EchoStar’s Dish Wireless has agreed to pay $17.3 million to settle fraud allegations about signing up ineligible applicants in the FCC’s Emergency Broadband Benefits Program and Affordable Connectivity Program. Both programs were established to provide eligible low-income households with discounted broadband service and devices. The Department of Justice (DOJ) alleged that Dish enrolled tens of thousands ineligible subscribers and sought program funds after its executives learned about problems with its enrollments, and after a warning from the FCC. Dish did not admit fault but the settlement ends the DOJ’s investigation and a separate investigation initiated by the FCC.
