Dish Network's incoming CEO, Charlie Ergen, said Wednesday his company is still not sure what it will do with the large amounts of wireless spectrum it has amassed since 2008. But it's not in any rush to unload of it.
"We're not suicidal," Ergen said in an interview on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street." "We're going to run the company for the benefit of our employees and our shareholders, but we think whatever we do with our spectrum, it will be for the long-term value."
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Wireless spectrum makes up the public airwaves through which all communications—including radio and Internet data—travel. The Federal Communication Commission regulates the airspace and auctions off spectrum.
Dish has been buying up wireless spectrum since 2008, when its value was significantly lower than it is today. That decision caused the company's stock to drop. However, Dish stock has now been on the rise for that very reason, said Ergen. "Had we not done that, we would have had no option but to sell our company."
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Ergen said some future partnerships could be possible, although he did not mention any specific names. "People want to be connected and want to be in the business and want to monetize that business and be a part of that equation," he said.
He did not mention plans to sell any of the spectrum. "Our dream is to enter the marketplace and compete," he said. "We've got a lot of competitors coming into our space like Sony and Apple."
Ergen added that the short-term focus is the regulatory process for the licensing required by the FCC, which could take "a bit of time and then we will see where it goes from there."
This is Ergen's second round as CEO. The founder and chairman was CEO until 2011 when he stepped down. The satellite TV provider currently has 14 million subscribers.
No to Comcast-Time Warner deal
Ergen wants to see the proposed merger between CNBC owner Comast and Time Warner Cable blocked by regulators. "You can't give one company the majority of the homes in the United States for that high speed, broadband access," he said.
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He said the merger would mean that over half of all home Internet connectivity would be controlled by Comcast. He said regulators will make the right decision with consumers in mind.
"From a big picture perspective, there are no conditions that you can put on that massive a merger for the Internet," he said.
Sling TV and the bundle
Dish is currently in its sixth week of offering Sling TV, its Internet streaming bundle service, for $20 a month. It's an effort to adapt to a changing TV landscape in which some consumers prefer smaller bundles.
Ergen called the results thus far "encouraging" as the company tries to tap into a generation of consumers who have not yet become paid TV subscribers. But that means it will change the nature of the business for Dish.
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"It will cannibalize our business, there's no question about that," he said. "It's the innovator's dilemma. We have to reinvent our self, we have to transform the company."