Fitch Teleconf: U.S. Telecom/Cable Industry Review, 1/13 10AM EST/9AM CST.

CHICAGO -- Fitch Ratings will hold a conference call this Thursday, January 13 at 10:00 a.m. EST to discuss major issues and trends in the U.S. telecom and cable industries, with particular focus on the pending Sprint Corp and Nextel Communications merger. In addition, the Fitch Telecommunications and Cable team will be prepared to review rating rationale and actions of all the sector credits.

U.S. and Canadian participants should call 877-234-7211 and participants outside the U.S. should dial 706-643-7396. All participants should dial in 10 minutes prior to the 10:00 a.m. EST start time and give the conference name, 'Fitch Ratings,' and the call leader name 'Michael Weaver.

The call will be led by Michael Weaver, Managing Director of the U.S. Telecom and Cable team in Fitch Ratings' Corporate Finance Group. Fitch U.S. analysts John Culver, Bill Densmore, Dave Peterson, and Fitch London analyst Raymond Hill will also participate. A question-and-answer session will immediately follow the speakers' prepared remarks. Fitch's 2005 Outlook reports for the U.S. telecom and cable sectors, as well as a 2005 industry review report specific to the wireless sector, are available on the Fitch Ratings web site at www.fitchratings.com.

Interested parties who are not available for the teleconference will be able to hear a replay of the call beginning the afternoon of Jan. 13 at approximately 1:00 p.m. EST through Jan. 20. For the replay, domestic participants must dial 800-642-1687; listeners outside the U.S. should dial 706-645-9291 and also use the conference ID, '3261768'.

A streaming audio version of the teleconference also will be made available beginning approximately 24 hours from the conclusion of the initial call. Interested parties can find the appropriate web audio link under 'Resource Library,' 'Company Events,' and 'Online Media,' at www.fitchratings.com.