For years, Charles W. Ergen had ambitions to buy LightSquared, the bankrupt broadband wireless company, to bolster his dream of creating a huge data services provider.
But on Thursday, his company, Dish Network, formally withdrew its $2.2 billion takeover bid for LightSquared, sending investors scurrying.
Shares in Dish, the satellite-TV provider, were down more than 3 percent by midafternoon on Thursday, to $56.10, after a lawyer for LightSquared said in bankruptcy court that its suitor had terminated its offer.
The move is yet another twist in a long-running battle between two wealthy men who have shown little desire to back down. In one corner is Mr. Ergen, the chairman of Dish and the architect of its strategy of buying up huge swaths of spectrum, the airwaves needed to carry data.
In the other is Philip Falcone, the hedge fund manager and principal shareholder of LightSquared, who envisioned turning the company into a serious competitor to traditional cellphone service providers. He has persevered despite a number of challenges, including the Federal Communications Commission’s refusal to grant a license to operate a 4G network because of interference with GPS devices.
The court appearance on Thursday is linked to Mr. Falcone’s lawsuit against Dish and Mr. Ergen, accusing the two of improperly acquiring LightSquared debt in hopes of gaining control over the broadband company.
It isn’t clear that Mr. Ergen â€" a shrewd, often inscrutable negotiator â€" is truly gone. Lawyers speculated in court that Dish may be trying a gambit to drive down the price for the broadband wireless provider, according to news reports.
The move by Dish to drop its bid wasn’t unexpected. A lawyer for a group of LightSquared creditors said this week that Dish had raised concerns about a technical matter that would compel it to walk away.
It also isn’t clear that Mr. Ergen can walk away. A group of lenders that has backed Dish’s bid reportedly may seek to compel the company to complete its takeover efforts.
