being considered “experts” subject to liability for ratings included in  registration statements. However, the SEC issued a no-action letter  regarding the repeal of Rule 436(g) and extended the letter indefinitely. We’re also monitoring the EU Transparency Directive. One of the  key features of this piece of legislation concerns the disclosure of  significant holdings of and by companies. This Directive has con- tributed to our expansion of the global ownership database, with  additional coverage in Germany, France, and the United Kingdom.  We are reviewing the newly published EU Commission report on the  Directive and potential revisions to the major shareholder obligations. Aside from subtitle C and the general corporate governance and  disclosure requirements, we believe the majority of the Dodd-Frank  Act and related regulations will not have a direct effect on  Morningstar. However, we continue to monitor the potential impact  of these regulations on our clients. For example, the SEC recently  recommended that regulators adopt rules requiring that broker- dealers be subject to a fiduciary standard, which would impose  additional requirements on commission-based advisors. The United Kingdom’s Retail Distribution Review (RDR), which  emphasizes increased regulation of advisory fees, higher profes- sional standards for financial advisors, and an emphasis on “whole  of market” investment solutions, is scheduled to come into effect  at the end of 2012. Because advisors will be obligated to give clients  a choice of all investment vehicles (including funds, ETFs, and other  products) and demonstrate that they consider different investment  options without bias, we believe it may increase the business need  for investment information on multiple investment types, which we  offer through products such as Morningstar Direct and Morningstar  Advisor Workstation. Overall, we believe the uncertainty in the financial services sector  continued easing throughout 2010. With the exception of continued  weakness in consumer discretionary spending, business trends  steadily improved during the year. As discussed in more detail in  the Consolidated Operating Income section below, during 2010 we  continued phasing in some of the benefits and other compensation- related expenses we previously reduced. In the United States, President Obama signed the Dodd-Frank Wall  Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act into law in July 2010.  The Act creates a number of new regulatory, supervisory, and advi- sory bodies and touches on the regulation of virtually every aspect  of U.S. financial markets and activities. The Act also left numerous  matters to be addressed through rulemaking and other regulatory  action, giving the regulators significant discretion in many areas.  As a result, the final shape and effect of the legislation are continu- ing to emerge. The list below summarizes the key accomplishments and challenges  that our management team has highlighted related to our 2010 performance: Aside from corporate governance and disclosure requirements that  apply to all public companies generally, we believe the portion of  the Act that is the most relevant to Morningstar is subtitle C of Title  IX, which contains changes to the regulatory framework for credit  rating agencies. This section subjects Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating  Organizations (NRSROs), including Realpoint, the subsidiary we  acquired in May 2010, to greater oversight by the SEC. Among other  things, it requires the SEC to remove the current exemption in  Regulation FD for credit rating agencies, allows investors to bring  private rights of action against credit rating agencies for failing to  conduct a reasonable investigation of the facts or to obtain analy- sis from an independent source, and repeals Rule 436(g) under the  Securities Act of 1933, which exempted credit rating agencies from Morningstar, Inc. 2010 Annual Report 67 Accomplishments Performance Summary U  We made solid progress building a base for our credit research  business and now offer credit ratings and reports on more than  720 corporate credit issuers. We acquired Realpoint, a Nationally  Recognized Statistical Rating Organization that specializes in  commercial mortgage-backed securities. U  We expanded our analyst research and investment consulting  work on exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, alternative  investments, 529 plans, and target-date funds—all areas that  have seen strong investor interest. U  We continued to expand our equity research business, doubling  our client base in just one year. U  We continued building out our global operations, establishing a  presence in Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Luxembourg. We also  expanded our international investment research and consulting  businesses by acquiring Aegis, Seeds Group, and OBSR.