NEW YORK, Jan. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The McGraw-Hill Companies, was granted a Temporary Restraining Order this evening on behalf of its financial services business Standard & Poor's, against the International Securities Exchange ("ISE") and the Options Clearing Corporation ("OCC") preventing the listing, trading and clearing of options by ISE on Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts ("SPDR") without a license from Standard & Poor's.

"We are pleased by this initial development in the case, and continue to hope that ISE will be willing to enter into a license agreement with us to list and trade SPDR options," stated Kathleen A. Corbet, President of Standard & Poor's.

About Standard & Poor's

Standard & Poor's, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP), is the world's foremost provider of independent credit ratings, indices, risk evaluation, investment research, data and valuations. With 6,000 employees located in 21 countries, Standard & Poor's is an essential part of the world's financial infrastructure and has played a leading role for more than 140 years in providing investors with the independent benchmarks they need to feel more confident about their investment and financial decisions. For more information, visit http://www.standardandpoors.com.

SOURCE  The McGraw-Hill Companies
    -0-                             01/06/2005
    /CONTACT:  David Guarino
               Communications
               Standard & Poor's
               212-438-1471
               dave_guarino@standardandpoors.com /
    /Web site:  http://www.standardandpoors.com /
    (MHP)

CO:  McGraw-Hill Companies
ST:  New York
IN:  PUB FIN
SU:  LAW

EA 
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