining creditor approval for a deal adds complexity to the completion of a deal. Dish recently tried to refinance some of its debt with bondholders, but negotiations failed, as stated in a Sept. 23 filing.

The company said in public filings it remains in discussions with other debtholders.

An all-cash deal is being negotiated between DirecTV and EchoStar for the satellite TV business, digital business Sling, and associated liabilities, with a potential value of over $9 billion, according to sources.

Neither DirecTV nor Dish could be reached for comment.

"Craig Moffett of MoffettNathanson predicted in a note to clients last month that EchoStar is likely to face bankruptcy within the next four to six months. He stated that the company will need to obtain new capital to avoid this outcome."

Dish Network has spent the past decade accumulating wireless spectrum, but there is no wireless spectrum involved in the proposed deal with EchoStar, which has a total enterprise value of about $31 billion and a market capitalization of about $7.6 billion.

Despite being one of the largest distributors of TV bundles, satellite TV has been declining for years, at a faster rate than its cable competitors. This is due to the increasing popularity of subscription streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. Dish reported 6.1 million satellite subscribers and 2 million customers for Sling TV, its over-the-internet package of linear networks, in its last quarter.

Since AT&T bought DirecTV in 2015 for $67 billion with debt, the company has lost millions of subscribers. After being spun out in 2021 and selling a portion of the company to TPG, DirecTV had approximately 11 million subscribers, down from the 15.4 million it had at the time of the sale, as previously reported by CNBC.

Recently, the company has been concentrating on expanding its streaming business, with its latest advertising campaign aimed at debunking the notion that DirecTV can only be accessed via a satellite dish. According to MoffettNathanson, DirecTV gained over 20,000 streaming customers this year. Despite this, the majority of its customers still rely on satellite dishes.

Disney and DirecTV recently reached a deal that allows DirecTV to offer customers skinnier, genre-specific bundles.

— CNBC's Lillian Rizzo contributed to this report.