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ENGLEWOOD, Colo.,
April 5,
2004/Satnews/
EchoStar Communications Corp. (Nasdaq:DISH) announced today that
Michael Dugan, 55, has chosen to retire from his position as president
and chief operating officer April 30, electing to join the board of
directors and serve as a senior advisor. The duties of
president and COO of EchoStar will be absorbed by various executives
throughout the company until a successor to Dugan can be found,
according to a company statement. Dugan,
who has been with EchoStar for 14 years, will assume his duties as a
board member May 6. He replaces Peter Dea, who has decided upon the
conclusion of his term to resign from the board for personal reasons.
Dugan was the chief architect of the
technological foundation upon which the success of DISH Network was
founded. He began his EchoStar career as vice president of engineering
for the subsidiary that later became EchoStar Technologies Corp.
Dugan has shifted his responsibilities
within EchoStar to devote more time to his family and personal
interests. He plans to accelerate efforts to make his Whistling Elk
guest ranch in northern Colorado available to disadvantaged children.
Dugan guided EchoStar through a period
of tremendous subscriber growth and roll-out of local-to-local
markets. When Dugan took the helm in April 2000, DISH Network had 3.9
million subscribers and served 28 markets with local TV channels.
Today the company has 9.4 million subscribers and delivers local
channels into 110 markets in 46 states, covering about 85 percent of
all TV-viewing households. He oversaw the successful launch and
implementation of nine EchoStar satellites. The most recent three
satellites carry spot-beam capabilities, a technology that spawned
EchoStar's leadership in the delivery of local TV channels.
Dugan previously served one year on the
EchoStar board of directors from 2002-2003. Prior to joining EchoStar,
Dugan served as vice president of Engineering for Tandon Corporation,
as well as director of Product Marketing and director of Engineering.
He also served at Xerox Corporation for 15 years holding a variety of
positions. He graduated from the Rochester Institute of Technology
with a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering.
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