TORONTO (Standard & Poor's) Oct. 11, 2006--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services today said it placed its ratings, including its 'A-' long-term corporate credit rating, on Montreal, Que.-based telecommunications holding company BCE Inc. and wholly owned subsidiary Bell Canada, on CreditWatch with negative implications, following the company's plans to amalgamate BCE Inc. and Bell Canada and convert the combined entity to an income trust structure. "On completion of the conversion, which is subject to a number of regulatory, stakeholder, and other approvals, the long-term corporate credit ratings on BCE and its subsidiaries (collectively, Bell Canada Income Fund; Bell Canada IF) will be lowered to 'BBB+'," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Madhav Hari. In addition, the ratings on BCE's unsecured debt
