EchoStar, the owner of the Dish Network, is accumulating debt from the recently merged Sirius XM Satellite Radio Inc., according to The Wall Street Journal. The newspaper speculates that this "could be the first salvo in an attempt to take control of the battered company," either inside or outside of bankruptcy.

This is not EchoStar's first attempt to absorb Sirius XM. Charles Ergen of EchoStar made an unsolicted offer last year, and was rebuffed, according to the Journal. Getting hold of Sirius XM would add a virtual monopoly in satellite radio to EchoStar's already prominent position as one of two major satellite video operators.

Sirius XM, despite the recent merger of Sirius and XM, is still not making a profit. Nor did either of its predecessors. Contracts with the National Football League and Major League Baseball, its crown jewels, cost tens of millions a year. Then there's that $500 million, five-year deal with Howard Stern. Meanwhile, plummeting car sales are eroding the sales of satellite car radios. The company's share price is practically in penny stock territory. So it is vulnerable to a takeover from the likes of EchoStar.