LONDON (Standard&Poor's CreditWire) Jan. 28, 2000—-Following an agreement to take control of Global One (an international provider of telecommunication services), Standard&Poor's today lowered its long-term corporate credit and senior unsecured debt ratings on France Telecom to double-'A'-minus from double-'A'. At the same time, the ratings were removed from CreditWatch where they were placed with negative implications on July 16, 1999, following France Telecom's announcement of its initial investment agreement with the U.K. cable operator NTL Communications Corp. (NTL; single-'B'/Watch Pos/--). France Telecom's 'A-1'-plus short-term corporate credit and commercial paper ratings are affirmed. France Telecom is the largest provider of telephony services in France. The outlook is stable. France Telecom announced that it has reached definitive agreements
