The ratings on New York City-based Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. (Sirius) remain on CreditWatch, where they were placed with positive implications on Feb. 20, 2007. The CreditWatch placement followed the company's definitive agreement to an all-stock "merger of equals" with XM Satellite Radio Inc. (CCC+/Watch Pos/--). Standard&Poor's Ratings Services still expects upgrade potential to be limited to one notch, and this will depend on our estimate of when the company will achieve expected cost savings and financial self-sustainability. For the quarter ended June 30, 2007, net subscribers grew only 8.5%, compared with growth of nearly 15% in the year-ago period, reflecting weakness on the retail side. Retail net subscribers grew by 3.1%, compared with slightly more than 9%
