(Corrects paragraph 4 to say Hamid Akhavan is EchoStar Capital CEO, not CEO of EchoStar) (Reuters) -EchoStar said it would sell a set of wireless spectrum licenses to SpaceX for about $2.6 billion in exchange for stock in the space startup, expanding on the $17 billion deal the companies struck in September. Shares of the telecommunications services company rose about 2.5% in premarket trading. The AWS-3 licenses cover airwaves across the U.S. that can be used to support mobile and satellite communications. By combining EchoStar's wireless airwaves with SpaceX's rocket launch and satellite manufacturing capabilities, they can quickly create strong and affordable direct-to-cell services, EchoStar Capital CEO Hamid Akhavan said in a statement. SpaceX said in September it would buy wireless spectrum licenses from EchoStar for its Starlink satellite network for about $17 billion, a major deal crucial to expanding Starlink's nascent 5G connectivity business. The company in August sold some nationwide wireless spectrum licenses to AT&T for $23 billion. AT&T agreed to acquire 50 MHz of nationwide mid-band and low-band spectrum. (Reporting by Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru)
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