NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Oct. 4, 2007--—Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today its ratings and outlook on Reston, Va.-based Sprint Nextel Corp. (BBB/Negative/A-3) are not immediately affected by Relational Investors LLC's intention to possibly seek representation on the board of directors of the wireless carrier company. Relational Investors, which owns about 1.9% of Sprint Nextel's shares, said that it is concerned about management's strategy, including the deployment of WiMax, and its lack of focus on the company's core wireless operations. In addition, Relational Investors would like Sprint Nextel to consider a sale of its fiber optic and long distance operations. Standard&Poor's will monitor Relational's plans and Sprint Nextel's response to evaluate any potential impact on the
