On Feb. 13, 2004, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services assigned its 'CCC-' rating to Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.'s new $250 million convertible notes due 2009. At the same time, Standard&Poor's affirmed its existing ratings, including its 'CCC' corporate credit rating, on the satellite radio broadcaster. The outlook is stable. The New York, N.Y.-based firm has approximately about $450 million in debt. The company is expected to use the proceeds for general corporate purposes, including expanding distribution and product development. The added liquidity is important to ratings stability given the considerable cash being consumed as Sirius works to accelerate subscriber growth. The very low speculative-grade ratings on Sirius reflect concern about cash consumption and the company's slow progress in
