1.   Gardner Merchant acquired Rowland Commercial Catering making it the second largest operator in Australia.

2.   CCS is the largest independent operator of ATMs in the United States and also has machines in Canada and Mexico.

3.   DDI is the largest PHS operator in Japan.

4.   European Ferries and Stena Line AB, the largest English Channel ferry operators.

5.   Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Republic is the largest operator of car dealerships in the United States.

6.   Grupo Posadas is the largest operator of hotels in Latin America.

7.   In contrast, a number of European governments, such as Belgium and France, still have controlling stakes in their largest domestic operators.

8.   In December the company began expanding into new car dealerships and is now the largest operator of new car dealerships in the U.S.

9.   McCaw built what was the largest cellular operator in the U.S. from the ground up.

10.   OfficeMax is the second largest operator of high-volume, deep discount office products superstores in the United States, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filing.