S&P drops GCI

Standard & Poor's said it lowered its corporate credit rating on GCI Inc. to BB- from BB and its senior unsecured debt rating to B from B+.

All ratings on GCI were removed from CreditWatch, where they were placed with negative implications on June 13, following news of the company's intention to pursue a significantly more aggressive financial policy, the agency said.

The outlook is stable.

S&P noted that the ratings on GCI reflect its significant exposure to the highly competitive Alaskan telecom market, lack of geographic diversity, uncertain growth prospects for new investment projects and its more-aggressive financial policy.

Tempering factors include GCI's well-positioned incumbent cable TV business and limited competition from direct-to-home satellite services, its network access business, which is bolstered by long-term contracts despite moderate pricing pressure and bundled service offerings, which help improve customer retention, S&P added.

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