UNITED
STATES
SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington,
D.C. 20549
FORM
10-Q
(Mark
One)
|
|
x
|
QUARTERLY
REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF
1934
|
For
the quarterly period ended December 4, 2008
OR
o
|
TRANSITION
REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF
1934
|
For
the transition period
from to
Commission
file number 1-10658
Micron
Technology, Inc.
(Exact
name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Delaware
|
75-1618004
|
(State
or other jurisdiction of
|
(IRS
Employer
|
incorporation
or organization)
|
Identification
No.)
|
|
|
8000
S. Federal Way, Boise, Idaho
|
83716-9632
|
(Address
of principal executive offices)
|
(Zip
Code)
|
|
|
Registrant’s
telephone number, including area code
|
(208)
368-4000
|
Indicate by check mark whether the
registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for
such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and
(2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90
days. Yes
x
No
o
Indicate by check mark whether the
registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated
filer, or a smaller reporting company. See definition of “large
accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule
12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):
Large
Accelerated Filer
x
|
Accelerated
Filer
o
|
Non-Accelerated
Filer
o
(Do
not check if a smaller reporting company)
|
Smaller
Reporting Company
o
|
Indicate by check mark whether the
registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange
Act). Yes
o
No
x
The number of outstanding shares of the
registrant’s common stock as of January 8, 2009 was 763,793,881.
PART
I. FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Item
1.
Financial
Statements
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
CONSOLIDATED
STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(in
millions except per share amounts)
(Unaudited)
Quarter
ended
|
|
December
4,
2008
|
|
|
November
29,
2007
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
sales
|
|
$
|
1,402
|
|
|
$
|
1,535
|
|
Cost
of goods sold
|
|
|
1,851
|
|
|
|
1,530
|
|
Gross margin
|
|
|
(449
|
)
|
|
|
5
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Selling,
general and administrative
|
|
|
102
|
|
|
|
112
|
|
Research
and development
|
|
|
178
|
|
|
|
163
|
|
Restructure
|
|
|
(66
|
)
|
|
|
13
|
|
Other
operating (income) expense, net
|
|
|
9
|
|
|
|
(23
|
)
|
Operating loss
|
|
|
(672
|
)
|
|
|
(260
|
)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Interest
income
|
|
|
10
|
|
|
|
30
|
|
Interest
expense
|
|
|
(30
|
)
|
|
|
(21
|
)
|
Other
non-operating income (expense), net
|
|
|
(14
|
)
|
|
|
(1
|
)
|
Loss before taxes and
noncontrolling interests
|
|
|
(706
|
)
|
|
|
(252
|
)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Income
tax (provision)
|
|
|
(13
|
)
|
|
|
(7
|
)
|
Noncontrolling
interests in net (income) loss
|
|
|
13
|
|
|
|
(3
|
)
|
Net
loss
|
|
$
|
(706
|
)
|
|
$
|
(262
|
)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Loss
per share:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Basic
|
|
$
|
(0.91
|
)
|
|
$
|
(0.34
|
)
|
Diluted
|
|
|
(0.91
|
)
|
|
|
(0.34
|
)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Number
of shares used in per share calculations:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Basic
|
|
|
773.3
|
|
|
|
771.9
|
|
Diluted
|
|
|
773.3
|
|
|
|
771.9
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
CONSOLIDATED
BALANCE SHEETS
(in
millions except par value)
(Unaudited)
As
of
|
|
December
4,
2008
|
|
|
August
28,
2008
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Assets
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash
and equivalents
|
|
$
|
1,025
|
|
|
$
|
1,243
|
|
Short-term
investments
|
|
|
3
|
|
|
|
119
|
|
Receivables
|
|
|
1,031
|
|
|
|
1,032
|
|
Inventories
|
|
|
883
|
|
|
|
1,291
|
|
Other
current assets
|
|
|
95
|
|
|
|
94
|
|
Total current
assets
|
|
|
3,037
|
|
|
|
3,779
|
|
Intangible
assets, net
|
|
|
354
|
|
|
|
364
|
|
Property,
plant and equipment, net
|
|
|
8,460
|
|
|
|
8,811
|
|
Equity
method investments
|
|
|
432
|
|
|
|
84
|
|
Other
assets
|
|
|
393
|
|
|
|
392
|
|
Total assets
|
|
$
|
12,676
|
|
|
$
|
13,430
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Liabilities
and shareholders’ equity
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Accounts
payable and accrued expenses
|
|
$
|
943
|
|
|
$
|
1,111
|
|
Deferred
income
|
|
|
192
|
|
|
|
114
|
|
Equipment
purchase contracts
|
|
|
157
|
|
|
|
98
|
|
Current
portion of long-term debt
|
|
|
343
|
|
|
|
275
|
|
Total current
liabilities
|
|
|
1,635
|
|
|
|
1,598
|
|
Long-term
debt
|
|
|
2,523
|
|
|
|
2,451
|
|
Other
liabilities
|
|
|
332
|
|
|
|
338
|
|
Total
liabilities
|
|
|
4,490
|
|
|
|
4,387
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Commitments
and contingencies
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Noncontrolling
interests in subsidiaries
|
|
|
2,702
|
|
|
|
2,865
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Common
stock, $0.10 par value, authorized 3,000 shares, issued and outstanding
763.8 and 761.1 shares, respectively
|
|
|
76
|
|
|
|
76
|
|
Additional
capital
|
|
|
6,574
|
|
|
|
6,566
|
|
Accumulated
deficit
|
|
|
(1,162
|
)
|
|
|
(456
|
)
|
Accumulated
other comprehensive (loss)
|
|
|
(4
|
)
|
|
|
(8
|
)
|
Total shareholders’
equity
|
|
|
5,484
|
|
|
|
6,178
|
|
Total liabilities and
shareholders’ equity
|
|
$
|
12,676
|
|
|
$
|
13,430
|
|
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
CONSOLIDATED
STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(in
millions)
(Unaudited)
Quarter
ended
|
|
December
4,
2008
|
|
|
November
29,
2007
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash
flows from operating activities
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
loss
|
|
$
|
(706
|
)
|
|
$
|
(262
|
)
|
Adjustments
to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by operating
activities:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Depreciation and
amortization
|
|
|
594
|
|
|
|
504
|
|
Provision to write down
inventories to estimated market values
|
|
|
369
|
|
|
|
62
|
|
Noncash restructure charges
(credits)
|
|
|
(83
|
)
|
|
|
6
|
|
(Gain) loss from disposition of
equipment, net
|
|
|
14
|
|
|
|
(10
|
)
|
Change in operating assets and
liabilities:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(Increase) decrease in
receivables
|
|
|
138
|
|
|
|
(80
|
)
|
Decrease in
inventories
|
|
|
39
|
|
|
|
27
|
|
Decrease in accounts payable
and accrued expenses
|
|
|
(67
|
)
|
|
|
(6
|
)
|
Increase in deferred
income
|
|
|
78
|
|
|
|
2
|
|
Other
|
|
|
(17
|
)
|
|
|
33
|
|
Net cash provided by operating
activities
|
|
|
359
|
|
|
|
276
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash
flows from investing activities
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Acquisition
of equity method investment
|
|
|
(409
|
)
|
|
|
--
|
|
Expenditures
for property, plant and equipment
|
|
|
(270
|
)
|
|
|
(765
|
)
|
Purchases
of available-for-sale securities
|
|
|
(2
|
)
|
|
|
(123
|
)
|
Proceeds
from maturities of available-for-sale securities
|
|
|
123
|
|
|
|
365
|
|
Proceeds
from sales of property, plant and equipment
|
|
|
6
|
|
|
|
64
|
|
Proceeds
from sales of available-for-sale securities
|
|
|
--
|
|
|
|
19
|
|
Other
|
|
|
63
|
|
|
|
34
|
|
Net cash used for investing
activities
|
|
|
(489
|
)
|
|
|
(406
|
)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash
flows from financing activities
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Proceeds
from debt
|
|
|
285
|
|
|
|
--
|
|
Cash
received from noncontrolling interests
|
|
|
--
|
|
|
|
150
|
|
Repayments
of debt
|
|
|
(163
|
)
|
|
|
(212
|
)
|
Distributions
to noncontrolling interests
|
|
|
(150
|
)
|
|
|
--
|
|
Payments
on equipment purchase contracts
|
|
|
(64
|
)
|
|
|
(122
|
)
|
Other
|
|
|
4
|
|
|
|
2
|
|
Net cash used for financing
activities
|
|
|
(88
|
)
|
|
|
(182
|
)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net decrease in cash and
equivalents
|
|
|
(218
|
)
|
|
|
(312
|
)
|
Cash
and equivalents at beginning of period
|
|
|
1,243
|
|
|
|
2,192
|
|
Cash
and equivalents at end of period
|
|
$
|
1,025
|
|
|
$
|
1,880
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Supplemental
disclosures
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Income
taxes paid, net
|
|
$
|
(8
|
)
|
|
$
|
(6
|
)
|
Interest
paid, net of amounts capitalized
|
|
|
(29
|
)
|
|
|
(21
|
)
|
Noncash
investing and financing activities:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Equipment acquisitions on
contracts payable and capital leases
|
|
|
153
|
|
|
|
152
|
|
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(All
tabular amounts in millions except per share amounts)
(Unaudited)
Business
and Significant Accounting Policies
Basis of
presentation:
Micron Technology, Inc. and its subsidiaries
(hereinafter referred to collectively as the “Company”) manufacture and market
DRAM, NAND Flash memory, CMOS image sensors and other semiconductor
components. The Company has two segments, Memory and
Imaging. The Memory segment’s primary products are DRAM and NAND
Flash and the Imaging segment’s primary product is CMOS image
sensors. The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been
prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the
United States of America and include the accounts of the Company and its
consolidated subsidiaries. In the opinion of management, the
accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements contain all adjustments
necessary to present fairly the consolidated financial position of the Company
and its consolidated results of operations and cash flows.
The Company’s fiscal year is the 52 or
53-week period ending on the Thursday closest to August 31. The
Company’s fiscal 2009 contains 53 weeks and the Company’s first quarter of
fiscal 2009, which ended on December 4, 2008, contained 14 weeks. The
Company’s fiscal 2008, which ended on August 28, 2008, contained 52 weeks and
the Company’s first quarter of fiscal 2008 contained 13 weeks. All
period references are to the Company’s fiscal periods unless otherwise
indicated. These interim financial statements should be read in
conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes
included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended August
28, 2008.
Risks and
uncertainties:
The Company’s liquidity is highly dependent on
average selling prices for its products and the timing of capital expenditures,
both of which can vary significantly from period to period. Depending
on conditions in the semiconductor memory market, the Company’s cash flows from
operations and current holdings of cash and investments may not be adequate to
meet the Company’s needs for capital expenditures and
operations. Historically, the Company has used external financing to
fund these needs. Due to conditions in the credit markets, many
financing instruments used by the Company in the past are currently not
available on terms acceptable to the Company. The Company has
significantly reduced its capital expenditures for 2009. In addition,
the Company is pursuing further financing alternatives, further reducing capital
expenditures and implementing further cost-cutting initiatives.
Recently issued accounting
standards:
In December 2008, the Financial Accounting
Standards Board (“FASB”) issued FASB Staff Position (“FSP”) No. FAS 140-1 and
FIN 46(R)-8, “Disclosures by Public Entities (Enterprises) about Transfers of
Financial Assets and Interests in Variable Interest Entities.” FSP
No. FAS 140-1 and FIN 46(R)-8 requires public entities to provide additional
disclosures about transfers of financial assets and their involvement with
variable interest entities. The Company is required to adopt FSP No.
FAS 140-1 and FIN 46(R)-8 effective in the second quarter of 2009.
In May 2008, the FASB issued FSP No.
APB 14-1, “Accounting for Convertible Debt Instruments That May Be Settled in
Cash upon Conversion (Including Partial Cash Settlement).” FSP No.
APB 14-1 requires that issuers of convertible debt instruments that may be
settled in cash upon conversion separately account for the liability and equity
components in a manner that will reflect the entity’s nonconvertible debt
borrowing rate as interest cost is recognized in subsequent
periods. The Company is required to adopt FSP No. APB 14-1 at the
beginning of 2010. On adoption, the Company will retrospectively
account for its $1.3 billion of 1.875% convertible senior notes issued in May of
2007 under the provisions of FSP No. APB 14-1. The Company estimates
that debt recognized on issuance of the $1.3 billion convertible senior notes
would be approximately $400 million lower under FSP No. APB 14-1. The
difference of approximately $400 million would be accreted to interest expense
over the approximate seven-year term of the notes. The Company is
continuing to evaluate the full impact that the adoption of FSP No. APB 14-1
will have on its financial statements.
In December 2007, the FASB issued
Statement of Financial Accounting Standards (“SFAS”) No. 141 (revised 2007),
“Business Combinations
”
(“SFAS No. 141(R)”), which establishes the principles and requirements
for how an acquirer in a business combination (1) recognizes and measures in its
financial statements the identifiable assets acquired, the liabilities assumed,
and any noncontrolling interests in the acquiree, (2) recognizes and measures
the goodwill acquired in the business combination or a gain from a bargain
purchase, and (3) determines what information to disclose. The
Company is required to adopt SFAS No. 141(R) effective at the beginning of
2010. The impact of the adoption of SFAS No. 141(R) will depend on
the nature and extent of business combinations occurring on or after the
beginning of 2010.
In December 2007, the FASB issued SFAS
No. 160, “Noncontrolling Interests in Consolidated Financial Statements – an
amendment of ARB No. 51.” SFAS No. 160 requires that (1)
noncontrolling interests be reported as a separate component of equity, (2) net
income attributable to the parent and to the noncontrolling interest be
separately identified in the income statement, (3) changes in a parent’s
ownership interest while the parent retains its controlling interest be
accounted for as equity transactions, and (4) any retained noncontrolling equity
investment upon the deconsolidation of a subsidiary be initially measured at
fair value. The Company is required to adopt SFAS No. 160 effective
at the beginning of 2010. The Company is evaluating the impact that
the adoption of SFAS No. 160 will have on its financial statements.
In February 2007, the FASB issued SFAS
No. 159, “The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities –
Including an amendment of FASB Statement No. 115.” Under SFAS No.
159, the Company may elect to measure many financial instruments and certain
other items at fair value on an instrument by instrument basis, subject to
certain restrictions. The Company adopted SFAS No. 159 effective at
the beginning of 2009. The Company did not elect to measure any
existing items at fair value upon the adoption of SFAS No. 159.
In September 2006, the FASB issued SFAS
No. 157, “Fair Value Measurements.” SFAS No. 157 (as amended by
subsequent FSP’s) defines fair value, establishes a framework for measuring fair
value in generally accepted accounting principles and expands disclosures about
fair value measurements. The Company adopted SFAS No. 157 effective
at the beginning of 2009 for financial assets and financial
liabilities. The adoption did not have a significant impact on the
Company’s financial statements. The Company is required to adopt SFAS
No. 157 for all other assets and liabilities at the beginning of 2010 and it is
evaluating the impact that the adoption will have on its financial
statements.
Supplemental
Balance Sheet Information
Receivables
|
|
December
4, 2008
|
|
|
August
28, 2008
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Trade receivables (net of
allowance of $3 and $2, respectively)
|
|
$
|
643
|
|
|
$
|
741
|
|
Income and other
taxes
|
|
|
31
|
|
|
|
43
|
|
Other
|
|
|
357
|
|
|
|
248
|
|
|
|
$
|
1,031
|
|
|
$
|
1,032
|
|
As of December 4, 2008, other
receivables included amounts due from Intel Corporation (“Intel”) of $208
million in connection with the termination of a supply agreement for NAND Flash
memory produced at the Company’s Boise facility and $36 million related to NAND
Flash product design and process development activities. (See
“Restructure” note.) Other receivables as of December 4, 2008 also
included $77 million due from settlement of litigation. As of August
28, 2008, other receivables included $71 million due from Intel for amounts
related to NAND Flash product design and process development activities, $75
million due from settlement of litigation and $58 million due from settlements
of pricing adjustments with certain suppliers.
Other noncurrent assets as of August
28, 2008 included receivables of $39 million due from settlement of
litigation.
Inventories
|
|
December
4, 2008
|
|
|
August
28, 2008
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Finished goods
|
|
$
|
328
|
|
|
$
|
444
|
|
Work in process
|
|
|
395
|
|
|
|
671
|
|
Raw materials and
supplies
|
|
|
160
|
|
|
|
176
|
|
|
|
$
|
883
|
|
|
$
|
1,291
|
|
The Company’s results of operations for
the first quarter of 2009 and fourth, second and first quarters of 2008 included
charges of $369 million, $205 million, $15 million and $62 million,
respectively, to write down the carrying value of work in process and finished
goods inventories of memory products (both DRAM and NAND Flash) to their
estimated market values.
Intangible
Assets and Goodwill
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Intangible
Assets:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
December
4, 2008
|
|
|
August
28, 2008
|
|
|
|
Gross
Amount
|
|
|
Accumulated
Amortization
|
|
|
Gross
Amount
|
|
|
Accumulated
Amortization
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Product and process
technology
|
|
$
|
580
|
|
|
$
|
(327
|
)
|
|
$
|
577
|
|
|
$
|
(320
|
)
|
Customer
relationships
|
|
|
127
|
|
|
|
(39
|
)
|
|
|
127
|
|
|
|
(35
|
)
|
Other
|
|
|
29
|
|
|
|
(16
|
)
|
|
|
29
|
|
|
|
(14
|
)
|
|
|
$
|
736
|
|
|
$
|
(382
|
)
|
|
$
|
733
|
|
|
$
|
(369
|
)
|
During the first quarters of 2009 and
2008, the Company capitalized $12 million and $11 million, respectively, for
product and process technology with weighted-average useful lives of 10
years.
Amortization expense for intangible
assets was $22 million and $20 million for the first quarters of 2009 and 2008,
respectively. Annual amortization expense for intangible assets is
estimated to be $73 million for 2009, $63 million for 2010, $57 million for
2011, $48 million for 2012 and $45 million for 2013.
Goodwill:
As
of December 4, 2008 and August 28, 2008, the Company had goodwill of $58 million
related to its Imaging segment.
Property,
Plant and Equipment
|
|
December
4, 2008
|
|
|
August
28, 2008
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Land
|
|
$
|
99
|
|
|
$
|
99
|
|
Buildings
|
|
|
4,370
|
|
|
|
3,829
|
|
Equipment
|
|
|
12,934
|
|
|
|
13,591
|
|
Construction in
progress
|
|
|
143
|
|
|
|
611
|
|
Software
|
|
|
282
|
|
|
|
283
|
|
|
|
|
17,828
|
|
|
|
18,413
|
|
Accumulated
depreciation
|
|
|
(9,368
|
)
|
|
|
(9,602
|
)
|
|
|
$
|
8,460
|
|
|
$
|
8,811
|
|
Depreciation expense was $569 million
and $484 million for the first quarters of 2009 and 2008,
respectively.
Equity
Method Investments
The Company has a partnering
arrangement with Nanya Technology Corporation (“Nanya”) pursuant to which the
Company and Nanya jointly develop process technology and designs to manufacture
stack DRAM products. Each party generally bears its own development
costs and the Company’s development costs are expected to exceed Nanya’s
development costs by a significant amount. In addition, the Company
has transferred and licensed certain intellectual property related to the
manufacture of stack DRAM products to Nanya and licensed certain intellectual
property from Nanya. The Company is to receive an aggregate of $207
million from Nanya through 2010. Further, the Company will receive
royalties from Nanya for stack DRAM products manufactured by or for
Nanya.
The Company has partnered with Nanya in
investments in two Taiwan DRAM memory manufacturers: Inotera
Memories, Inc. (“Inotera”) and MeiYa Technology Corporation
(“MeiYa”). As of December 4, 2008, the Company owned 35.5% of Inotera
and 50% of MeiYa and Nanya owned 35.6% of Inotera and 50% of
MeiYa. The Company’s investments in Inotera and MeiYa are accounted
for under the equity method because of the Company’s ability to exercise
significant influence over the operating and financial policies of these
entities. As of December 4, 2008 and August 28, 2008, the Company’s
aggregate carrying value of these equity method investments in the accompanying
consolidated balance sheet was $432 million and $84 million,
respectively.
The Company has concluded that both
Inotera and MeiYa are variable interest entities as defined in FIN 46(R),
“Consolidation of Variable Interest Entities – an interpretation of ARB No. 51,”
and that the Company is not the primary beneficiary of either Inotera or
MeiYa. The Company’s exposure to losses on its equity investments in
these entities is limited to the carrying value of such
investments. The creditors of Inotera and MeiYa have recourse only to
the assets of these two entities and do not have recourse to any other assets of
the Company.
Inotera and MeiYa each have fiscal
years that end on December 31. As these fiscal years differ from that
of the Company’s fiscal year, the Company recognizes its share of Inotera and
MeiYa quarterly earnings or losses for the calendar quarter that ends within the
Company’s fiscal quarter. This results in the recognition of the
Company’s share of earnings or losses from these entities for a period that lags
the Company’s fiscal periods by approximately two months.
Inotera:
In
the first quarter of 2009, the Company acquired a 35.5% ownership interest (or
approximately 1.2 billion shares) in Inotera, a publicly traded entity in
Taiwan, from Qimonda AG (“Qimonda”) for approximately $400
million. The interest in Inotera was acquired for cash, a portion of
which was funded from loan proceeds of $200 million received by the Company from
Nan Ya Plastics Corporation, an affiliate of Nanya, and $85 million received
from Inotera. The loans were recorded at their fair values, which
reflect an aggregate discount of $31 million from their face
amounts. The aggregate discount was recorded as a reduction of the
Company’s basis in the investment in Inotera. The Company also
capitalized $10 million of costs and other fees incurred in connection with the
acquisition. As a result of the above transactions, as of December 4,
2008 the carrying value of the Company’s equity investment in Inotera was $378
million. Because the Company did not acquire its interest in Inotera
until October and November of 2008, the Company’s results of operations for the
first quarter of 2009 do not include any share of Inotera’s results of
operations for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2008. The
Company is in the process of determining any difference between the carrying
value of its investment in Inotera and its proportionate interest in the
underlying equity of Inotera and expects to complete such analysis in the second
quarter of 2009. The closing trading price of Inotera on December 4,
2008 was equivalent to approximately $0.20 per share. (See “Debt”
note.)
The Company has rights and obligations
to purchase 50% of the 120,000 per month 300mm DRAM wafer production of
Inotera. Inotera’s actual wafer production will vary from time to
time based on market and other conditions. In connection with the
acquisition of the shares in Inotera, the Company and Nanya entered into a
Supply Agreement with Inotera (the "Supply Agreement") pursuant to which Inotera
will sell to the Company and Nanya trench and stack DRAM products manufactured
by Inotera. Inotera's current trench production capacity is expected
to transition to the Company's stack process technology. Inotera will sell to
the Company and Nanya all of the trench DRAM products manufactured by it other
than trench DRAM products that are sold by Inotera to Qimonda pursuant to a
separate supply agreement between Inotera and Qimonda (the "Qimonda Supply
Agreement"). Under the Qimonda Supply Agreement, Qimonda is obligated
to purchase trench DRAM products started for it by Inotera for approximately
eight months following the Company’s acquisition of the shares in Inotera in
accordance with a ramp down schedule specified in the Qimonda Supply
Agreement. Initially, (a) with respect to trench DRAM products, the
Company will purchase the products resulting from 50% of Inotera's aggregate
trench DRAM production less the trench DRAM products contemplated to be
purchased by Qimonda pursuant to the Qimonda Supply Agreement and (b) with
respect to stack DRAM products, the Company will purchase the products resulting
from 50% of the aggregate stack DRAM production. The pricing formula
that determines the amounts to be paid by the Company for DRAM products under
the Supply Agreement includes manufacturing costs and margins associated with
the products purchased.
MeiYa:
In
the fourth quarter of 2008, the Company and Nanya formed MeiYa to manufacture
stack DRAM products and sell such products exclusively to the Company and
Nanya. As of December 4, 2008 and August 28, 2008, the carrying value
of the Company’s equity investment in MeiYa was $54 million and $84 million,
respectively. In the first quarter of 2009, the Company recognized $2
million of losses for its share of MeiYa’s results of operations for the
quarterly period ended September 30, 2008. In addition, during the
first quarter of 2009, the Company received $50 million from MeiYa which was
accounted for as a technology transfer fee and a reduction of the Company’s
investment in MeiYa. In connection with the purchase of the ownership
interest in Inotera, the Company entered into a series of agreements with Nanya
which contemplated the restructuring of MeiYa and pursuant to which both parties
will cease future funding of, and resource commitments to, MeiYa.
Accounts
Payable and Accrued Expenses
|
|
December
4, 2008
|
|
|
August
28, 2008
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Accounts
payable
|
|
$
|
513
|
|
|
$
|
597
|
|
Salaries, wages and
benefits
|
|
|
199
|
|
|
|
244
|
|
Customer
advances
|
|
|
100
|
|
|
|
130
|
|
Income and other
taxes
|
|
|
34
|
|
|
|
27
|
|
Other
|
|
|
97
|
|
|
|
113
|
|
|
|
$
|
943
|
|
|
$
|
1,111
|
|
As of December 4, 2008 and August 28,
2008, customer advances included $99 million and $129 million, respectively, for
the Company’s obligation to provide certain NAND Flash memory products to Apple
Computer, Inc. (“Apple”) until December 31, 2010 pursuant to a prepaid NAND
Flash supply agreement. As of December 4, 2008 and August 28, 2008,
other accounts payable and accrued expenses included $18 million and $16
million, respectively, for amounts due to Intel for NAND Flash product design
and process development and licensing fees pursuant to a research and
development cost-sharing arrangement.
As of December 4, 2008 and August 28,
2008, other noncurrent liabilities included $83 million pursuant to the supply
agreement with Apple.
Debt
|
|
December
4, 2008
|
|
|
August
28, 2008
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Convertible senior notes payable,
interest rate of 1.875%, due June 2014
|
|
$
|
1,300
|
|
|
$
|
1,300
|
|
Notes payable in periodic
installments through July 2015, weighted-average effective interest rate
of 8.3% and 4.5%, respectively, net of unamortized discount of $33 and $3,
respectively
|
|
|
852
|
|
|
|
699
|
|
Capital lease obligations payable
in monthly installments through February 2023, weighted-average imputed
interest rate of 6.5 % and 6.6%, respectively
|
|
|
644
|
|
|
|
657
|
|
Convertible subordinated notes
payable, interest rate of 5.6%, due April 2010
|
|
|
70
|
|
|
|
70
|
|
|
|
|
2,866
|
|
|
|
2,726
|
|
Less current
portion
|
|
|
(343
|
)
|
|
|
(275
|
)
|
|
|
$
|
2,523
|
|
|
$
|
2,451
|
|
In connection with the purchase of its
35.5% interest in Inotera, the Company entered into a two-year variable rate
term loan with Nan Ya Plastics and a six-month variable rate term loan with
Inotera. On November 26, 2008, the Company received loan proceeds of
$200 million from Nan Ya Plastics and $85 million from Inotera, which are
payable at the end of each loan term. Under the terms of the loan
agreements, interest is payable quarterly at LIBOR plus 2%. The
interest rates reset quarterly and were 4.2% per annum as of December 4,
2008. The Company recorded the debt net of aggregate discounts of $31
million, which will be recognized as interest expense over the respective lives
of the loans, resulting in an effective interest rate of 12.1% for the Nan Ya
Plastics loan and 11.6% for the Inotera loan. The Nan Ya Plastics
loan is collateralized by a first priority security interest in the Inotera
shares owned by the Company (approximate carrying value of $378 million as of
December 4, 2008). (See “Equity Method Investments”
note.)
TECH Semiconductor Singapore Pte. Ltd.
(“TECH”), the Company’s joint venture subsidiary, has a credit facility that is
collateralized by substantially all of the assets of TECH, which had an
approximate carrying value of $1,744 million as of December 4,
2008.
Contingencies
The Company has accrued a liability and
charged operations for the estimated costs of adjudication or settlement of
various asserted and unasserted claims existing as of the balance sheet date,
including those described below. The Company is currently a party to
other legal actions arising out of the normal course of business, none of which
is expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, results
of operations or financial condition.
In the normal course of business, the
Company is a party to a variety of agreements pursuant to which it may be
obligated to indemnify the other party. It is not possible to predict
the maximum potential amount of future payments under these types of agreements
due to the conditional nature of the Company’s obligations and the unique facts
and circumstances involved in each particular
agreement. Historically, payments made by the Company under these
types of agreements have not had a material effect on the Company’s business,
results of operations or financial condition.
The Company is involved in the
following patent, antitrust and securities matters.
Patent
Matters:
As is typical in the semiconductor and other high
technology industries, from time to time, others have asserted, and may in the
future assert, that the Company’s products or manufacturing processes infringe
their intellectual property rights. In this regard, the Company is
engaged in litigation with Rambus, Inc. (“Rambus”) relating to certain of
Rambus’ patents and certain of the Company’s claims and
defenses. Lawsuits between Rambus and the Company are pending in the
U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, U.S. District Court for the
Northern District of California, Germany, France, and Italy. In the
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, trial is scheduled
to begin on January 21, 2009 on a patent phase of the case alleging that certain
Company memory products infringe Rambus patents. The Company also is
engaged in patent litigation with Mosaid Technologies, Inc. (“Mosaid”) in the
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Among
other things, the above lawsuits pertain to certain of the Company’s SDRAM, DDR
SDRAM, DDR2 SDRAM, DDR3 SDRAM, RLDRAM and image sensor products, which account
for a significant portion of net sales.
The Company is unable to predict the
outcome of assertions of infringement made against the Company and therefore
cannot estimate the range of possible loss. A court determination
that the Company’s products or manufacturing processes infringe the intellectual
property rights of others could result in significant liability and/or require
the Company to make material changes to its products and/or manufacturing
processes. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect
on the Company’s business, results of operations or financial
condition.
Antitrust
Matters:
At least sixty-eight purported class action
price-fixing lawsuits have been filed against the Company and other DRAM
suppliers in various federal and state courts in the United States and in Puerto
Rico on behalf of indirect purchasers alleging price-fixing in violation of
federal and state antitrust laws, violations of state unfair competition law,
and/or unjust enrichment relating to the sale and pricing of DRAM products
during the period from April 1999 through at least June 2002. The
complaints seek treble damages sustained by purported class members in addition
to restitution, costs and attorneys’ fees. A number of these cases
have been removed to federal court and transferred to the U.S. District Court
for the Northern District of California for consolidated
proceedings. On January 29, 2008, the Northern District of California
court granted in part and denied in part the Company’s motion to dismiss
plaintiffs’ second amended consolidated complaint. Plaintiffs
subsequently filed a motion seeking certification for interlocutory appeal of
the decision. On February 27, 2008, plaintiffs filed a third amended
complaint. On June 26, 2008, the United States Court of Appeals for
the Ninth Circuit accepted plaintiffs’ interlocutory appeal.
In addition, various states, through
their Attorneys General, have filed suit against the Company and other DRAM
manufacturers. On July 14, 2006, and on September 8, 2006 in an
amended complaint, the following Attorneys General filed suit in the U.S.
District Court for the Northern District of California: Alaska,
Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho,
Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan,
Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North
Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island,
South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West
Virginia, Wisconsin and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana
Islands. Thereafter, three states, Ohio, New Hampshire, and Texas,
voluntarily dismissed their claims. The remaining states filed a
third amended complaint on October 1, 2007. Alaska, Delaware,
Kentucky, and Vermont subsequently voluntarily dismissed their
claims. The amended complaint alleges, among other things, violations
of the Sherman Act, Cartwright Act, and certain other states’ consumer
protection and antitrust laws and seeks damages, and injunctive and other
relief. Additionally, on July 13, 2006, the State of New York filed a
similar suit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New
York. That case was subsequently transferred to the U.S. District
Court for the Northern District of California for pre-trial
purposes. The State of New York filed an amended complaint on October
1, 2007. On October 3, 2008, the California Attorney General filed a
similar lawsuit in California Superior Court, purportedly on behalf of local
California government entities, alleging, among other things, violations of the
Cartwright Act and state unfair competition law.
Three purported class action DRAM
lawsuits also have been filed in Quebec, Ontario, and British Columbia, Canada,
on behalf of direct and indirect purchasers, alleging violations of the Canadian
Competition Act. The substantive allegations in these cases are
similar to those asserted in the cases filed in the United States. In
May and June 2008 respectively, plaintiffs’ motion for class certification was
denied in the British Columbia and Quebec cases. Plaintiffs
subsequently filed an appeal of each of those decisions.
In February and March 2007, All
American Semiconductor, Inc., Jaco Electronics, Inc., and the DRAM Claims
Liquidation Trust each filed suit against the Company and other DRAM suppliers
in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California after
opting-out of a direct purchaser class action suit that was
settled. The complaints allege, among other things, violations of
federal and state antitrust and competition laws in the DRAM industry, and seek
damages, injunctive relief, and other remedies.
On October 11, 2006, the Company
received a grand jury subpoena from the U.S. District Court for the Northern
District of California seeking information regarding an investigation by the DOJ
into possible antitrust violations in the “Static Random Access Memory” or
“SRAM” industry. In December 2008, the Company was informed that the
DOJ closed its investigation of the SRAM industry.
Subsequent to the issuance of subpoenas
to the SRAM industry, a number of purported class action lawsuits have been
filed against the Company and other SRAM suppliers. Six cases have
been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
asserting claims on behalf of a purported class of individuals and entities that
purchased SRAM directly from various SRAM suppliers during the period from
November 1, 1996 through December 31, 2005. Additionally, at least
seventy-four cases have been filed in various U.S. District Courts asserting
claims on behalf of a purported class of individuals and entities that
indirectly purchased SRAM and/or products containing SRAM from various SRAM
suppliers during the time period from November 1, 1996 through December 31,
2006. In September 2008, a class of direct purchasers was certified,
and plaintiffs were granted leave to amend their complaint to cover
Pseudo-Static RAM or “PSRAM” products as well. The complaints allege
price fixing in violation of federal antitrust laws and state antitrust and
unfair competition laws and seek treble monetary damages, restitution, costs,
interest and attorneys’ fees.
Three purported class action SRAM
lawsuits also have been filed in Canada, on behalf of direct and indirect
purchasers, alleging violations of the Canadian Competition Act. The
substantive allegations in these cases are similar to those asserted in the SRAM
cases filed in the United States.
In addition, three purported class
action lawsuits alleging price-fixing of Flash products have been filed in
Canada, asserting violations of the Canadian Competition Act. These
cases assert claims on behalf of a purported class of individuals and entities
that purchased Flash memory directly and indirectly from various Flash memory
suppliers.
On May 5, 2004, Rambus filed a
complaint in the Superior Court of the State of California (San Francisco
County) against the Company and other DRAM suppliers. The complaint
alleges various causes of action under California state law including conspiracy
to restrict output and fix prices on Rambus DRAM (“RDRAM”) and unfair
competition. Trial is currently scheduled to begin in March
2009. The complaint seeks treble damages, punitive damages,
attorneys’ fees, costs, and a permanent injunction enjoining the defendants from
the conduct alleged in the complaint.
The Company is unable to predict the
outcome of these lawsuits and investigations and therefore cannot estimate the
range of possible loss. The final resolution of these alleged
violations of antitrust laws could result in significant liability and could
have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, results of operations
or financial condition.
Securities
Matters:
On February 24, 2006, a putative class action
complaint was filed against the Company and certain of its officers in the U.S.
District Court for the District of Idaho alleging claims under Section 10(b) and
20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Rule 10b-5
promulgated thereunder. Four substantially similar complaints
subsequently were filed in the same Court. The cases purport to be
brought on behalf of a class of purchasers of the Company’s stock during the
period February 24, 2001 to February 13, 2003. The five lawsuits have
been consolidated and a consolidated amended class action complaint was filed on
July 24, 2006. The complaint generally alleges violations of federal
securities laws based on, among other things, claimed misstatements or omissions
regarding alleged illegal price-fixing conduct. The complaint seeks
unspecified damages, interest, attorneys’ fees, costs, and
expenses. On December 19, 2007, the Court issued an order certifying
the class but reducing the class period to purchasers of the Company’s stock
during the period from February 24, 2001 to September 18, 2002.
In addition, on March 23, 2006, a
shareholder derivative action was filed in the Fourth District Court for the
State of Idaho (Ada County), allegedly on behalf of and for the benefit of the
Company, against certain of the Company’s current and former officers and
directors. The Company also was named as a nominal
defendant. An amended complaint was filed on August 23, 2006 and
subsequently dismissed by the Court. Another amended complaint was
filed on September 6, 2007. The amended complaint is based on the
same allegations of fact as in the securities class actions filed in the U.S.
District Court for the District of Idaho and alleges breach of fiduciary duty,
abuse of control, gross mismanagement, waste of corporate assets, unjust
enrichment, and insider trading. The amended complaint seeks
unspecified damages, restitution, disgorgement of profits, equitable and
injunctive relief, attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses. The amended
complaint is derivative in nature and does not seek monetary damages from the
Company. However, the Company may be required, throughout the
pendency of the action, to advance payment of legal fees and costs incurred by
the defendants. On January 25, 2008, the Court granted the Company’s
motion to dismiss the second amended complaint without leave to
amend. On March 10, 2008, plaintiffs filed a notice of appeal to the
Idaho Court of Appeals.
The Company is unable to predict the
outcome of these cases and therefore cannot estimate the range of possible
loss. A court determination in any of these actions against the
Company could result in significant liability and could have a material adverse
effect on the Company’s business, results of operations or financial
condition.
Fair
Value Measurements
SFAS No. 157 establishes three levels
of inputs that may be used to measure fair value: quoted prices in active
markets for identical assets or liabilities (referred to as Level 1), observable
inputs other than Level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability, either
directly or indirectly (referred to as Level 2) and unobservable inputs to the
valuation methodology that are significant to the measurement of fair value of
assets or liabilities (referred to as Level 3).
Fair value
measurements on a recurring basis:
Assets measured at fair value on a
recurring basis as of December 4, 2008 were as follows:
|
|
Level
1
|
|
|
Level
2
|
|
|
Total
Balance
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Money
market
(1)
|
|
$
|
513
|
|
|
$
|
--
|
|
|
$
|
513
|
|
Commercial
paper
(1)
|
|
|
--
|
|
|
|
112
|
|
|
|
112
|
|
U.S.
government and agencies
(1)
|
|
|
184
|
|
|
|
--
|
|
|
|
184
|
|
Certificates
of deposit
(1)
|
|
|
--
|
|
|
|
133
|
|
|
|
133
|
|
Corporate
notes and bonds
(2)
|
|
|
3
|
|
|
|
--
|
|
|
|
3
|
|
Marketable
equity investments
(3)
|
|
|
6
|
|
|
|
--
|
|
|
|
6
|
|
|
|
$
|
706
|
|
|
$
|
245
|
|
|
$
|
951
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(1)
Included in cash
and
equivalents
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(2)
Included in short-term
investments
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(3)
Included in other
assets
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Level 2 assets are valued using
observable inputs in active markets for similar assets or alternative pricing
sources and models utilizing market observable inputs. During the
first quarter of 2009, the Company recognized an other-than-temporary impairment
of $7 million for marketable equity instruments.
Fair value
measurements on a nonrecurring basis:
As of December 4, 2008,
non-marketable equity investments of $13 million were valued at fair value using
Level 3 inputs. In the first quarter of 2009, the Company identified
events and circumstances that indicated the fair value of a non-marketable
equity investment sustained an other-than-temporary loss in
value. The Company recognized an impairment charge of $2 million to
write down the carrying value of this investment to its estimated fair
value. The fair value measurement was determined using market
multiples derived from industry-comparable companies which were classified as
Level 3 inputs, as they were unobservable and require management’s judgment due
to the absence of quoted market prices, inherent lack of liquidity and the
long-term nature of such investments.
During the first quarter of 2009, the
Company recorded the loans with Nan Ya Plastics and Inotera at fair value
because the stated interest rates were substantially lower than the prevailing
rates for loans with comparable terms and collateral and for borrowers with
similar credit ratings. The fair values of these loans were
determined based on discounted cash flows using inputs that are observable in
the market or that could be derived from or corroborated with observable market
data, as well as significant unobservable inputs (Level 3), including interest
rates based on published rates for transactions involving borrowers with similar
credit ratings as the Company. (See “Debt”
note.)
Equity
Plans
As of December 4, 2008, the Company had
an aggregate of 189.7 million shares of its common stock reserved for issuance
under various equity plans, of which 121.5 million shares were subject to
outstanding stock awards and 68.2 million shares were available for future
grants. Awards are subject to terms and conditions as determined by
the Company’s Board of Directors.
Stock
options:
The Company granted 6.8 million and 0.2 million stock
options during the first quarters of 2009 and 2008, respectively, with
weighted-average grant-date fair values per share of $2.31 and $4.10,
respectively.
The fair values of option awards are
estimated as of the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option valuation
model. The Black-Scholes model was developed for use in estimating
the fair value of traded options which have no vesting restrictions and are
fully transferable and requires the input of subjective assumptions, including
the expected stock price volatility and estimated option life. The
expected volatilities utilized by the Company are based on implied volatilities
from traded options on the Company’s stock and on historical
volatility. The expected life of options granted in 2009 was based,
in part, on historical experience and on the terms and conditions of the
options. The expected life of options granted prior to 2009 was based
on the simplified method provided by the Securities and Exchange
Commission. The risk-free rates utilized by the Company are based on
the U.S. Treasury yield in effect at the time of the grant. No
dividends have been assumed in the Company’s estimated option
values. Assumptions used in the Black-Scholes model are presented
below:
|
|
Quarter
ended
|
|
|
|
December
4,
2008
|
|
|
November
29,
2007
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Average expected life in
years
|
|
|
4.75
|
|
|
|
4.25
|
|
Weighted-average expected
volatility
|
|
|
60
|
%
|
|
|
38
|
%
|
Weighted-average risk-free
interest rate
|
|
|
2.6
|
%
|
|
|
4.0
|
%
|
Restricted
stock:
The Company awards restricted stock and restricted
stock units (collectively, “Restricted Awards”) under its equity
plans. During the first quarter of 2009, the Company granted 1.7
million shares of service-based Restricted Awards and 1.7 million shares of
performance-based Restricted Awards. During the first quarter of
2008, the Company granted 1.3 million shares of service-based Restricted Awards
and 1.3 million shares of performance-based Restricted Awards. The
weighted-average grant-date fair values per share were $4.48 and $10.76 for
Restricted Awards granted during the first quarters of 2009 and 2008,
respectively.
Stock-based
compensation expense:
Total compensation costs for the
Company’s equity plans were as follows:
|
|
Quarter
ended
|
|
|
|
December
4,
2008
|
|
|
November
29,
2007
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Stock-based
compensation expense by caption:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cost of goods
sold
|
|
$
|
4
|
|
|
$
|
3
|
|
Selling, general and
administrative
|
|
|
2
|
|
|
|
6
|
|
Research and
development
|
|
|
3
|
|
|
|
4
|
|
|
|
$
|
9
|
|
|
$
|
13
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Stock-based
compensation expense by type of award:
|
|
|
|
|
|
Stock options
|
|
$
|
7
|
|
|
$
|
6
|
|
Restricted
stock
|
|
|
2
|
|
|
|
7
|
|
|
|
$
|
9
|
|
|
$
|
13
|
|
As of December 4, 2008, $96 million of
total unrecognized compensation costs related to non-vested awards was expected
to be recognized through the first quarter of 2013, resulting in a
weighted-average period of 1.3 years. Stock-based compensation
expense in the above presentation does not reflect any significant income taxes,
which is consistent with the Company’s treatment of income or loss from its U.S.
operations. (See “Income Taxes” note.)
Restructure
In the first quarter of 2009, in
response to a challenging global environment for technology products, the
Company announced a restructuring of its memory operations. As part
of the restructure, the Company’s IM Flash joint venture between the Company and
Intel terminated its agreement with the Company to obtain NAND Flash memory
supply from the Company’s Boise facility, reducing the Company’s NAND Flash
production by approximately 35,000 200mm wafers per month. In
addition, the Company and Intel agreed to suspend tooling and the ramp of
production at IM Flash’s Singapore wafer fabrication facility. The
Company has also undertaken additional cost savings measures to increase its
competitiveness, including reductions in executive and employee salary and
bonuses, a continued hiring freeze, and reduction of other discretionary costs
such as outside services, travel and overtime. As a result of these
actions, the Company recorded a net $66 million credit to restructure in the
first quarter of 2009, attributable to the Company’s Memory
segment. The amount includes a $144 million gain in connection with
the termination of the NAND Flash supply agreement. As of December 4,
2008, the Company expected to incur additional restructure costs of
approximately $40 million through 2010. The components of the
restructure charges and credits were as follows:
Restructure
charge (credit):
|
|
|
|
Gain from termination of NAND
Flash supply agreement
|
|
$
|
(144
|
)
|
Write-down of
equipment
|
|
|
56
|
|
Severance and other
termination benefits
|
|
|
22
|
|
Total restructure
credit
|
|
$
|
(66
|
)
|
As of December 4, 2008, $6 million of
the restructure costs remained unpaid and were included in accounts payable and
accrued expenses.
In the first quarter of 2008, the
Company recorded a restructure charge of $13 million, primarily to the Memory
segment, for employee severance and related costs and a write-down of certain
facilities.
Other
Operating (Income) Expense, Net
Other operating (income) expense for
the first quarter of 2009 included losses of $14 million on disposals of
semiconductor equipment. Other operating (income) expense for the
first quarter of 2008 included $38 million in receipts from the U.S. government
in connection with anti-dumping tariffs, losses of $27 million from changes in
currency exchange rates, and gains of $10 million on disposals of semiconductor
equipment.
Income
Taxes
Income taxes for 2009 and 2008
primarily reflect taxes on the Company’s non-U.S. operations and U.S.
alternative minimum tax. The Company has a valuation allowance for
its net deferred tax asset associated with its U.S. operations. The
benefit for taxes on U.S. operations in 2009 and 2008 was substantially offset
by changes in the valuation allowance.
Earnings
Per Share
Basic earnings per share is computed
based on the weighted-average number of common shares and stock rights
outstanding. Diluted earnings per share is computed based on the
weighted-average number of common shares outstanding plus the dilutive effects
of stock options, warrants and convertible notes. Potential common
shares that would increase earnings per share amounts or decrease loss per share
amounts are antidilutive and are therefore excluded from earnings per share
calculations. Antidilutive potential common shares that could dilute
basic earnings per share in the future were 219.1 million and 251.0 million for
the first quarters of 2009 and 2008, respectively.
|
|
Quarter
ended
|
|
|
|
December
4,
2008
|
|
|
November
29,
2007
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net loss available to common
shareholders
|
|
$
|
(706
|
)
|
|
$
|
(262
|
)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Weighted-average common shares
outstanding
|
|
|
773.3
|
|
|
|
771.9
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Loss per share:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Basic
|
|
$
|
(0.91
|
)
|
|
$
|
(0.34
|
)
|
Diluted
|
|
|
(0.91
|
)
|
|
|
(0.34
|
)
|
Comprehensive
Income (Loss)
Comprehensive loss for the first
quarter of 2009 was ($702) million and included $4 million, net of tax, of
unrealized gains on investments. Comprehensive loss for the first
quarter of 2008 was ($263) million and included de minimis amounts of unrealized
gains and losses on investments.
Consolidated
Joint Ventures
NAND Flash joint
ventures with Intel (“IM Flash”):
The Company has formed two
joint ventures with Intel (IM Flash Technologies, LLC and IM Flash Singapore
LLP) to manufacture NAND Flash memory products for the exclusive benefit of the
partners. As of December 4, 2008, the Company owned 51% and Intel
owned 49% of IM Flash. The Company has determined that both of the IM
Flash joint ventures are variable interest entities as defined in FIN 46(R), and
that the Company is the primary beneficiary of both. Accordingly, IM
Flash’s financial results are included in the consolidated financial statements
of the Company and all amounts pertaining to Intel’s interests in IM Flash are
reported as noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries.
IM Flash manufactures NAND Flash memory
products based on NAND Flash designs developed by the Company and Intel and
licensed to the Company. Product design and other research and
development (“R&D”) costs for NAND Flash are generally shared equally
between the Company and Intel. As a result of reimbursements received
from Intel under this NAND Flash R&D cost-sharing arrangement, the Company’s
R&D expenses were reduced by $32 million and $53 million in the first
quarters of 2009 and 2008, respectively.
IM Flash sells products to the joint
venture partners generally in proportion to their ownership at long-term
negotiated prices approximating cost. IM Flash sales to Intel were
$318 million and $223 million for the first quarters of 2009 and 2008,
respectively. As of December 4, 2008 and August 28, 2008, IM Flash
had receivables from Intel primarily for sales of NAND Flash products of $161
million and $144 million, respectively. In addition, as of December
4, 2008, the Company had receivables from Intel of $208 million in connection
with the termination of a supply agreement for NAND Flash memory produced at the
Company’s Boise facility and $36 million related to NAND Flash product design
and process development activities. As of December 4, 2008 and August
28, 2008, IM Flash had payables to Intel of $1 million and $4 million,
respectively, for various services.
Under the terms of a wafer supply
agreement, the Company manufactured wafers for IM Flash in its Boise, Idaho
facility. In the first quarter of 2009, the Company discontinued
production of NAND flash memory for IM Flash at its Boise
facility. Also in the first quarter of 2009, IM Flash substantially
completed construction of a new 300mm wafer fabrication facility structure in
Singapore and the Company and Intel agreed to suspend tooling and the ramp of
production at this facility.
In the first quarter of 2009, IM Flash
distributed $145 million to Intel. In the first quarter of 2008,
Intel contributed $150 million to IM Flash. The Company’s ability to
access IM Flash’s cash and marketable investment securities ($249 million as of
December 4, 2008) to finance the Company’s other operations is subject to
agreement by the joint venture partners. The creditors of IM Flash
have recourse only to the assets of IM Flash and do not have recourse to any
other assets of the Company.
TECH
Semiconductor Singapore Pte. Ltd. (“TECH”):
Since 1998, the
Company has participated in TECH, a semiconductor memory manufacturing joint
venture in Singapore among the Company, Canon Inc. and Hewlett-Packard Company
(“HP”). As of December 4, 2008, the Company owned an approximate 73%
interest in TECH.
TECH’s cash and marketable investment
securities ($91 million as of December 4, 2008) are not anticipated to be
available to finance the Company’s other operations. In March, 2008,
TECH entered into a credit facility, which is guaranteed, in part, by the
Company.
MP Mask
Technology Center, LLC (“MP Mask”):
In 2006, the Company
formed a joint venture, MP Mask, with Photronics, Inc. (“Photronics”) to produce
photomasks for leading-edge and advanced next generation
semiconductors. As of December 4, 2008, the Company owned 50.01% and
Photronics owned 49.99% of MP Mask.
In 2008, the Company completed the
construction of a facility to produce photomasks and leased the facility to
Photronics under a build to suit lease agreement. Under the terms of
the lease agreement, the Company will receive quarterly lease payments through
January 2013. As of December 4, 2008, other receivables included $12
million and other noncurrent assets included $43 million for this
lease.
Segment
Information
The Company’s segments are Memory and
Imaging. The Memory segment’s primary products are DRAM and NAND
Flash memory and the Imaging segment’s primary product is CMOS image
sensors. Segment information reported below is consistent with how it
is reviewed and evaluated by the Company’s chief operating decision makers and
is based on the nature of the Company’s operations and products offered to
customers. The Company does not identify or report depreciation and
amortization, capital expenditures or assets by segment.
|
|
Quarter
ended
|
|
|
|
December
4,
2008
|
|
|
November
29,
2007
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net sales:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Memory
|
|
$
|
1,222
|
|
|
$
|
1,366
|
|
Imaging
|
|
|
180
|
|
|
|
169
|
|
Total consolidated net
sales
|
|
$
|
1,402
|
|
|
$
|
1,535
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Operating income
(loss):
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Memory
|
|
$
|
(675
|
)
|
|
$
|
(251
|
)
|
Imaging
|
|
|
3
|
|
|
|
(9
|
)
|
Total consolidated operating
loss
|
|
$
|
(672
|
)
|
|
$
|
(260
|
)
|
Item
2.
Management’s
Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of
Operations
The following discussion contains trend
information and other forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks
and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to,
statements such as those made in “Overview” regarding the costs of restructure
plans, the Company’s DRAM development costs relative to Nanya, Inotera's
transition to the Company's stack process technology, the supply of DRAM wafers
from Inotera Memories, Inc. and manufacturing plans for CMOS image sensors; in
“Net Sales” regarding production levels for the second quarter of 2009, future
increases in NAND production and demand for Imaging products in the second
quarter of 2009; in “Gross Margin” regarding the effects of temporary production
slowdowns for the second quarter of 2009 and future charges for inventory
write-downs; in “Restructure” regarding the remaining costs of restructure
plans; in “Stock-based Compensation” regarding future stock-based compensation
costs; in “Liquidity and Capital Resources” regarding capital spending in 2009,
future distributions from IM Flash to Intel and capital contributions to TECH;
and in “Recently Issued Accounting Standards” regarding the impact from the
adoption of new accounting standards. The Company’s actual results
could differ materially from the Company’s historical results and those
discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause
actual results to differ materially include, but are not limited to, those
identified in “PART II. OTHER INFORMATION – Item 1A. Risk
Factors.” This discussion should be read in conjunction with the
Consolidated Financial Statements and accompanying notes and with the Company’s
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended August 28, 2008. All
period references are to the Company’s fiscal periods unless otherwise
indicated. The Company’s fiscal year is the 52 or 53-week period
ending on the Thursday closest to August 31. The Company’s fiscal
2009, which ends on September 3, 2009, contains 53 weeks. All
production data reflects production of the Company and its consolidated joint
ventures.
Overview
The Company is a global manufacturer of
semiconductor devices, principally semiconductor memory products (including DRAM
and NAND Flash) and CMOS image sensors. The Company operates in two
segments: Memory and Imaging. Its products are used in a
broad range of electronic applications including personal computers,
workstations, network servers, mobile phones and other consumer applications
including Flash memory cards, USB storage devices, digital still cameras, MP3/4
players and in automotive applications. The Company markets its
products through its internal sales force, independent sales representatives and
distributors primarily to original equipment manufacturers and retailers located
around the world. The Company’s success is largely dependent on the
market acceptance of a diversified portfolio of semiconductor memory products,
efficient utilization of the Company’s manufacturing infrastructure, successful
ongoing development of advanced process technologies and generation of
sufficient return on research and development investments.
The Company has made significant
investments to develop proprietary product and process technology that is
implemented in its worldwide manufacturing facilities and through its joint
ventures to enable the production of semiconductor products with increasing
functionality and performance at lower costs. The Company generally
reduces the manufacturing cost of each generation of product through
advancements in product and process technology such as its leading-edge
line-width process technology and innovative array architecture. The
Company continues to introduce new generations of products that offer improved
performance characteristics, such as higher data transfer rates, reduced package
size, lower power consumption and increased memory density and megapixel
count. To leverage its significant investments in research and
development, the Company has formed strategic joint ventures under which the
costs of developing memory product and process technologies are shared with its
joint venture partners. In addition, from time to time, the Company
has also sold and/or licensed technology to other parties. The
Company is pursuing additional opportunities to recover its investment in
intellectual property through partnering and other arrangements.
The semiconductor memory industry is
experiencing a severe downturn due to a significant oversupply of
products. The downturn has been exacerbated by global economic
conditions which have adversely affected demand for semiconductor memory
products. Average selling prices per gigabit for the Company’s DRAM
and NAND Flash products for the first quarter of 2009 decreased 34% and 24%,
respectively, compared to the fourth quarter of 2008. Average selling
prices per gigabit for the Company’s DRAM and NAND Flash products in 2008 were
down 51% and 67%, respectively, compared to 2007 and down 63% and 85%,
respectively, compared to 2006. These declines significantly outpaced
the long-term historical trend. As a result of these market
conditions, the Company and other semiconductor memory manufacturers have
reported negative gross margins and substantial losses in recent
periods. In the first quarter of 2009, the Company reported a net
loss $706 million after reporting a net loss of $1.6 billion for
2008. In response to these market conditions, on October 9, 2008 the
Company announced a plan to restructure its Memory operations. In the
first quarter of 2009, the Company discontinued production of NAND flash memory
for IM Flash at its Boise facility reducing the Company’s NAND flash production
by approximately 35,000 200mm wafers per month. In addition, the
Company and Intel agreed to suspend tooling and the ramp of NAND Flash
production at IM Flash’s Singapore wafer fabrication plant. The
Company has also undertaken additional cost savings measures to increase its
competitiveness, including reductions in executive and employee salary and
bonuses, a continued hiring freeze, and reduction of other discretionary costs
such as outside services, travel and overtime. As of December 4,
2008, the Company expected to incur additional restructure costs of
approximately $40 million through 2010.
The effects of the worsening global
economy and the tightening credit market are also making it increasingly
difficult for semiconductor memory manufacturers to obtain external sources of
financing to fund their operations. Although the Company believes
that it is better positioned than some of its peers, it faces challenges in the
current and near term that require it to continue to make significant
improvements in its competitiveness. Additionally, the Company is
pursuing financing alternatives, delaying capital expenditures and implementing
further cost-cutting initiatives.
DRAM joint
ventures with Nanya Technology Corporation
(“Nanya”):
The Company has a partnering arrangement with
Nanya Technology Corporation (“Nanya”) pursuant to which the Company and Nanya
jointly develop process technology and designs to manufacture stack DRAM
products. Each party generally bears its own development costs and
the Company’s development costs are expected to exceed Nanya’s development costs
by a significant amount. In addition, the Company has transferred and
licensed certain intellectual property related to the manufacture of stack DRAM
products to Nanya and licensed certain intellectual property from
Nanya. The Company is to receive an aggregate of $207 million from
Nanya through 2010. Further, the Company will receive royalties from
Nanya for stack DRAM products manufactured by or for Nanya.
The Company has partnered with Nanya in
investments in two Taiwan DRAM memory manufacturers: Inotera
Memories, Inc. (“Inotera”) and MeiYa Technology Corporation
(“MeiYa”). As of December 4, 2008, the Company owned 35.5% of Inotera
and 50% of MeiYa and Nanya owned 35.6% of Inotera and 50% of
MeiYa. The Company’s investments in Inotera and MeiYa are accounted
for under the equity method because of the Company’s ability to exercise
significant influence over the operating and financial policies of these
entities. As of December 4, 2008 and August 28, 2008, the Company’s
aggregate carrying value of these equity method investments in the accompanying
consolidated balance sheet was $432 million and $84 million,
respectively. Inotera and MeiYa each have fiscal years that end on
December 31. As these fiscal years differ from that of the Company’s
fiscal year, the Company recognizes its share of Inotera and MeiYa quarterly
earnings or losses for the calendar quarter that ends within the Company’s
fiscal quarter. This results in the recognition of the Company’s
share of earnings or losses from these entities for a period that lags the
Company’s fiscal periods by approximately two months.
Inotera:
In
the first quarter of 2009, the Company acquired a 35.5% ownership interest (or
approximately 1.2 billion shares) in Inotera, a publicly traded entity in
Taiwan, from Qimonda AG (“Qimonda”) for approximately $400
million. The interest in Inotera was acquired for cash, a portion of
which was funded from loan proceeds of $200 million received by the Company from
Nan Ya Plastics Corporation, an affiliate of Nanya, and $85 million received
from Inotera. The loans were recorded at their fair values, which
reflect an aggregate discount of $31 million from their face
amounts. The aggregate discount was recorded as a reduction of the
Company’s basis in the investment in Inotera. The Company also
capitalized $10 million of costs and other fees incurred in connection with the
acquisition. As a result of the above transactions, as of December 4,
2008 the carrying value of the Company’s equity investment in Inotera was $378
million. Because the Company did not acquire its interest in Inotera
until October and November of 2008, the Company’s results of operations for the
first quarter of 2009 do not include any share of Inotera’s results of
operations for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2008.
The Company has rights and obligations
to purchase 50% of the 120,000 per month 300mm DRAM wafer production of
Inotera. Inotera’s actual wafer production will vary from time to
time based on market and other conditions. In connection with the
acquisition of the shares in Inotera, the Company and Nanya entered into a
Supply Agreement with Inotera (the "Supply Agreement") pursuant to which Inotera
will sell to the Company and Nanya trench and stack DRAM products manufactured
by Inotera. Inotera's current trench production capacity is expected
to transition to the Company's stack process technology. Inotera will sell
to the Company and Nanya all of the trench DRAM products manufactured by it
other than trench DRAM products that are sold by Inotera to Qimonda pursuant to
a separate supply agreement between Inotera and Qimonda (the "Qimonda Supply
Agreement"). Under the Qimonda Supply Agreement, Qimonda is obligated
to purchase trench DRAM products started for it by Inotera for approximately
eight months following the Company’s acquisition of the shares in Inotera in
accordance with a ramp down schedule specified in the Qimonda Supply
Agreement. Initially, (a) with respect to trench DRAM products, the
Company will purchase the products resulting from 50% of Inotera's aggregate
trench DRAM production less the trench DRAM products contemplated to be
purchased by Qimonda pursuant to the Qimonda Supply Agreement and (b) with
respect to stack DRAM products, the Company will purchase the products resulting
from 50% of the aggregate stack DRAM production. The pricing formula
that determines the amounts to be paid by the Company for DRAM products under
the Supply Agreement includes manufacturing costs and margins associated with
the products purchased.
MeiYa:
In
the fourth quarter of 2008, the Company and Nanya formed MeiYa to manufacture
stack DRAM products and sell such products exclusively to the Company and
Nanya. In connection with the purchase of the ownership interest in
Inotera, the Company entered into a series of agreements with Nanya which
contemplate the restructuring of MeiYa and pursuant to which both parties will
cease future funding of, and resource commitments to, MeiYa.
(See
“Item 1. Financial Statements – Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements –
Supplemental Balance Sheet Information – Equity Method
Investments”)
Aptina Imaging
Business:
The Company is exploring partnering arrangements
with outside parties regarding the sale of Aptina in which the Company could
retain a minority ownership interest. To that end, the Company began
operating Aptina as a separate wholly-owned subsidiary in October
2008. Under the arrangements being considered, the Company expects
that it will continue to manufacture CMOS image sensors for some period of
time.
Inventory
Write-Downs:
The Company’s results
of operations for the first quarter of 2009 and the first, second and fourth
quarters of 2008 included charges of $369 million, $62 million, $15 million and
$205 million, respectively, to write down the carrying value of work in process
and finished goods inventories of Memory products (both DRAM and NAND Flash) to
their estimated market values.
Results
of Operations
|
|
First
Quarter
|
|
|
|
Fourth
Quarter
|
|
|
|
|
2009
|
|
|
%
of net sales
|
|
|
|
2008
|
|
|
%
of net sales
|
|
|
|
2008
|
|
|
%
of net sales
|
|
|
Net
sales:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Memory
|
|
$
|
1,222
|
|
|
|
87
|
|
%
|
|
$
|
1,366
|
|
|
|
89
|
|
%
|
|
$
|
1,271
|
|
|
|
88
|
|
%
|
Imaging
|
|
|
180
|
|
|
|
13
|
|
%
|
|
|
169
|
|
|
|
11
|
|
%
|
|
|
178
|
|
|
|
12
|
|
%
|
|
|
$
|
1,402
|
|
|
|
100
|
|
%
|
|
$
|
1,535
|
|
|
|
100
|
|
%
|
|
$
|
1,449
|
|
|
|
100
|
|
%
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gross
margin:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Memory
|
|
$
|
(502
|
)
|
|
|
(41
|
)
|
%
|
|
$
|
(39
|
)
|
|
|
(
3
|
)
|
%
|
|
$
|
(115
|
)
|
|
|
(9
|
)
|
%
|
Imaging
|
|
|
53
|
|
|
|
29
|
|
%
|
|
|
44
|
|
|
|
26
|
|
%
|
|
|
50
|
|
|
|
28
|
|
%
|
|
|
$
|
(449
|
)
|
|
|
(32
|
)
|
%
|
|
$
|
5
|
|
|
|
0
|
|
%
|
|
$
|
(65
|
)
|
|
|
(4
|
)
|
%
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Selling,
general and administrative
|
|
$
|
102
|
|
|
|
7
|
|
%
|
|
$
|
112
|
|
|
|
7
|
|
%
|
|
$
|
107
|
|
|
|
7
|
|
%
|
Research
and development
|
|
|
178
|
|
|
|
13
|
|
%
|
|
|
163
|
|
|
|
11
|
|
%
|
|
|
167
|
|
|
|
12
|
|
%
|
Restructure
|
|
|
(66
|
)
|
|
|
(5
|
)
|
%
|
|
|
13
|
|
|
|
1
|
|
%
|
|
|
4
|
|
|
|
--
|
|
|
Other
operating (income) expense, net
|
|
|
9
|
|
|
|
1
|
|
%
|
|
|
(23
|
)
|
|
|
(1
|
)
|
%
|
|
|
(5
|
)
|
|
|
--
|
|
|
Net
loss
|
|
|
(706
|
)
|
|
|
(50
|
)
|
%
|
|
|
(262
|
)
|
|
|
(17
|
)
|
%
|
|
|
(344
|
)
|
|
|
(24
|
)
|
%
|
The Company’s first quarter of 2009,
which ended December 4, 2008, contained 14 weeks as compared to 13 weeks for the
fourth and first quarters of 2008.
Net
Sales
Total net sales for the first quarter
of 2009 decreased 3% as compared to the fourth quarter of 2008 primarily due to
a 4% decrease in Memory sales. Memory sales for the first quarter of
2009 reflect significant declines in per gigabit average selling prices as
compared to the fourth quarter of 2008 partially offset by increases in gigabits
sold. Memory sales were 87% of total net sales for the first quarter
of 2009 as compared to 88% and 89% for the fourth and first quarters of
2008. Imaging sales for the first quarter of 2009 were stable as
compared to the fourth quarter of 2008. Total net sales for the first
quarter of 2009 decreased 9% as compared to the first quarter of 2008 primarily
due to an 11% decrease in Memory sales partially offset by a 7% increase in
Imaging sales.
In response to market conditions, the
Company implemented temporary production slowdowns at some of its manufacturing
facilities during the second quarter of 2009. The slowdowns and the
shutdown of NAND production for IM Flash at the Company’s Boise fabrication
facility are expected to reduce production output for Memory and Imaging
products in the second quarter of 2009.
The Company has formed partnering
arrangements under which it has sold and/or licensed technology to other
parties. The Company recognized royalty revenue of $36 million in the
first quarter of 2009, $38 million in the fourth quarter of 2008 and $5 million
in the first quarter of 2008.
Memory:
Memory
sales for the first quarter of 2009 decreased 4% from the fourth quarter of 2008
as sales of DRAM products decreased by 10% partially offset by a 6% increase in
sales of NAND Flash products.
Sales of DRAM products for the first
quarter of 2009 decreased from the fourth quarter of 2008 primarily due to a 34%
decline in average selling prices mitigated by a 35% increase in gigabit sales
as a result of production increases and inventory reductions. Gigabit
production of DRAM products increased approximately 23% for the first quarter of
2009 as compared to the fourth quarter of 2008, primarily due to production
efficiencies from improvements in product and process technologies as well as
the additional week in the quarter. Sales of DDR2 and DDR3 DRAM
products were 25% of the Company’s total net sales in the first quarter of 2009
as compared to 28% for the fourth quarter of 2008 and 32% for the first quarter
of 2008.
Sales of NAND Flash products for the
first quarter of 2009 increased from the fourth quarter of 2008 primarily due to
a 40% increase in gigabits sold as a result of production increases and
inventory reductions partially offset by a 24% decline in average selling prices
per gigabit. Gigabit production of NAND Flash products increased 17%
for the first quarter of 2009 as compared to the fourth quarter of 2008,
primarily due to transitions to higher density, advanced geometry devices as
well as the additional week in the quarter. The Company expects that
its gigabit production of NAND Flash products will increase at a slower rate in
2009 than in 2008 primarily due to the completion of production ramps at new
300mm manufacturing facilities in 2008 and the shutdown of 200mm wafer NAND
Flash production at the Company’s Boise fabrication facility in the first
quarter of 2009. Sales of NAND Flash products represented 38% of the
Company’s total net sales for the first quarter of 2009 as compared to 35% for
the fourth quarter of 2008 and 33% for the first quarter of 2008.
Memory sales for the first quarter of
2009 decreased 11% from the first quarter of 2008 primarily due to a 20%
decrease in sales of DRAM products partially offset by a 6% increase in sales of
NAND Flash products. The decrease in sales of DRAM products for the
first quarter of 2009 from the first quarter of 2008 was primarily the result of
a 47% decline in average selling prices mitigated by a 43% increase in gigabits
sold. Gigabit production of DRAM products increased 56% for the first
quarter of 2009 as compared to the first quarter of 2008, primarily due to
production efficiencies from improvements in product and process technologies as
well as the additional week in the quarter. Sales of NAND Flash
products for the first quarter of 2009 increased 6% from the first quarter of
2008 primarily due to a 206% increase in gigabits sold partially offset by a 65%
decline in average selling prices. The significant increase in
gigabit sales of NAND Flash products was primarily due to a 152% increase in
production primarily as a result of the continued ramp of NAND Flash products at
the Company’s 300mm fabrication facilities and transitions to higher density,
advanced geometry devices.
Imaging:
Imaging
sales for the first quarter of 2009 were stable as compared to the fourth
quarter of 2008 reflecting relatively stable average selling prices and unit
sales. Imaging sales for the first quarter of 2009 increased by 7%
from the first quarter of 2008 primarily due to increased units sales of
products with 3-megapixel or higher resolution partially offset by declines in
average selling prices. Imaging sales were approximately 13% of the
Company’s total net sales for the first quarter of 2009 as compared to 12% for
the fourth quarter of 2008 and 11% for the first quarter of 2008. The
Company expects that unit sales for Imaging will decrease in the second quarter
of 2009 due to lower sales of cell phones and other devices incorporating the
Company’s Imaging products.
Gross
Margin
The Company’s overall gross margin
percentage declined from negative 4% for the fourth quarter of 2008 to negative
32% for the first quarter of 2009 due to a decline in the gross margin
percentages for Memory primarily as a result of significant decreases in average
selling prices and inventory write-downs for Memory products. The
Company’s overall gross margin percentage declined from 0% for the first quarter
of 2008 due to a decline in the gross margin percentages for Memory primarily as
a result of significant decreases in average selling prices and inventory
write-downs for Memory products. Temporary production slowdowns that
the Company implemented at some of its manufacturing facilities during the
second quarter of 2009 are expected to adversely affect per megabit and per unit
costs of Memory and Imaging products.
Memory:
The
Company’s gross margin percentage for Memory products declined from negative 9%
for the fourth quarter of 2008 to negative 41% for the first quarter of 2009
primarily due to declines in the gross margin for both DRAM and NAND Flash
products. Gross margins for DRAM and NAND Flash products for the
first quarter of 2009 were adversely affected by declines in average selling
prices and inventory write-downs, mitigated by reductions in manufacturing
costs.
The Company’s gross margins for Memory
in 2009 and 2008 were impacted by charges to write down inventories to their
estimated market values as a result of the significant decreases in average
selling prices for both DRAM and NAND Flash products. The impact of
inventory write-downs on gross margins for all periods reflects the period-end
inventory write-down less the estimated net effect of prior period
write-downs. The effects of inventory write-downs on gross margin for
the first quarter of 2009 and fourth and first quarters of 2008 were as
follows:
|
|
First
Quarter
2009
|
|
|
First
Quarter
2008
|
|
|
Fourth
Quarter
2008
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Period-end
inventory write-downs
|
|
$
|
(369
|
)
|
|
$
|
(62
|
)
|
|
$
|
(205
|
)
|
Estimated
net effect of previous write-downs
|
|
|
157
|
|
|
|
14
|
|
|
|
13
|
|
Net effect of inventory
write-downs
|
|
$
|
(212
|
)
|
|
$
|
(48
|
)
|
|
$
|
(192
|
)
|
As charges to write down inventories
are recorded in advance of when inventories are sold, gross margins in
subsequent periods are higher than they would be absent the effect of the
previous write-downs. In future periods, the Company will be required
to record additional inventory write-downs if estimated average selling prices
of products held in finished goods and work in process inventories at a
quarter-end date are below the manufacturing cost of those
products.
The Company’s gross margin for DRAM
products for the first quarter of 2009 declined from the fourth quarter of 2008,
primarily due to the 34% decrease in average selling prices per gigabit and
inventory write-downs mitigated by a reduction in production costs per
gigabit. The Company achieved manufacturing cost reductions for DRAM
products through transitions to higher-density, advanced-geometry
devices. DRAM production cost reductions for the first quarter of
2009 were offset by the inventory write-downs. The Company reduced
its DRAM manufacturing costs (which exclude inventory write-downs) per gigabit
by 12% for the first quarter of 2009 as compared to the fourth quarter of
2008.
The Company’s gross margin for NAND
Flash products for the first quarter of 2009 declined from the fourth quarter of
2008 primarily due to the 24% decrease in average selling prices per gigabit and
inventory write-downs. In addition, results for the fourth quarter of
2008 reflected reduced costs from the recovery of $70 million for pricing
adjustments for NAND Flash products purchased from other suppliers in prior
periods. The decline in gross margin was mitigated by a reduction in
manufacturing costs per gigabit for NAND Flash products primarily achieved
through increased production of higher-density, advanced-geometry
devices. Costs of NAND Flash products were also reduced as a result
of lower prices for products purchased for sale under the Company’s Lexar
brand. Excluding the inventory write-downs and the effect of pricing
adjustments from other suppliers in the fourth quarter of 2008, the Company
reduced its NAND Flash costs per gigabit by 14%. Sales of NAND Flash
products include sales from IM Flash to Intel at long-term negotiated prices
approximating cost. IM Flash sales to Intel were $318 million for the
first quarter of 2009, $293 million for the fourth quarter of 2008 and $223
million for the first quarter of 2008.
The Company’s gross margin percentage
for Memory products declined to negative 41% for the first quarter of 2009 from
negative 3% for the first quarter of 2008 primarily due to lower gross margins
on sales of DRAM and NAND Flash products. Declines in gross margins
on sales of DRAM products for the first quarter of 2009 as compared to the first
quarter of 2008 were primarily due to the 47% decline in average selling prices
and inventory write-offs mitigated by per gigabit cost
reductions. The Company reduced its DRAM production costs (which
exclude inventory write-downs) per gigabit by 35% for the first quarter of 2009
as compared to the first quarter of 2008. Gross margins on NAND Flash
products for the first quarter of 2009 declined from the first quarter of 2008
primarily due to the 65% decline in average selling prices and inventory
write-offs mitigated by per gigabit cost reductions of 55% (excluding inventory
write-offs).
In the first quarter of 2009, the
Company’s TECH Semiconductor Singapore Pte. Ltd. (“TECH”) joint venture
accounted for approximately 13% of the Company’s total wafer
production. TECH primarily produced DDR and DDR2 products in 2009 and
2008. Since TECH utilizes the Company’s product designs and process
technology and has a similar manufacturing cost structure, the gross margin on
sales of TECH products approximates gross margins on sales of similar products
manufactured by the Company’s wholly-owned operations. (See “Item 1.
Financial Statements – Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements – Consolidated
Joint Ventures – TECH Semiconductor Singapore Pte. Ltd.”)
Imaging:
The
Company’s gross margin percentage for Imaging for the first quarter of 2009
improved to 29% from 28% for the fourth quarter of 2008 primarily due to cost
reductions. The Company’s gross margin for Imaging products for the
first quarter of 2009 improved to 29% from 26% for first quarter of 2008,
primarily due to cost reductions partially offset by declines in average selling
prices.
Selling,
General and Administrative
Selling, general and administrative
(“SG&A”) expenses for the first quarter of 2009 decreased 5% from the fourth
quarter of 2008 despite increased costs associated with the additional week in
the quarter, primarily due to lower legal expenses and lower payroll expenses
and other costs as a result of the Company’s restructure
initiatives. SG&A expenses for the first quarter of 2009
decreased 9% from the first quarter of 2008 despite increased costs associated
with the additional week in the quarter, primarily due to lower payroll expenses
and other costs as a result of the Company’s restructure
initiatives. Future SG&A expense is expected to vary, potentially
significantly, depending on, among other things, the number of legal matters
that are resolved relatively early in their life-cycle and the number of matters
that progress to trial.
For the Company’s Memory segment,
SG&A expenses as a percentage of sales were 7% for the first quarter of 2009
and the fourth and first quarters of 2008. For the Imaging segment,
SG&A expenses as a percentage of sales were 8% for the first quarter of
2009, 11% for the fourth quarter of 2008 and 8% for the first quarter of
2008.
Research
and Development
Research and development (“R&D”)
expenses vary primarily with the number of development wafers processed, the
cost of advanced equipment dedicated to new product and process development, and
personnel costs. Because of the lead times necessary to manufacture
its products, the Company typically begins to process wafers before completion
of performance and reliability testing. The Company deems development
of a product complete once the product has been thoroughly reviewed and tested
for performance and reliability. R&D expenses can vary
significantly depending on the timing of product qualification as costs incurred
in production prior to qualification are charged to R&D.
R&D expenses for the first quarter
of 2009 increased 7% from the fourth quarter of 2008 and 9% from the first
quarter of 2008 primarily due to increased costs associated with the additional
week in the first quarter of 2009. As a result of reimbursements
received from Intel Corporation under a NAND Flash R&D cost-sharing
arrangement, R&D expenses were reduced by $32 million for both the first
quarter of 2009 and for the fourth quarter of 2008 and $53 million for the first
quarter of 2008.
For the Company’s Memory segment,
R&D expenses as a percentage of sales were 11% for the first quarter of
2009, 10% for the fourth quarter of 2008 and 9% for the first quarter of
2008. For the Imaging segment, R&D expenses as a percentage of
sales were 22% for the first quarter of 2009, 19% for the fourth quarter of
2008, 22% for the first quarter of 2008.
The Company’s process technology
R&D efforts are focused primarily on development of successively smaller
line-width process technologies which are designed to facilitate the Company’s
transition to next-generation memory products and CMOS image
sensors. Additional process technology R&D efforts focus on
advanced computing and mobile memory architectures and new manufacturing
materials. Product design and development efforts are concentrated on
the Company’s 1 Gb and 2 Gb DDR2 and DDR3 products as well as high density and
mobile NAND Flash memory (including multi-level cell technology), CMOS image
sensors and specialty memory products.
Restructure
In the first quarter of 2009, in
response to a challenging global environment for technology products, the
Company announced a restructuring of its memory operations. As part
of the restructure, the Company’s IM Flash joint venture between the Company and
Intel terminated its agreement with the Company to obtain NAND Flash memory
supply from the Company’s Boise facility, reducing the Company’s NAND Flash
production by approximately 35,000 200mm wafers per month. In
addition, the Company and Intel agreed to suspend tooling and the ramp of
production at IM Flash’s Singapore wafer fabrication facility. The
Company has also undertaken additional cost savings measures to increase its
competitiveness, including reductions in executive and employee salary and
bonuses, a continued hiring freeze, and reduction of other discretionary costs
such as outside services, travel and overtime. As a result of these
actions, the Company recorded a net $66 million credit to restructure in the
first quarter of 2009, attributable to the Company’s Memory
segment. The amount includes a $144 million gain in connection with
the termination of the NAND Flash supply agreement. As of December 4,
2008, the Company expected to incur additional restructure costs of
approximately $40 million through 2010. The components of the
restructure charges and credits were as follows:
Restructure
charge (credit):
|
|
|
|
Gain from termination of NAND
Flash supply agreement
|
|
$
|
(144
|
)
|
Write-down of
equipment
|
|
|
56
|
|
Severance and other
termination benefits
|
|
|
22
|
|
Total restructure
credit
|
|
$
|
(66
|
)
|
As of December 4, 2008, $6 million of
the restructure costs remained unpaid and were included in accounts payable and
accrued expenses.
In the first quarter of 2008, the
Company recorded a restructure charge of $13 million, primarily to the Memory
segment, for employee severance and related costs and a write-down of certain
facilities.
Other
Operating (Income) Expense, Net
Other operating (income) expense for
the first quarter of 2009 included losses of $14 million on disposals of
semiconductor equipment. Other operating (income) expense for the
first quarter of 2008 included $38 million in receipts from the U.S. government
in connection with anti-dumping tariffs, losses of $27 million from changes in
currency exchange rates, and gains of $10 million on disposals of semiconductor
equipment.
Income
Taxes
Income taxes for 2009 and 2008
primarily reflect taxes on the Company’s non-U.S. operations and U.S.
alternative minimum tax. The Company has a valuation allowance for
its net deferred tax asset associated with its U.S. operations. The
benefit for taxes on U.S. operations in 2009 and 2008 was substantially offset
by changes in the valuation allowance.
Noncontrolling
Interests in Net (Income) Loss
Noncontrolling interests for 2009 and
2008 primarily reflects the share of income or losses of the Company’s TECH
joint venture attributable to the noncontrolling interests in
TECH. (See “Item 1. Financial Statements – Notes to Consolidated
Financial Statements – Consolidated Joint Ventures – TECH Semiconductor
Singapore Pte. Ltd.”)
Losses
and Earnings from Equity Method Investments
In connection with its DRAM partnering
arrangements with Nanya, the Company has two equity method
investments: MeiYa and Inotera. Because MeiYa and Inotera each
have fiscal years that end on December 31 which differs from the Company’s
fiscal year, the Company recognizes its share of MeiYa and Inotera quarterly
earnings or losses for the calendar quarter that ends within the Company’s
fiscal quarter. This results in the recognition of results from these
entities for a period that lags the Company’s fiscal periods by approximately
two months. In the first quarter of 2009, the Company recognized $2
million of losses from MeiYa for the quarterly period ended September 30,
2008. The Company will recognize its share of Inotera’s losses or
earnings from the acquisition date through December 31, 2008 (Inotera’s year
end) in the Company’s second quarter of 2009. (See “Item 1. Financial
Statements – Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements – Supplemental Balance
Sheet Information – Equity Method Investments.”)
Stock-Based
Compensation
Total compensation cost for the
Company’s equity plans for the first quarter of 2009, the fourth quarter of 2008
and first quarter of 2008 was $9 million, $8 million and $13 million,
respectively. Stock compensation expenses fluctuate based on
assessments of whether performance conditions will be achieved for the Company’s
performance-based stock grants. As of December 4, 2008, $96 million
of total unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested awards was
expected to be recognized through the first quarter of 2013.
Liquidity
and Capital Resources
As of December 4, 2008, the Company had
cash and equivalents and short-term investments totaling $1.0 billion compared
to $1.4 billion as of August 28, 2008. The balance as of December 4,
2008, included $249 million held at the Company’s IM Flash joint venture and $91
million held at the Company’s TECH joint venture. The Company’s
ability to access funds held by joint ventures to finance the Company’s other
operations is subject to agreement by the joint venture
partners. Amounts held by TECH are not anticipated to be available to
finance the Company’s other operations.
The Company’s liquidity is highly
dependent on average selling prices for its products and the timing of capital
expenditures, both of which can vary significantly from period to
period. Depending on conditions in the semiconductor memory market,
the Company’s cash flows from operations and current holdings of cash and
investments may not be adequate to meet the Company’s needs for capital
expenditures and operations. Historically, the Company has used
external financing to fund these needs. Due to conditions in the
credit markets, many financing instruments used by the Company in the past are
currently not available on terms acceptable to the Company. The
Company has significantly reduced its capital expenditures for
2009. In addition, the Company is pursuing further financing
alternatives, further reducing capital expenditures and implementing further
cost-cutting initiatives.
Operating
activities:
The Company generated $359 million of cash from
operating activities in the first quarter of 2009, which primarily reflects the
Company’s $706 million of net loss adjusted by $594 million for noncash
depreciation and amortization expense, a $369 million noncash charge to
write-down inventories to estimated market value and a $138 million decrease in
receivables.
Investing
activities:
Net cash used by investing activities was $489
million in the first quarter of 2009, which included cash expenditures of $409
million for the Company’s 35.5% interest in Inotera and cash expenditures of
$270 million for property, plant and equipment partially offset by the net
effect of maturities and purchases of marketable investment securities of $121
million. A significant portion of the capital expenditures relate to
the ramp of IM Flash facilities and 300mm conversion of manufacturing operations
at TECH. The Company believes that to develop new product and process
technologies, support future growth, achieve operating efficiencies and maintain
product quality, it must continue to invest in manufacturing technologies,
facilities and capital equipment and research and development. The
Company expects 2009 capital spending to approximate $650 million to $750
million. As of December 4, 2008, the Company had commitments of
approximately $125 million for the acquisition of property, plant and equipment,
nearly all of which are expected to be paid within one year.
In the first quarter of 2009, the
Company acquired a 35.5% ownership interest in Inotera, a Taiwanese DRAM memory
manufacturer, from Qimonda AG for approximately $400 million in cash and
incurred $10 million of costs and other fees in connection with the
acquisition. (See “Item 1. Financial Statements – Notes to
Consolidated Financial Statements – Supplemental Balance Sheet Information –
Equity Method Investments.”)
Financing
activities:
Net cash used by financing activities was $88
million in the first quarter of 2009, which primarily reflects $163 million in
debt payments, $150 million of distributions paid to joint venture partners and
$64 million in payments on equipment purchase contracts partially offset by $285
million in proceeds from borrowings.
During the first quarter of 2009, in
connection with the purchase of its 35.5% interest in Inotera, the Company
entered into a two-year variable rate term loan with Nan Ya Plastics and a
six-month variable rate term loan with Inotera. On November 26, 2008,
the Company received loan proceeds of $200 million from Nan Ya Plastics and $85
million from Inotera, which are payable at the end of each loan
term. Under the terms of the loan agreements, interest is payable
quarterly at LIBOR plus 2%. The interest rates reset quarterly and
were 4.2% per annum as of December 4, 2008. The Company recorded the
debt net of aggregate discounts of $31 million, which will be recognized as
interest expense over the respective lives of the loans, resulting in an
effective interest rate of 12.1% for the Nan Ya Plastics loan and 11.6% for the
Inotera loan. The Nan Ya Plastics loan is collateralized by a first
priority security interest in the Inotera shares owned by the Company
(approximate carrying value of $378 million as of December 4,
2008). (See “Item 1. Financial Statements – Notes to Consolidated
Financial Statements – Supplemental Balance Sheet Information –
Debt.”)
Joint
ventures:
In the first quarter of 2009, IM Flash distributed
$145 million to Intel and the Company estimates that it will make additional
distributions to Intel of approximately $360 million through the remainder of
2009. Timing of these distributions and any future contributions,
however, is subject to market conditions and approval of the
partners.
The Company expects to make additional
capital contributions to TECH in 2009. The timing and amount of these
contributions is subject to market conditions and partner
participation.
Contractual
obligations:
As of December 4, 2008, contractual obligations
for notes payable, capital lease obligations and operating leases were as
follows:
|
|
Total
|
|
|
Remainder
of 2009
|
|
|
2010
|
|
|
2011
|
|
|
2012
|
|
|
2013
|
|
|
2014
and
thereafter
|
|
|
|
(amounts
in millions)
|
|
Notes payable
1
|
|
$
|
2,489
|
|
|
$
|
183
|
|
|
$
|
335
|
|
|
$
|
443
|
|
|
$
|
179
|
|
|
$
|
24
|
|
|
$
|
1,325
|
|
Capital lease obligations
1
|
|
|
755
|
|
|
|
159
|
|
|
|
152
|
|
|
|
265
|
|
|
|
50
|
|
|
|
19
|
|
|
|
110
|
|
Operating leases
|
|
|
85
|
|
|
|
12
|
|
|
|
15
|
|
|
|
13
|
|
|
|
11
|
|
|
|
10
|
|
|
|
24
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1
Includes
interest
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Recently
Issued Accounting Standards
In December 2008, the Financial
Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued FASB Staff Position (“FSP”) No. FAS
140-1 and FIN 46(R)-8, “Disclosures by Public Entities (Enterprises) about
Transfers of Financial Assets and Interests in Variable Interest
Entities.” FSP No. FAS 140-1 and FIN 46(R)-8 requires public entities
to provide additional disclosures about transfers of financial assets and their
involvement with variable interest entities. The Company is required
to adopt FSP No. FAS 140-1 and FIN 46(R)-8 effective in the second quarter of
2009.
In May 2008, the FASB issued FSP No.
APB 14-1, “Accounting for Convertible Debt Instruments That May Be Settled in
Cash upon Conversion (Including Partial Cash Settlement).” FSP No.
APB 14-1 requires that issuers of convertible debt instruments that may be
settled in cash upon conversion separately account for the liability and equity
components in a manner that will reflect the entity’s nonconvertible debt
borrowing rate as interest cost is recognized in subsequent
periods. The Company is required to adopt FSP No. APB 14-1 at the
beginning of 2010. On adoption, the Company will retrospectively
account for its $1.3 billion of 1.875% convertible senior notes issued in May of
2007 under the provisions of FSP No. APB 14-1. The Company estimates
that debt recognized on issuance of the $1.3 billion convertible senior notes
would be approximately $400 million lower under FSP No. APB 14-1. The
difference of approximately $400 million would be accreted to interest expense
over the approximate seven-year term of the notes. The Company is
continuing to evaluate the full impact that the adoption of FSP No. APB 14-1
will have on its financial statements.
In December 2007, the FASB issued
Statement of Financial Accounting Standards (“SFAS”) No. 141 (revised 2007),
“Business Combinations
”
(“SFAS No. 141(R)”), which establishes the principles and requirements
for how an acquirer in a business combination (1) recognizes and measures in its
financial statements the identifiable assets acquired, the liabilities assumed,
and any noncontrolling interests in the acquiree, (2) recognizes and measures
the goodwill acquired in the business combination or a gain from a bargain
purchase, and (3) determines what information to disclose. The
Company is required to adopt SFAS No. 141(R) effective at the beginning of
2010. The impact of the adoption of SFAS No. 141(R) will depend on
the nature and extent of business combinations occurring on or after the
beginning of 2010.
In December 2007, the FASB issued SFAS
No. 160, “Noncontrolling Interests in Consolidated Financial Statements – an
amendment of ARB No. 51.” SFAS No. 160 requires that (1)
noncontrolling interests be reported as a separate component of equity, (2) net
income attributable to the parent and to the noncontrolling interest be
separately identified in the income statement, (3) changes in a parent’s
ownership interest while the parent retains its controlling interest be
accounted for as equity transactions, and (4) any retained noncontrolling equity
investment upon the deconsolidation of a subsidiary be initially measured at
fair value. The Company is required to adopt SFAS No. 160 effective
at the beginning of 2010. The Company is evaluating the impact that
the adoption of SFAS No. 160 will have on its financial statements.
In February 2007, the FASB issued SFAS
No. 159, “The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities –
Including an amendment of FASB Statement No. 115.” Under SFAS No.
159, the Company may elect to measure many financial instruments and certain
other items at fair value on an instrument by instrument basis, subject to
certain restrictions. The Company adopted SFAS No. 159 effective at
the beginning of 2009. The Company did not elect to measure any
existing items at fair value upon the adoption of SFAS No. 159.
In September 2006, the FASB issued SFAS
No. 157, “Fair Value Measurements.” SFAS No. 157 (as amended by
subsequent FSP’s) defines fair value, establishes a framework for measuring fair
value in generally accepted accounting principles and expands disclosures about
fair value measurements. The Company adopted SFAS No. 157 effective
at the beginning of 2009 for financial assets and financial
liabilities. The adoption did not have a significant impact on the
Company’s financial statements. The Company is required to adopt SFAS
No. 157 for all other assets and liabilities in 2010 and it is evaluating the
impact that the adoption will have on its financial statements.
Critical
Accounting Estimates
The preparation of financial statements
and related disclosures in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make
estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities,
revenues, expenses and related disclosures. Estimates and judgments
are based on historical experience, forecasted future events and various other
assumptions that the Company believes to be reasonable under the
circumstances. Estimates and judgments may vary under different
assumptions or conditions. The Company evaluates its estimates and
judgments on an ongoing basis. Management believes the accounting
policies below are critical in the portrayal of the Company’s financial
condition and results of operations and requires management’s most difficult,
subjective or complex judgments.
Acquisitions and
consolidations:
Determination and the allocation of the
purchase price of acquired operations significantly influences the period in
which costs are recognized. Accounting for acquisitions and
consolidations requires the Company to estimate the fair value of the individual
assets and liabilities acquired as well as various forms of consideration given,
which involves a number of judgments, assumptions and estimates that could
materially affect the amount and timing of costs recognized. The
Company typically obtains independent third party valuation studies to assist in
determining fair values, including assistance in determining future cash flows,
appropriate discount rates and comparable market values.
Contingencies:
The
Company is subject to the possibility of losses from various
contingencies. Considerable judgment is necessary to estimate the
probability and amount of any loss from such contingencies. An
accrual is made when it is probable that a liability has been incurred or an
asset has been impaired and the amount of loss can be reasonably
estimated. The Company accrues a liability and charges operations for
the estimated costs of adjudication or settlement of asserted and unasserted
claims existing as of the balance sheet date.
Goodwill and
intangible assets:
The Company tests goodwill for impairment
annually and whenever events or circumstances make it more likely than not that
an impairment may have occurred, such as a significant adverse change in the
business climate (including declines in selling prices for products) or a
decision to sell or dispose of a reporting unit. Goodwill is tested
for impairment using a two-step process. In the first step, the fair
value of each reporting unit is compared to the carrying value of the net assets
assigned to the unit. If the fair value of the reporting unit exceeds
its carrying value, goodwill is considered not impaired. If the
carrying value of the reporting unit exceeds its fair value, then the second
step of the impairment test must be performed in order to determine the implied
fair value of the reporting unit’s goodwill. Determining the implied
fair value of goodwill requires valuation of all of the Company’s tangible and
intangible asset and liabilities. If the carrying value of a
reporting unit’s goodwill exceeds its implied fair value, then the Company would
record an impairment loss equal to the difference.
Determining when to test for
impairment, the Company’s reporting units, the fair value of a reporting unit
and the fair value of assets and liabilities within a reporting unit, requires
judgment and involves the use of significant estimates and assumptions. These
estimates and assumptions include revenue growth rates and operating margins
used to calculate projected future cash flows, risk-adjusted discount rates,
future economic and market conditions and determination of appropriate market
comparables. The Company bases fair value estimates on assumptions it
believes to be reasonable but that are unpredictable and inherently
uncertain. Actual future results may differ from those
estimates. In addition, judgments and assumptions are required to
allocate assets and liabilities to reporting units.
The Company tests other identified
intangible assets with definite useful lives and subject to amortization when
events and circumstances indicate the carrying value may not be recoverable by
comparing the carrying amount to the sum of undiscounted cash flows expected to
be generated by the asset. The Company tests intangible assets with
indefinite lives annually for impairment using a fair value method such as
discounted cash flows. Estimating fair values involves significant
assumptions, especially regarding future sales prices, sales volumes, costs and
discount rates.
Income
taxes:
The Company is required to estimate its provision for
income taxes and amounts ultimately payable or recoverable in numerous tax
jurisdictions around the world. Estimates involve interpretations of
regulations and are inherently complex. Resolution of income tax
treatments in individual jurisdictions may not be known for many years after
completion of any fiscal year. The Company is also required to
evaluate the realizability of its deferred tax assets on an ongoing basis in
accordance with U.S. GAAP, which requires the assessment of the Company’s
performance and other relevant factors when determining the need for a valuation
allowance with respect to these deferred tax assets. Realization of
deferred tax assets is dependent on the Company’s ability to generate future
taxable income.
Inventories:
Inventories
are stated at the lower of average cost or market value and the Company recorded
a charge to write down the carrying value of inventories of memory products to
their estimated market values of $369 million for the first quarter of 2009 and
$282 million in aggregate for 2008. Cost includes labor, material and
overhead costs, including product and process technology
costs. Determining market value of inventories involves numerous
judgments, including projecting average selling prices and sales volumes for
future periods and costs to complete products in work in process
inventories. To project average selling prices and sales volumes, the
Company reviews recent sales volumes, existing customer orders, current contract
prices, industry analysis of supply and demand, seasonal factors, general
economic trends and other information. When these analyses reflect
estimated market values below the Company’s manufacturing costs, the Company
records a charge to cost of goods sold in advance of when the inventory is
actually sold. Differences in forecasted average selling prices used
in calculating lower of cost or market adjustments can result in significant
changes in the estimated net realizable value of product inventories and
accordingly the amount of write-down recorded. For example, a 5%
variance in the estimated selling prices would have changed the estimated market
value of the Company’s semiconductor memory inventory by approximately $50
million at December 4, 2008. Due to the volatile nature of the
semiconductor memory industry, actual selling prices and volumes often vary
significantly from projected prices and volumes and, as a result, the timing of
when product costs are charged to operations can vary
significantly.
U.S. GAAP provides for products to be
grouped into categories in order to compare costs to market
values. The amount of any inventory write-down can vary significantly
depending on the determination of inventory categories. The Company’s
inventories have been categorized as Memory products or Imaging
products. The major characteristics the Company considers in
determining inventory categories are product type and markets.
Product and
process technology:
Costs incurred to acquire product and
process technology or to patent technology developed by the Company are
capitalized and amortized on a straight-line basis over periods currently
ranging up to 10 years. The Company capitalizes a portion of costs
incurred based on its analysis of historical and projected patents issued as a
percent of patents filed. Capitalized product and process technology
costs are amortized over the shorter of (i) the estimated useful life of the
technology, (ii) the patent term or (iii) the term of the technology
agreement.
Property, plant
and equipment:
The Company reviews the carrying value of
property, plant and equipment for impairment when events and circumstances
indicate that the carrying value of an asset or group of assets may not be
recoverable from the estimated future cash flows expected to result from its use
and/or disposition. In cases where undiscounted expected future cash
flows are less than the carrying value, an impairment loss is recognized equal
to the amount by which the carrying value exceeds the estimated fair value of
the assets. The estimation of future cash flows involves numerous
assumptions which require judgment by the Company, including, but not limited
to, future use of the assets for Company operations versus sale or disposal of
the assets, future selling prices for the Company’s products and future
production and sales volumes. In addition, judgment is required by
the Company in determining the groups of assets for which impairment tests are
separately performed.
Research and
development:
Costs related to the conceptual formulation and
design of products and processes are expensed as research and development when
incurred. Determining when product development is complete requires
judgment by the Company. The Company deems development of a product
complete once the product has been thoroughly reviewed and tested for
performance and reliability.
Stock-based
compensation:
Under the provisions of SFAS No. 123(R),
stock-based compensation cost is estimated at the grant date based on the
fair-value of the award and is recognized as expense ratably over the requisite
service period of the award. For stock-based compensation awards with
graded vesting that were granted after 2005, the Company recognizes compensation
expense using the straight-line amortization method. For
performance-based stock awards, the expense recognized is dependent on the
probability of the performance measure being achieved. The Company
utilizes forecasts of future performance to assess these probabilities and this
assessment requires considerable judgment.
Determining the appropriate fair-value
model and calculating the fair value of stock-based awards at the grant date
requires considerable judgment, including estimating stock price volatility,
expected option life and forfeiture rates. The Company develops its
estimates based on historical data and market information which can change
significantly over time. A small change in the estimates used can
result in a relatively large change in the estimated valuation. The
Company uses the Black-Scholes option valuation model to value employee stock
awards. The Company estimates stock price volatility based on an
average of its historical volatility and the implied volatility derived from
traded options on the Company’s stock.
Item
3.
Quantitative and
Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk
Interest
Rate Risk
As of December 4, 2008, $2,002 million
of the Company’s $2,866 million of debt was at fixed interest
rates. As a result, the fair value of the debt fluctuates based on
changes in market interest rates. The estimated fair value of the
Company’s debt was $1,876 million as of December 4, 2008 and was $2,167 million
as of August 28, 2008. The Company estimates that as of December 4,
2008, a 1% decrease in market interest rates would change the fair value of the
fixed-rate debt by approximately $29 million. As of December 4, 2008,
$864 million of the Company’s debt was at variable interest rates and an
increase of 1% would increase annual interest expense by approximately $9
million.
Foreign
Currency Exchange Rate Risk
The information in this section should
be read in conjunction with the information related to changes in the exchange
rates of foreign currency in “Item 1A. Risk Factors.” Changes in
foreign currency exchange rates could materially adversely affect the Company’s
results of operations or financial condition.
The functional currency for
substantially all of the Company’s operations is the U.S. dollar. The
Company held aggregate cash and other assets in foreign currencies valued at
U.S. $252 million as of December 4, 2008 and U.S. $425 million as of August 28,
2008. The Company also had aggregate foreign currency liabilities
valued at U.S. $542 million as of December 4, 2008 and U.S. $580 million as of
August 28, 2008. Significant components of the Company’s assets and
liabilities denominated in foreign currencies were as follows (in U.S. dollar
equivalents):
|
|
December
4, 2008
|
|
|
August
28, 2008
|
|
|
|
Singapore
Dollars
|
|
|
Yen
|
|
|
Euro
|
|
|
Singapore
Dollars
|
|
|
Yen
|
|
|
Euro
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash
and equivalents
|
|
$
|
30
|
|
|
$
|
16
|
|
|
$
|
20
|
|
|
$
|
84
|
|
|
$
|
130
|
|
|
$
|
25
|
|
Net
deferred tax assets
|
|
|
--
|
|
|
|
100
|
|
|
|
1
|
|
|
|
--
|
|
|
|
85
|
|
|
|
2
|
|
Accounts
payable and accrued expenses
|
|
|
(88
|
)
|
|
|
(198
|
)
|
|
|
(46
|
)
|
|
|
(105
|
)
|
|
|
(127
|
)
|
|
|
(61
|
)
|
Debt
|
|
|
(78
|
)
|
|
|
(7
|
)
|
|
|
(4
|
)
|
|
|
(49
|
)
|
|
|
(108
|
)
|
|
|
(4
|
)
|
Other
liabilities
|
|
|
(8
|
)
|
|
|
(54
|
)
|
|
|
(36
|
)
|
|
|
(8
|
)
|
|
|
(45
|
)
|
|
|
(43
|
)
|
The Company estimates that, based on
its assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar
as of December 4, 2008, a 1% change in the exchange rate versus the U.S. dollar
would result in foreign currency gains or losses of approximately U.S. $1
million for the yen, the Singapore dollar and the euro.
Item
4.
Controls and
Procedures
An evaluation was carried out under the
supervision and with the participation of the Company’s management, including
its principal executive officer and principal financial officer, of the
effectiveness of the design and operation of the Company’s disclosure controls
and procedures (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934) as of the end of the period covered by this
report. Based upon that evaluation, the principal executive officer
and principal financial officer concluded that those disclosure controls and
procedures were effective to ensure that information required to be disclosed by
the Company in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is
recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified
in the Commission’s rules and forms and that such information is accumulated and
communicated to the Company’s management, including the principal executive
officer and principal financial officer, to allow timely decision regarding
disclosure.
During the quarterly period covered by
this report, there were no changes in the Company’s internal control over
financial reporting that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to
materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial
reporting.
PART
II. OTHER INFORMATION
Item
1.
Legal
Proceedings
Patent
Matters
On August 28, 2000, the Company filed a
complaint against Rambus, Inc. (“Rambus”) in the U.S. District Court for the
District of Delaware seeking monetary damages and declaratory and injunctive
relief. Among other things, the Company’s complaint (as amended)
alleges violation of federal antitrust laws, breach of contract, fraud,
deceptive trade practices, and negligent misrepresentation. The
complaint also seeks a declaratory judgment (a) that certain Rambus patents are
not infringed by the Company, are invalid, and/or are unenforceable, (b) that
the Company has an implied license to those patents, and (c) that Rambus is
estopped from enforcing those patents against the Company. On
February 15, 2001, Rambus filed an answer and counterclaim in Delaware denying
that the Company is entitled to relief, alleging infringement of the eight
Rambus patents (later amended to add four additional patents) named in the
Company’s declaratory judgment claim, and seeking monetary damages and
injunctive relief. In the Delaware action, the Company subsequently
added claims and defenses based on Rambus’s alleged spoliation of evidence and
litigation misconduct. The spoliation and litigation misconduct
claims and defenses were heard in a bench trial before Judge Robinson in October
2007. On January 9, 2009, Judge Robinson entered an opinion in favor
of the Company holding that Rambus had engaged in spoliation and that the twelve
Rambus patents in the suit were unenforceable against the Company.
A number of other suits involving
Rambus are currently pending in Europe alleging that certain of the Company’s
SDRAM and DDR SDRAM products infringe various of Rambus’ country counterparts to
its European patent 525 068, including: on September 1, 2000, Rambus filed suit
against Micron Semiconductor (Deutschland) GmbH in the District Court of
Mannheim, Germany; on September 22, 2000, Rambus filed a complaint against the
Company and Reptronic (a distributor of the Company’s products) in the Court of
First Instance of Paris, France; on September 29, 2000, the Company filed suit
against Rambus in the Civil Court of Milan, Italy, alleging invalidity and
non-infringement. In addition, on December 29, 2000, the Company
filed suit against Rambus in the Civil Court of Avezzano, Italy, alleging
invalidity and non-infringement of the Italian counterpart to European patent 1
004 956. Additionally, on August 14, 2001, Rambus filed suit against
Micron Semiconductor (Deutschland) GmbH in the District Court of Mannheim,
Germany alleging that certain of the Company’s DDR SDRAM products infringe
Rambus’ country counterparts to its European patent 1 022 642. In the
European suits against the Company, Rambus is seeking monetary damages and
injunctive relief. Subsequent to the filing of the various European
suits, the European Patent Office (the “EPO”) declared Rambus’ 525 068 and 1 004
956 European patents invalid and revoked the patents. The declaration
of invalidity with respect to the '068 patent was upheld on
appeal. The original claims of the '956 patent also were declared
invalid on appeal, but the EPO ultimately granted a Rambus request to amend the
claims by adding a number of limitations.
On January 13, 2006, Rambus filed a
lawsuit against the Company in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District
of California. The complaint alleges that certain of the Company’s
DDR2, DDR3, RLDRAM, and RLDRAM II products infringe as many as fourteen Rambus
patents and seeks monetary damages, treble damages, and injunctive
relief. On June 2, 2006, the Company filed an answer and counterclaim
against Rambus alleging among other things, antitrust and fraud
claims. The Northern District of California Court subsequently
consolidated the antitrust and fraud claims and certain equitable defenses of
the Company and other parties against Rambus in a jury trial that began on
January 29, 2008. On March 26, 2008, a jury returned a verdict in
favor of Rambus on the Company’s antitrust and fraud claims. On
November 24, 2008, the Court granted partial summary judgment of infringement in
favor of Rambus on one of the patent claims at issue in the
case. Trial on the patent phase of that case relating to twelve
claims in ten Rambus patents is currently scheduled to begin January 26,
2009.
On July 24, 2006, the Company filed a
declaratory judgment action against Mosaid Technologies, Inc. (“Mosaid”) in the
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California seeking, among other
things, a court determination that fourteen Mosaid patents are invalid, not
enforceable, and/or not infringed. On July 25, 2006, Mosaid filed a
lawsuit against the Company and others in the U.S. District Court for the
Eastern District of Texas alleging infringement of nine Mosaid
patents. On August 31, 2006, Mosaid filed an amended complaint adding
three additional Mosaid patents. On October 23, 2006, the California
Court dismissed the Company’s declaratory judgment suit based on lack of
jurisdiction. The Company appealed that decision to the U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Federal Circuit. On February 29, 2008, the U.S. Court
of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued an order reversing the dismissal of
the Company’s declaratory judgment action filed in the U.S. District Court for
the Northern District of California and remanding the suit to that
Court. The Texas action was subsequently transferred to the Northern
District of California. Mosaid alleges that certain of the Company’s
DRAM and CMOS image sensor products infringe up to twelve Mosaid patents and
seeks monetary damages, treble damages, and injunctive relief. The
accused products account for a significant portion of our net
sales. Trial is currently scheduled for June 5, 2009.
The Company is unable to predict the
outcome of these suits. A court determination that the Company’s
products or manufacturing processes infringe the product or process intellectual
property rights of others could result in significant liability and/or require
the Company to make material changes to its products and/or manufacturing
processes. Any of the foregoing results could have a material adverse
effect on the Company’s business, results of operations or financial
condition.
Antitrust
Matters
A number of purported class action
price-fixing lawsuits have been filed against the Company and other DRAM
suppliers. Four cases have been filed in the U.S. District Court for
the Northern District of California asserting claims on behalf of a purported
class of individuals and entities that indirectly purchased DRAM and/or products
containing DRAM from various DRAM suppliers during the time period from April 1,
1999 through at least June 30, 2002. The complaints allege price
fixing in violation of federal antitrust laws and various state antitrust and
unfair competition laws and seek treble monetary damages, restitution, costs,
interest and attorneys’ fees. In addition, at least sixty-four cases
have been filed in various state courts asserting claims on behalf of a
purported class of indirect purchasers of DRAM. Cases have been filed
in the following states: Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida,
Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Massachusetts, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi,
Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New
Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah,
Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin, and West Virginia, and also in the District of
Columbia and Puerto Rico. The complaints purport to be on behalf of a
class of individuals and entities that indirectly purchased DRAM and/or products
containing DRAM in the respective jurisdictions during various time periods
ranging from April 1999 through at least June 2002. The complaints
allege violations of the various jurisdictions’ antitrust, consumer protection
and/or unfair competition laws relating to the sale and pricing of DRAM products
and seek treble monetary damages, restitution, costs, interest and attorneys’
fees. A number of these cases have been removed to federal court and
transferred to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
(San Francisco) for consolidated proceedings. On January 29, 2008,
the Northern District of California Court granted in part and denied in part the
Company’s motion to dismiss plaintiff’s second amended consolidated
complaint. Plaintiffs subsequently filed a motion seeking
certification for interlocutory appeal of the decision. On February
27, 2008, plaintiffs filed a third amended complaint. On June 26,
2008, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit accepted
plaintiffs’ interlocutory appeal.
Additionally, three cases have been
filed in the following Canadian courts: Superior Court, District of
Montreal, Province of Quebec; Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Ontario; and
Supreme Court of British Columbia, Vancouver Registry, British
Columbia. The substantive allegations in these cases are similar to
those asserted in the cases filed in the United States. In May and
June 2008 respectively, plaintiffs’ motion for class certification was denied in
the British Columbia and Quebec cases. Plaintiffs have filed an
appeal of each of those decisions.
In addition, various states, through
their Attorneys General, have filed suit against the Company and other DRAM
manufacturers. On July 14, 2006, and on September 8, 2006 in an
amended complaint, the following Attorneys General filed suit in the U.S.
District Court for the Northern District of California: Alaska,
Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho,
Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan,
Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North
Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island,
South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West
Virginia, Wisconsin and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana
Islands. Thereafter, three states, Ohio, New Hampshire, and Texas,
voluntarily dismissed their claims. The remaining states filed a
third amended complaint on October 1, 2007. Alaska, Delaware,
Kentucky, and Vermont subsequently voluntarily dismissed their
claims. The amended complaint alleges, among other things, violations
of the Sherman Act, Cartwright Act, and certain other states’ consumer
protection and antitrust laws and seeks damages, and injunctive and other
relief. Additionally, on July 13, 2006, the State of New York filed a
similar suit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New
York. That case was subsequently transferred to the U.S. District
Court for the Northern District of California for pre-trial
purposes. The State of New York filed an amended complaint on October
1, 2007. On October 3, 2008, the California Attorney General filed a
similar lawsuit in California Superior Court, purportedly on behalf of local
California government entities, alleging, among other things, violations of the
Cartwright Act and state unfair competition law.
On February 28, 2007, February 28, 2007
and March 8, 2007, cases were filed against the Company and other manufacturers
of DRAM in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California by
All American Semiconductor, Inc., Jaco Electronics, Inc. and DRAM Claims
Liquidation Trust, respectively, that opted-out of a direct purchaser class
action suit that was settled. The complaints allege, among other
things, violations of federal and state antitrust and competition laws in the
DRAM industry, and seek damages, injunctive relief, and other
remedies.
On October 11, 2006, the Company
received a grand jury subpoena from the U.S. District Court for the Northern
District of California seeking information regarding an investigation by the DOJ
into possible antitrust violations in the “Static Random Access Memory” or
“SRAM” industry. . In December 2008, the Company was informed that
the DOJ closed its investigation of the SRAM industry.
Subsequent to the issuance of subpoenas
to the SRAM industry, a number of purported class action lawsuits have been
filed against the Company and other SRAM suppliers. Six cases have
been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
asserting claims on behalf of a purported class of individuals and entities that
purchased SRAM directly from various SRAM suppliers during the period from
November 1, 1996 through December 31, 2005. Additionally, at least
seventy-four cases have been filed in various U.S. District Courts asserting
claims on behalf of a purported class of individuals and entities that
indirectly purchased SRAM and/or products containing SRAM from various SRAM
suppliers during the time period from November 1, 1996 through December 31,
2006. In September 2008, a class of direct purchasers was certified,
and plaintiffs were granted leave to amend their complaint to cover
Pseudo-Static RAM or “PSRAM” products as well. The complaints allege
price fixing in violation of federal antitrust laws and state antitrust and
unfair competition laws and seek treble monetary damages, restitution, costs,
interest and attorneys’ fees.
Three purported class action SRAM
lawsuits also have been filed in Canada, on behalf of direct and indirect
purchasers, alleging violations of the Canadian Competition Act. The
substantive allegations in these cases are similar to those asserted in the SRAM
cases filed in the United States.
In addition, three purported class
action lawsuits alleging price-fixing of Flash products have been filed in
Canada, asserting violations of the Canadian Competition Act. These
cases assert claims on behalf of a purported class of individuals and entities
that purchased Flash memory directly and indirectly from various Flash memory
suppliers.
On May 5, 2004, Rambus filed a
complaint in the Superior Court of the State of California (San Francisco
County) against the Company and other DRAM suppliers. The complaint
alleges various causes of action under California state law including a
conspiracy to restrict output and fix prices on Rambus DRAM (“RDRAM”) and unfair
competition. Trial is currently scheduled to begin in March
2009. The complaint seeks treble damages, punitive damages,
attorneys’ fees, costs, and a permanent injunction enjoining the defendants from
the conduct alleged in the complaints.
The Company is unable to predict the
outcome of these lawsuits and investigations. The final resolution of
these alleged violations of antitrust laws could result in significant liability
and could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, results of
operations or financial condition.
Securities
Matters
On February 24, 2006, a putative class
action complaint was filed against the Company and certain of its officers in
the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho alleging claims under Section
10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Rule
10b-5 promulgated thereunder. Four substantially similar complaints
subsequently were filed in the same Court. The cases purport to be
brought on behalf of a class of purchasers of the Company’s stock during the
period February 24, 2001 to February 13, 2003. The five lawsuits have
been consolidated and a consolidated amended class action complaint was filed on
July 24, 2006. The complaint generally alleges violations of federal
securities laws based on, among other things, claimed misstatements or omissions
regarding alleged illegal price-fixing conduct or the Company’s operations and
financial results. The complaint seeks unspecified damages, interest,
attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses. On December 19, 2007, the Court
issued an order certifying the class but reducing the class period to purchasers
of the Company’s stock during the period from February 24, 2001 to September 18,
2002.
In addition, on March 23, 2006 a
shareholder derivative action was filed in the Fourth District Court for the
State of Idaho (Ada County), allegedly on behalf of and for the benefit of the
Company, against certain of the Company’s current and former officers and
directors. The Company also was named as a nominal
defendant. An amended complaint was filed on August 23, 2006 and was
subsequently dismissed by the Court. Another amended complaint was
filed on September 6, 2007. The amended complaint is based on the
same allegations of fact as in the securities class actions filed in the U.S.
District Court for the District of Idaho and alleges breach of fiduciary duty,
abuse of control, gross mismanagement, waste of corporate assets, unjust
enrichment, and insider trading. The amended complaint seeks
unspecified damages, restitution, disgorgement of profits, equitable and
injunctive relief, attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses. The amended
complaint is derivative in nature and does not seek monetary damages from the
Company. However, the Company may be required, throughout the
pendency of the action, to advance payment of legal fees and costs incurred by
the defendants. On January 25, 2008, the Court granted the Company’s
motion to dismiss the second amended complaint without leave to
amend. On March 10, 2008, plaintiffs filed a notice of appeal to the
Idaho Court of Appeals.
The Company is unable to predict the
outcome of these cases. A court determination in any of these actions
against the Company could result in significant liability and could have a
material adverse effect on the Company’s business, results of operations or
financial condition.
(See
“Item 1A. Risk Factors.”)
Item
1A.
Risk
Factors
In addition to the factors discussed
elsewhere in this Form 10-Q, the following are important factors which could
cause actual results or events to differ materially from those contained in any
forward-looking statements made by or on behalf of the Company.
We
have experienced dramatic declines in average selling prices for our
semiconductor memory products which have adversely affected our
business.
For the first quarter of 2009, average
selling prices of DRAM and NAND Flash products decreased 34% and 24%,
respectively, as compared to the fourth quarter of 2008. For 2008,
average selling prices of DRAM and NAND Flash products decreased 51% and 67%,
respectively, as compared to 2007. For 2007, average selling prices
of DRAM and NAND Flash products decreased 23% and 56%, respectively, as compared
to 2006. Currently, and at times in the past, average selling prices
for our memory products have been below our costs. We recorded
aggregate inventory write-downs of $369 million for the first quarter of 2009,
$282 million in 2008 and $20 million in 2007 as a result of the significant
decreases in average selling prices for our semiconductor memory
products. If the estimated market values of products held in finished
goods and work in process inventories at a quarter end date are below the
manufacturing cost of these products, we recognize charges to cost of goods sold
to write down the carrying value of our inventories to market
value. Future charges for inventory write-downs could be larger than
the amount recorded in 2009 and 2008. If average selling prices for
our memory products remain depressed or decrease faster than we can decrease per
gigabit costs, as they recently have, our business, results of operations or
financial condition could be materially adversely affected.
We
may be unable to generate sufficient cash flows or obtain access to external
financing necessary to fund our operations and make adequate capital
investments.
Our cash flows from operations depend
primarily on the volume of semiconductor memory sold, average selling prices and
per unit manufacturing costs. To develop new product and process
technologies, support future growth, achieve operating efficiencies and maintain
product quality, we must make significant capital investments in manufacturing
technology, facilities and capital equipment, research and development, and
product and process technology. We currently estimate our capital
spending to approximate between $650 million to $750 million for
2009. Cash and investments of IM Flash and TECH are generally not
available to finance our other operations. In the past we have
utilized external sources of financing when needed and access to capital markets
has historically been very important to us. As a result of the severe
downturn in the semiconductor memory market, the downturn in general economic
conditions, and the adverse conditions in the credit markets, financing
instruments that we have used in the past are currently not available on terms
acceptable to us and may not be available to us for extended
periods. We significantly reduced our capital expenditures for
2009. In addition, we are pursuing further financing alternatives,
further reducing capital expenditures and implementing further cost-cutting
initiatives. There can be no assurance that we will be able to
generate sufficient cash flows or find other sources of financing to fund our
operations; make adequate capital investments to remain competitive in terms of
technology development and cost efficiency; or access capital
markets. Our inability to do the foregoing could have a material
adverse effect on our business and results of operations.
We
may be unable to reduce our per gigabit manufacturing costs at the rate average
selling prices decline.
Our gross margins are dependent upon
continuing decreases in per gigabit manufacturing costs achieved through
improvements in our manufacturing processes, including reducing the die size of
our existing products. In future periods, we may be unable to reduce
our per gigabit manufacturing costs at sufficient levels to increase gross
margins due to factors including, but not limited to, strategic product
diversification decisions affecting product mix, the increasing complexity of
manufacturing processes, changes in process technologies or products that
inherently may require relatively larger die sizes. Per gigabit
manufacturing costs may also be affected by the relatively smaller production
quantities and shorter product lifecycles of certain specialty memory
products. Temporary production slowdowns that we implemented at some
of our manufacturing facilities during the second quarter of 2009 are expected
to adversely affect per megabit costs of Memory products.
An
adverse result in our litigation matters could materially adversely affect our
business, results of operations or financial condition.
On January 13, 2006, Rambus, Inc.
(“Rambus”) filed a lawsuit against us in the U.S. District Court for the
Northern District of California. Rambus alleges that certain of our
DDR2, DDR3, RLDRAM, and RLDRAM II products infringe as many as fourteen Rambus
patents and seeks monetary damages, treble damages, and injunctive
relief. The accused products account for a significant portion of our
net sales. On June 2, 2006, we filed an answer and counterclaim
against Rambus alleging, among other things, antitrust and fraud
claims. Trial on the patent phase of that case relating to twelve
claims in ten Rambus patents is currently scheduled to begin January 26,
2009.
On May 5, 2004, Rambus filed a lawsuit
in the Superior Court of the State of California (San Francisco County) against
us and other DRAM suppliers. The complaint alleges various causes of
action under California state law including conspiracy to restrict output and
fix prices on Rambus DRAM ("RDRAM"), and unfair competition. The
complaint seeks treble damages, punitive damages, attorneys’ fees, costs, and a
permanent injunction enjoining the defendants from the conduct alleged in the
complaint. Trial is currently scheduled to begin in March
2009. (See “Item 3. Legal Proceedings” for additional
details on these cases and other Rambus matters pending in Europe and
Delaware.)
We are unable to predict the outcome of
these lawsuits. The adverse resolution of these lawsuits could result
in significant liability and could have a material adverse effect on our
business, results of operations or financial condition.
Our joint ventures and strategic partnerships involve numerous risks.
We have entered into partnering
arrangements to manufacture products and develop new manufacturing process
technologies and products. These arrangements include our IM Flash
NAND flash joint ventures with Intel, our DRAM joint ventures with Nanya, our
TECH DRAM joint venture and our MP Mask joint venture with
Photronics. These strategic partnerships and joint ventures are
subject to various risks that could adversely affect the value of our
investments and our results of operations. These risks include the
following:
·
|
our interests could diverge from our partners in the future or we may not be able to agree with partners on the amount, timing or nature of further investments in our joint venture;
|
·
|
due to financial constraints,
our partners may be unable to meet their commitments to us or our joint ventures and may pose credit risks for our transactions with them;
|
·
|
the terms of our arrangements may turn out to be unfavorable;
|
·
|
cash flows may be inadequate to fund increased capital requirements;
|
·
|
we may experience difficulties in transferring technology to joint ventures;
|
·
|
we may experience difficulties and delays in ramping production at joint ventures;
and
|
·
|
political or economic instability may occur in the countries where our joint ventures and/or partners are
located.
|
If our joint ventures and strategic partnerships are unsuccessful, our business,
results of operations or financial
condition may be adversely affected.
Economic
conditions may harm our business.
Economic and business conditions,
including a continuing downturn in the semiconductor memory industry or the
overall economy is having an adverse effect on our business. Adverse
conditions affect consumer demand for devices that incorporate our products such
as personal computers, mobile phones, Flash memory cards and USB
devices. Reduced demand for our products could result in continued
market oversupply and significant decreases in our selling prices. A
continuation of current conditions in credit markets would limit our ability to
obtain external financing to fund our operations and capital
expenditures. In addition, we may experience losses on our holdings
of cash and investments due to failures of financial institutions and other
parties. Difficult economic conditions may also result in a higher
rate of losses on our accounts receivables due to credit defaults. As
a result, our business, results of operations or financial condition could be
materially adversely affected.
The
semiconductor memory industry is highly competitive.
We face intense competition in the
semiconductor memory market from a number of companies, including Elpida Memory,
Inc.; Hynix Semiconductor Inc.; Qimonda AG; Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.;
SanDisk Corporation; Toshiba Corporation and from emerging companies in Taiwan
and China, who have significantly expanded the scale of their
operations. Some of our competitors are large corporations or
conglomerates that may have greater resources to withstand downturns in the
semiconductor markets in which we compete, invest in technology and capitalize
on growth opportunities.
Our competitors seek to increase
silicon capacity, improve yields, reduce die size and minimize mask levels in
their product designs. The transitions to smaller line-width process
technologies and 300mm wafers in the industry have resulted in significant
increases in the worldwide supply of semiconductor memory and will likely lead
to future increases. Increases in worldwide supply of semiconductor
memory also result from semiconductor memory fab capacity expansions, either by
way of new facilities, increased capacity utilization or reallocation of other
semiconductor production to semiconductor memory production. We and
several of our competitors have significantly increased production in recent
periods through construction of new facilities or expansion of existing
facilities. Increases in worldwide supply of semiconductor memory, if
not accompanied with commensurate increases in demand, would lead to further
declines in average selling prices for our products and would materially
adversely affect our business, results of operations or financial
condition.
Our
NAND Flash memory operations involve numerous risks.
As a result of severe oversupply in the
NAND Flash market, our average selling prices of NAND Flash products decreased
24% as compared to the fourth quarter of 2008 after decreasing 67% for 2008 as
compared to 2007 and 56% for 2007 as compared to 2006. As a result,
we experienced negative gross margins on sales of our NAND Flash products in
2009 and 2008. In the first quarter of 2009, we discontinued
production of NAND flash memory for IM Flash at our Boise
facility. The NAND Flash production shutdown reduces IM Flash’s NAND
flash production by approximately 35,000 200mm wafers per month. In
addition, we and Intel agreed to suspend tooling and the ramp of production NAND
Flash at IM Flash’s Singapore wafer fabrication plant. A continuation
of the challenging conditions in the NAND Flash market will materially adversely
affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
We
may incur additional restructure charges or not realize the expected benefits of
new initiatives to reduce costs across our operations.
In the first quarter of 2009, in
response to a challenging global environment for technology products, we
announced a restructuring of our memory operations. As part of the
restructure, our IM Flash joint venture between us and Intel terminated its
agreement with us to obtain NAND Flash memory supply from the our Boise
facility, reducing our NAND Flash production by approximately 35,000 200mm
wafers per month. In addition, we and Intel agreed to suspend tooling
and the ramp of production at IM Flash’s Singapore wafer fabrication
facility. We have also undertaken additional cost savings measures to
increase our competitiveness, including reductions in executive and employee
salary and bonuses, a continued hiring freeze, and reduction of other
discretionary costs such as outside services, travel and overtime. As
a result of these actions, we recorded a net $66 million credit to restructure
in the first quarter of 2009, attributable to our Memory segment. The
amount includes a $144 million gain in connection with the termination of the
NAND Flash supply agreement. The restructure credit also
includes a $56 million charge to write down equipment and costs of $22 million
for severance and other employee-related items. As of December 4,
2008, we expected to incur additional restructure costs of approximately $40
million through 2010. We may incur additional restructure costs or
not realize the expected benefits of these new initiatives. As a
result of these initiatives, we expect to lose production output, incur
restructuring or other infrequent charges and we may experience disruptions in
our operations, loss of key personnel and difficulties in delivering products
timely.
Our
acquisition of a 35.5% interest in Inotera Memories, Inc. involves numerous
risks.
In the first quarter of 2009, we
acquired a 35.5% ownership interest in Inotera Memories, Inc., a Taiwanese DRAM
memory manufacturer, for approximately $400 million in cash. As a
result of this acquisition, we have rights and obligations to purchase 50% of
the 120,000 per month 300mm DRAM wafer production of Inotera. Our
acquisition of an interest in Inotera involves numerous risks including the
following:
·
|
Inotera’s
ability to meet its ongoing
obligations;
|
·
|
uncertainties
relating to Qimonda’s purchase of certain agreed quantities of products
made using Qimonda’s trench technology during the transition
period.
|
·
|
difficulties
in converting Inotera production from Qimonda’s trench technology to our
stack technology;
|
·
|
difficulties
in obtaining financing for capital expenditures necessary to convert
Inotera production to our stack
technology;
|
·
|
increasing
debt to finance the acquisition;
|
·
|
uncertainties
around the timing and amount of wafer supply
received;
|
·
|
obligations
during the technology transition period to procure product based on a
competitor’s technology which may be difficult to sell and provide product
support for due to our limited understanding of the
technology;
|
·
|
recognition
in our results of operation of our share of potential Inotera losses;
and
|
·
|
a
further decline in margins associated with potentially purchasing product
utilizing Qimonda’s trench technology at a relatively higher cost than
other products manufactured by us and selling them potentially at a lower
price than other products produced
us.
|
An
adverse determination that our products or manufacturing processes infringe the
intellectual property rights of others could materially adversely affect our
business, results of operations or financial condition.
We are engaged in patent litigation
with Mosaid Technologies, Inc. ("Mosaid") in the U.S. District Court for the
Northern District of California. Mosaid alleges that certain of our
DRAM and CMOS image sensor products infringe up to twelve Mosaid patents and
seeks monetary damages, treble damages, and injunctive relief. The
accused products account for a significant portion of our net
sales. Trial is currently scheduled for June 5, 2009. (See
“Item 3. Legal Proceedings” for additional details.)
We are unable to predict the outcome of
assertions of infringement made against us. A court determination
that our products or manufacturing processes infringe the intellectual property
rights of others could result in significant liability and/or require us to make
material changes to our products and/or manufacturing processes. Any
of the foregoing results could have a material adverse effect on our business,
results of operations or financial condition.
We have a number of patent and
intellectual property license agreements. Some of these license
agreements require us to make one time or periodic payments. We may
need to obtain additional patent licenses or renew existing license agreements
in the future. We are unable to predict whether these license
agreements can be obtained or renewed on acceptable terms.
Allegations
of anticompetitive conduct.
A number of purported class action
price-fixing lawsuits have been filed against us and other DRAM
suppliers. Numerous cases have been filed in various state and
federal courts asserting claims on behalf of a purported class of individuals
and entities that indirectly purchased DRAM and/or products containing DRAM from
various DRAM suppliers during the time period from April 1, 1999 through at
least June 30, 2002. The complaints allege violations of the various
jurisdictions’ antitrust, consumer protection and/or unfair competition laws
relating to the sale and pricing of DRAM products and seek treble monetary
damages, restitution, costs, interest and attorneys’ fees. A number
of these cases have been removed to federal court and transferred to the U.S.
District Court for the Northern District of California (San Francisco) for
consolidated proceedings. On January 29, 2008, the Northern District
of California Court granted in part and denied in part our motion to dismiss the
plaintiff’s second amended consolidated complaint. The District Court
subsequently certified the decision for interlocutory appeal. On
February 27, 2008, plaintiffs filed a third amended complaint. On
June 26, 2008, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit accepted
plaintiffs’ interlocutory appeal. (See “Item 3. Legal
Proceedings” for additional details on these cases and related
matters.)
Various states, through their Attorneys
General, have filed suit against us and other DRAM manufacturers alleging
violations of state and federal competition laws. The amended
complaint alleges, among other things, violations of the Sherman Act, Cartwright
Act, and certain other states’ consumer protection and antitrust laws and seeks
damages, and injunctive and other relief. On October 3, 2008, the
California Attorney General filed a similar lawsuit in California Superior
Court, purportedly on behalf of local California government entities, alleging,
among other things, violations of the Cartwright Act and state unfair
competition law. (See “Item 3. Legal Proceedings” for
additional details on these cases and related matters.)
A number of purported class action
lawsuits have been filed against us and other SRAM suppliers asserting claims on
behalf of a purported class of individuals and entities that purchased SRAM
directly or indirectly from various SRAM suppliers. The complaints
allege price fixing in violation of federal antitrust laws and state antitrust
and unfair competition laws and seek treble monetary damages, restitution,
costs, interest and attorneys' fees. The first trial in these cases
is currently scheduled for September 2010. (See “Item
3. Legal Proceedings” for additional details on these cases and
related matters.)
Three purported class action lawsuits
alleging price-fixing of Flash products have been filed in Canada asserting
violations of the Canadian Competition Act. These cases assert claims
on behalf of a purported class of individuals and entities that purchased Flash
memory directly and indirectly from various Flash memory
suppliers. (See “Item 3. Legal Proceedings” for additional
details on these cases and related matters.)
We are unable to predict the outcome of
these lawsuits. An adverse court determination in any of these
lawsuits alleging violations of antitrust laws could result in significant
liability and could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of
operations or financial condition.
Covenants
in our debt instruments may obligate us to repay debt, increase contributions to
our TECH joint venture and limit our ability to obtain financing.
Our ability to comply with the
financial and other covenants contained in our debt may be affected by economic
or business conditions or other events. As of December 4, 2008, our
73% owned TECH Semiconductor Singapore Pte. Ltd., (“TECH”) subsidiary, had $600
million outstanding under a credit facility with covenants that, among other
requirements, establish certain liquidity, debt service coverage and leverage
ratios for TECH and restrict TECH’s ability to incur indebtedness, create liens
and acquire or dispose of assets. If TECH does not comply with these
debt covenants and restrictions, this debt may be deemed to be in default and
the debt declared payable. Additionally, if TECH is unable to repay
its borrowings when due, the lenders under TECH’s credit facility could proceed
against substantially all of TECH’s assets. We have guaranteed
approximately 73% of the outstanding amount of TECH’s credit facility, and our
obligation increases to 100% of the outstanding amount of the facility upon the
occurrence of certain conditions. If TECH’s debt is accelerated, we
may not have sufficient assets to repay amounts due. Existing
covenant restrictions may limit our ability to obtain additional debt financing
and to avoid covenant defaults we may have to pay off debt obligations and make
additional contributions to TECH, which could adversely affect our liquidity and
financial condition.
Allegations
of violations of securities laws.
On February 24, 2006, a number of
purported class action complaints were filed against us and certain of our
officers in the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho alleging claims
under Section 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder. The cases purport to
be brought on behalf of a class of purchasers of our stock during the period
February 24, 2001 to February 13, 2003. The five lawsuits have been
consolidated and a consolidated amended class action complaint was filed on July
24, 2006. The complaint generally alleges violations of federal
securities laws based on, among other things, claimed misstatements or omissions
regarding alleged illegal price-fixing conduct. The complaint seeks
unspecified damages, interest, attorneys' fees, costs, and
expenses. On December 19, 2007, the Court issued an order certifying
the class but reducing the class period to purchasers of our stock during the
period from February 24, 2001 to September 18, 2002. (See “Item
3. Legal Proceedings” for additional details on these cases and
related matters.)
We are unable to predict the outcome of
these cases. An adverse court determination in any of the class
action lawsuits against us could result in significant liability and could have
a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations or financial
condition.
Products
that fail to meet specifications, are defective or that are otherwise
incompatible with end uses could impose significant costs on us.
Products that do not meet
specifications or that contain, or are perceived by our customers to contain,
defects or that are otherwise incompatible with end uses could impose
significant costs on us or otherwise materially adversely affect our business,
results of operations or financial condition.
Because the design and production
process for semiconductor memory is highly complex, it is possible that we may
produce products that do not comply with customer specifications, contain
defects or are otherwise incompatible with end uses. If, despite
design review, quality control and product qualification procedures, problems
with nonconforming, defective or incompatible products occur after we have
shipped such products, we could be adversely affected in several ways, including
the following:
·
|
we
may replace product or otherwise compensate customers for costs incurred
or damages caused by defective or incompatible product,
and
|
·
|
we
may encounter adverse publicity, which could cause a decrease in sales of
our products.
|
Our
debt level is higher than compared to historical periods.
We currently have a higher level of
debt compared to historical periods. As of December 4, 2008, we had
$2.9 billion of debt. We may need to incur additional debt in the future. Our
debt level could adversely impact us. For example it
could:
·
|
make
it more difficult for us to make payments on our
debt;
|
·
|
require
us to dedicate a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations and
other capital resources to debt
service;
|
·
|
limit
our future ability to raise funds for capital expenditures, acquisitions,
research and development and other general corporate
requirements;
|
·
|
increase
our vulnerability to adverse economic and semiconductor memory industry
conditions;
|
·
|
expose
us to fluctuations in interest rates with respect to that portion of our
debt which is at variable rate of interest;
and
|
·
|
require
us to make additional investments in joint ventures to maintain compliance
with financial covenants.
|
New
product development may be unsuccessful.
We are developing new products that
complement our traditional memory products or leverage their underlying design
or process technology. We have made significant investments in
product and process technologies and anticipate expending significant resources
for new semiconductor product development over the next several
years. The process to develop NAND Flash, Imaging and certain
specialty memory products requires us to demonstrate advanced functionality and
performance, many times well in advance of a planned ramp of production, in
order to secure design wins with our customers. There can be no
assurance that our product development efforts will be successful, that we will
be able to cost-effectively manufacture these new products, that we will be able
to successfully market these products or that margins generated from sales of
these products will recover costs of development efforts.
The
future success of our Imaging business will be dependent on continued market
acceptance of our products and the development, introduction and marketing of
new Imaging products.
We face competition in the image sensor
market from a number of suppliers of CMOS image sensors including OmniVision
Technologies, Inc.; Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd; Sony Corporation;
STMicroelectronics NV; Toshiba Corporation and from a number of suppliers of CCD
image sensors including Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.; Sharp
Corporation and Sony Corporation. In recent periods, a number of new
companies have entered the CMOS image sensor market. Competitors
include many large domestic and international companies that have greater
presence in key markets, better access to certain customer bases, greater name
recognition and more established strategic and financial relationships than the
Company.
In recent years, our Imaging net sales
and gross margins decreased and we faced increased competition. There
can be no assurance that we will be able to grow or maintain our market share or
gross margins for Imaging products in the future. We expect that unit
sales for Imaging will decrease in the second quarter of 2009 due to lower sales
of cell phones and other devices incorporating the our Imaging
products. Temporary production slowdowns that we implemented at some
of our manufacturing facilities during the second quarter of 2009 are expected
to adversely affect per unit costs of Imaging products. The success
of our Imaging business will depend on a number of factors,
including:
·
|
development
of products that maintain a technological advantage over the products of
our competitors;
|
·
|
accurate
prediction of market requirements and evolving standards, including pixel
resolution, output interface standards, power requirements, optical lens
size, input standards and other
requirements;
|
·
|
timely
completion and introduction of new Imaging products that satisfy customer
requirements;
|
·
|
timely
achievement of design wins with prospective customers, as manufacturers
may be reluctant to change their source of components due to the
significant costs, time, effort and risk associated with qualifying a new
supplier; and
|
·
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efficient,
cost-effective manufacturing as we transition to new products and higher
volumes.
|
Our
efforts to restructure our Aptina Imaging business may be
unsuccessful.
We are exploring partnering
arrangements with outside parties regarding the sale of Aptina in which we could
retain a minority ownership interest. To that end, we began operating
our Imaging business as a separate, wholly-owned, subsidiary in October
2008. To the extent we form a partnering arrangement, the resulting
business model may not be successful and the Imaging operations revenues and
margins could be adversely affected. We may incur significant costs
to convert Imaging operations to a new business structure and operations could
be disrupted. In addition, we may lose key personnel. If
our efforts to restructure the Imaging business are unsuccessful, our business,
results of operations or financial condition could be materially adversely
affected.
We
expect to make future acquisitions and alliances, which involve numerous
risks.
Acquisitions and the formation of
alliances such as joint ventures and other partnering arrangements, involve
numerous risks including the following:
·
|
difficulties
in integrating the operations, technologies and products of acquired or
newly formed entities;
|
·
|
increasing
capital expenditures to upgrade and maintain
facilities;
|
·
|
increasing
debt to finance any acquisition or formation of a new
business;
|
·
|
difficulties
in protecting our intellectual property as we enter into a greater number
of licensing arrangements;
|
·
|
diverting
management’s attention from normal daily
operations;
|
·
|
managing
larger or more complex operations and facilities and employees in separate
geographic areas; and
|
·
|
hiring
and retaining key employees.
|
Acquisitions of, or alliances with,
high-technology companies are inherently risky, and any future transactions may
not be successful and may materially adversely affect our business, results of
operations or financial condition.
Changes
in foreign currency exchange rates could materially adversely affect our
business, results of operations or financial condition.
Our financial statements are prepared
in accordance with U.S. GAAP and are reported in U.S. dollars. Across
our multi-national operations, there are transactions and balances denominated
in other currencies, primarily the euro, yen and Singapore dollar. We
recorded a net loss of $25 million from changes in currency exchange rates for
2008. We estimate that, based on its assets and liabilities
denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar as of December 4, 2008, a
1% change in the exchange rate versus the U.S. dollar would result in foreign
currency gains or losses of approximately U.S. $1 million for the yen, Singapore
dollar or euro. In the event that the U.S. dollar weakens
significantly compared to the yen, Singapore dollar and euro, our results of
operations or financial condition will be adversely affected.
We
face risks associated with our international sales and operations that could
materially adversely affect our business, results of operations or financial
condition.
Sales to customers outside the United
States approximated 80% of our consolidated net sales for the first quarter of
2009. In addition, we have manufacturing operations in China, Italy,
Japan, Puerto Rico and Singapore. Our international sales and
operations are subject to a variety of risks, including:
·
|
currency
exchange rate fluctuations;
|
·
|
export
and import duties, changes to import and export regulations, and
restrictions on the transfer of
funds;
|
·
|
political
and economic instability;
|
·
|
problems
with the transportation or delivery of our
products;
|
·
|
issues
arising from cultural or language differences and labor
unrest;
|
·
|
longer
payment cycles and greater difficulty in collecting accounts receivable;
and
|
·
|
compliance
with trade and other laws in a variety of
jurisdictions.
|
These factors may materially adversely
affect our business, results of operations or financial condition.
Our
net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards may be limited.
We have significant net operating loss
and tax credit carryforwards. We have provided significant valuation
allowances against the tax benefit of such losses as well as certain tax credit
carryforwards. Utilization of these net operating losses and credit
carryforwards is dependent upon us achieving sustained
profitability. As a consequence of prior business acquisitions,
utilization of the tax benefits for some of the tax carryforwards is subject to
limitations imposed by Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code and some portion
or all of these carryforwards may not be available to offset any future taxable
income. The determination of the limitations is complex and requires
significant judgment and analysis of past transactions.
If
our manufacturing process is disrupted, our business, results of operations or
financial condition could be materially adversely affected.
We manufacture products using highly
complex processes that require technologically advanced equipment and continuous
modification to improve yields and performance. Difficulties in the
manufacturing process or the effects from a shift in product mix can reduce
yields or disrupt production and may increase our per gigabit manufacturing
costs. Additionally, our control over operations at our IM Flash,
TECH, Inotera, MeiYa and MP Mask joint ventures may be limited by our agreements
with our partners. From time to time, we have experienced minor
disruptions in our manufacturing process as a result of power outages,
improperly functioning equipment and equipment failures. If
production at a fabrication facility is disrupted for any reason, manufacturing
yields may be adversely affected or we may be unable to meet our customers'
requirements and they may purchase products from other
suppliers. This could result in a significant increase in
manufacturing costs or loss of revenues or damage to customer relationships,
which could materially adversely affect our business, results of operations or
financial condition.
Disruptions
in our supply of raw materials could materially adversely affect our business,
results of operations or financial condition.
Our operations require raw materials
that meet exacting standards. We generally have multiple sources of
supply for our raw materials. However, only a limited number of
suppliers are capable of delivering certain raw materials that meet our
standards. Various factors could reduce the availability of raw
materials such as silicon wafers, photomasks, chemicals, gases, lead frames and
molding compound.
Shortages may occur from time to time
in the future. In addition, disruptions in transportation lines could
delay our receipt of raw materials. Lead times for the supply of raw
materials have been extended in the past. If our supply of raw
materials is disrupted or our lead times extended, our business, results of
operations or financial condition could be materially adversely
affected.
Item
2.
Issuer Purchases
of Equity Securities,
Unregistered Sales of Equity
Securities and Use of Proceeds
During the first quarter of 2009, the
Company acquired, as payment of withholding taxes in connection with the vesting
of restricted stock and restricted stock unit awards, 153,205 shares of its
common stock at an average price per share of $4.16. The Company
retired the 153,205 shares in the first quarter of 2009.
Period
|
|
(a)
Total number of shares purchased
|
|
|
(b)
Average price paid per share
|
|
|
(c)
Total number of shares (or units) purchased as part of publicly announced
plans or programs
|
|
|
(d)
Maximum number (or approximate dollar value) of shares (or units) that may
yet be purchased under the plans or programs
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
August
29, 2008 – October 2, 2008
|
|
|
78,427
|
|
|
$
|
4.34
|
|
|
|
N/A
|
|
|
|
N/A
|
|
October
3, 2008 – October 30,
2008
|
|
|
71,885
|
|
|
|
3.95
|
|
|
|
N/A
|
|
|
|
N/A
|
|
October
31, 2008 – December 4, 2008
|
|
|
2,893
|
|
|
|
4.38
|
|
|
|
N/A
|
|
|
|
N/A
|
|
|
|
|
153,205
|
|
|
|
4.16
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Item
4.
Submission of
Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
The Company’s 2008 Annual Meeting of
Shareholders was held on December 11, 2008. At the meeting, the
following items were submitted to a vote of the shareholders:
(a) The
following nominees for Directors were elected. Each person elected as
a Director will serve until the next annual meeting of shareholders or until
such person’s successor is elected and qualified.
Name
of Nominee
|
|
Votes
Cast For
|
|
|
Votes
Cast Against/Withheld
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Teruaki
Aoki
|
|
|
508,733,764
|
|
|
|
115,522,925
|
|
Steven
R. Appleton
|
|
|
595,510,929
|
|
|
|
28,745,760
|
|
James
W. Bagley
|
|
|
589,125,503
|
|
|
|
35,131,186
|
|
Robert
L. Bailey
|
|
|
603,672,439
|
|
|
|
20,584,250
|
|
Mercedes
Johnson
|
|
|
568,543,305
|
|
|
|
55,713,384
|
|
Lawrence
N. Mondry
|
|
|
515,754,651
|
|
|
|
108,502,038
|
|
Robert
E. Switz
|
|
|
602,203,922
|
|
|
|
22,052,767
|
|
(b) The
proposal by the Company to approve an amendment to the Company’s 2007 Equity
Incentive Plan to increase the number of shares reserved for issuance thereunder
by 10,000,000 was approved with 272,872,836 votes in favor, 223,415,211 votes
against, 684,556 abstentions and 127,284,086 broker non-votes.
(c) The
ratification of the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the Independent
Registered Public Accounting Firm of the Company for the fiscal year ending
September 3, 2009, was approved with 607,039,348 votes in favor, 16,298,304
votes against, and 919,037 abstentions.
Item
6.
Exhibits
|
Exhibit
|
|
|
|
Number
|
|
Description
of Exhibit
|
|
|
|
|
|
3.1
|
|
Restated
Certificate of Incorporation of the Registrant (1)
|
|
3.2
|
|
Bylaws
of the Registrant, as amended (2)
|
|
10.1
|
|
Executive
Officer Performance Incentive Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.3
|
|
1994
Stock Option Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.5
|
|
1997
Nonstatutory Stock Option Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.6
|
|
1998
Non-Employee Director Stock Incentive Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.7
|
|
1998
Nonstatutory Stock Option Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.8
|
|
2001
Stock Option Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.10
|
|
2002
Employment Inducement Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.11
|
|
2004
Equity Incentive Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.13
|
|
Nonstatutory
Stock Option Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.15
|
|
Lexar
Media, Inc. 2000 Equity Incentive Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.48
|
|
2007
Equity Incentive Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.64
|
|
Lexar
Media, Inc. 1996 Stock Option Plan, as Amended
|
|
10.65*
|
|
Boise
Supply Termination and Amendment Agreement, dated October 10, 2008, by and
among Intel Corporation, Micron Technology, Inc. and IM Flash
Technologies, LLC
|
|
10.66*
|
|
Loan
Agreement, dated November 26, 2008, by and among Micron Semiconductor
B.V., Micron Technology, Inc., and Nan Ya Plastics
Corporation
|
|
10.67
|
|
Loan
Agreement, dated November 26, 2008, by and between Micron Technology, Inc.
and Inotera Memories, Inc.
|
|
10.68
|
|
Transition
Agreement, dated October 11, 2008, by and among Nanya Technology
Corporation, Qimonda AG, Inotera Memories, Inc. and Micron Technology,
Inc.
|
|
10.69
|
|
Micron
Guaranty Agreement, dated November 26, 2008, by Micron Technology, Inc. in
favor of Nanya Technology Corporation
|
|
10.70
|
|
Share
Purchase Agreement by and among Micron Technology, Inc. as the Buyer
Parent, Micron Semiconductor B.V., as the Buyer, Qimonda Ag as the Seller
Parent and Qimonda Holding B.V., as the Seller Sub dated as of
October 11, 2008
|
|
10.71*
|
|
Master
Agreement, dated November 26, 2008, among Micron Technology, Inc., Micron
Semiconductor B.V., Nanya Technology Corporation, MeiYa Technology
Corporation and Inotera Memories, Inc.
|
|
10.72*
|
|
Joint
Venture Agreement, dated November 26, 2008, by and between Micron
Semiconductor B.V. and Nanya Technology Corporation
|
|
10.73*
|
|
Facilitation
Agreement, dated November 26, 2008, by and between Micron Semiconductor
B.V., Nanya Technology Corporation and Inotera Memories,
Inc.
|
|
10.74*
|
|
Supply
Agreement, dated November 26, 2008, by and among Micron Technology, Inc.,
Nanya Technology Corporation and Inotera Memories, Inc.
|
|
10.75*
|
|
Amended
and Restated Joint Development Program Agreement, dated November 26, 2008,
by and between Nanya Technology Corporation and Micron Technology,
Inc.
|
|
10.76*
|
|
Amended
and Restated Technology Transfer and License Agreement, dated November 26,
2008, by and between Micron Technology, Inc. and Nanya Technology
Corporation
|
|
10.77*
|
|
Technology
Transfer Agreement, dated November 26, 2008, by and among Nanya Technology
Corporation, Micron Technology, Inc. and Inotera Memories,
Inc.
|
|
10.78*
|
|
Technology
Transfer Agreement for 68-50nm Process Nodes, dated October 11, 2008, by
and between Micron Technology, Inc. and Inotera Memories,
Inc.
|
|
31.1
|
|
Rule
13a-14(a) Certification of Chief Executive Officer
|
|
31.2
|
|
Rule
13a-14(a) Certification of Chief Financial Officer
|
|
32.1
|
|
Certification
of Chief Executive Officer Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 1350
|
|
32.2
|
|
Certification
of Chief Financial Officer Pursuant to 18 U.S.C.
1350
|
_____________________
(1)
|
Incorporated
by reference to Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended
May 31, 2001
|
(2)
|
Incorporated
by reference to Current Report on Form 8-K dated October 1,
2008
|
*
|
Portions
of this exhibit have been omitted pursuant to a request for confidential
treatment filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission.
|
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to
be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly
authorized.
|
Micron Technology,
Inc.
|
|
(Registrant)
|
|
|
|
|
Date: January
13, 2009
|
/s/ Ronald C.
Foster
|
|
Ronald
C. Foster
Vice
President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial and
Accounting Officer)
|
Exhibit
10.1
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
EXECUTIVE
OFFICER
PERFORMANCE
INCENTIVE PLAN
Effective
as of September 3, 2004
1. Purpose.
The
purpose of the Plan is to promote the success of the Company by providing
performance-based incentive compensation in the form of cash payments (“Awards”)
to the chief executive officer, president and vice-presidents (“Executive
Officers”) of the Company. Such Awards are designed to attract,
retain and reward the Executive Officers for outstanding business
performance. The Plan is intended, but not required, to provide
qualified performance-based compensation in accordance with Section 162(m) of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as it may be amended from time to time, and
the regulations promulgated thereunder (“Section
162(m)”).
2. Administration.
The Plan
shall be administered by the Committee. The Committee shall be
composed solely of two or more outside directors as defined in Section 162(m)
and shall qualify as an independent compensation committee under Section
162(m). The Committee shall have full power and authority to
construe, interpret and administer the Plan and shall have authority to delegate
the day-to-day administration of the Plan to Company employees or to such other
persons as the Committee deems reasonable under the
circumstances. The Committee shall meet at such times and places as
it may determine. A majority of the members of the Committee shall
constitute a quorum and all decisions of the Committee with respect to matters
related to the Plan shall be final, conclusive and binding upon all persons,
including the Company, shareholders, employees, Company successors and assigns
and a Participant’s spouse, if any, and his or her guardian, estate and/or heirs
(“Interested Parties”). The Committee shall have the full and
exclusive right to make reductions in Awards under the Plan. In
determining whether to reduce any Award and the amount of any such reduction,
the Committee shall take into consideration such factors as the Committee shall
determine reasonable under the circumstances, in its sole and absolute
discretion. All expenses of the administration of the Plan shall be
borne by the Company, including all Awards, if any, paid pursuant to the terms
of the Plan.
3. Stockholder
Approval.
The Plan
shall be effective if, and only if, the Company’s shareholders approve the
Plan. No Award shall be paid under the Plan for any period until
after stockholder approval of the Plan has been obtained. To the
extent necessary for the Plan to qualify as performance-based compensation under
Section 162(m), the material terms of the Plan shall be disclosed to and
re-approved by the shareholders no later than the first shareholders meeting
that occurs in the fifth year following the year in which shareholders
previously approved the material terms of the Plan.
4. Participants.
(a)
Selection of
Participants.
For each measurement period (which may or may
not be the same period with respect to each Participant and which may or may not
be a twelve-month period; provided, however, in no event will a measurement
period be less than ninety (90) days for any Participant), the Committee will
choose, in its sole discretion, the Executive Officers who will participate in
the Plan (each a “Participant”). Nothing in this Plan shall be
construed as precluding or prohibiting an Executive Officer from being eligible
to participate in any other bonus or compensation arrangement of the Company,
whether or not currently established.
(b)
Employment Criteria.
To be eligible to
receive an Award under the terms of the Plan with respect to a measurement
period, a Participant must be continuously employed by the Company or a
subsidiary or affiliate as an Executive Officer for the entire measurement
period, including, as well, through the date of determination and certification
of the payment of any such Award (“Certification Date”). For purposes
of the Plan, with respect to any given measurement period, a Participant who (i)
terminates employment (regardless of cause) or who otherwise ceases to be an
Executive Officer, prior to the Certification Date and (ii) who, pursuant to a
separate contractual arrangement with the Company is entitled to receive
payments from the Company thereunder extending to or beyond such Certification
Date as a result of such termination or cessation in Executive Officer status,
shall be
deemed to
have been employed by the Company as an Executive Officer through the
Certification Date for purposes of Award eligibility.
5. Business
Criteria on Which Performance Goals Shall be Based.
Awards
under the Plan shall be based on the attainment of Performance Goals for the
specified measurement period that are related, directly or indirectly, to one or
more of the following objective business criteria, or any combination or portion
thereof:
|
•
|
Gross and/or net revenue
(including whether in the aggregate or attributable to specific
products)
|
|
•
|
Cost
of Goods Sold and Gross Margin
|
|
•
|
Costs
and expenses, including Research & Development and Selling, General
& Administrative
|
|
•
|
Income
(gross, operating, net, etc.)
|
|
•
|
Earnings,
including before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (whether
in the aggregate or on a per share
basis
|
|
•
|
Cash
flows and share price
|
|
•
|
Return
on investment, capital, equity
|
|
•
|
Manufacturing
efficiency (including yield enhancement and cycle time reductions),
quality improvements and customer
satisfaction
|
|
•
|
Product
life cycle management (including product and technology design,
development, transfer, manufacturing introduction, and sales price
optimization and management)
|
|
•
|
Economic
profit or loss
|
|
•
|
Employee
retention, compensation, training and development, including succession
planning
|
|
•
|
Objective
goals consistent with the Participant’s specific officer duties and
responsibilities, designed to further the financial, operational and other
business interests of the Company, including goals and objectives with
respect to regulatory compliance
matters.
|
The
business criteria may be expressed or measured at the individual, function,
department, region, unit, subsidiary, affiliate or Company levels or any
combination of the foregoing. Company Performance Goals with respect
to the foregoing business criteria may be specified in absolute terms (including
completion of pre-established projects, such as the introduction of specified
products), in ratios, in percentages, or in terms of growth from period to
period, growth rates over time as well as in terms of performance measured
relative to an established or specially-created performance index of Company
competitors, peers or other members of high tech industries. Any
member of an index that disappears during a measurement period shall be
disregarded for the entire measurement period. Performance Goals need
not be based upon an increase or positive result under a business criterion and
could include, for example, the maintenance of the status quo or the limitation
of economic losses (measured, in each case, by reference to a specific business
criterion).
6. Establishment
of Performance Goals.
(a)
Committee
Action.
For each measurement period the Committee shall
establish the following: (1)the length of the measurement period with respect to
each Participant (measurement periods need not be the same for each
Participant. Measurement periods will coincide with the Company’s
fiscal year unless a shorter measurement period is established; provided,
however, in no event will a measurement period be less than a three-month period
for any Participant); (2) the Participants in the Plan for such
period; (3) the specific Company, subsidiary, affiliate, group,
division, unit, department, function and/or individual business criterion or
criteria, or combination thereof, that will be measured with respect to each
Participant; (4) the specific results, or range of results, to be achieved with
respect to the selected criterion or criteria (“Performance
Goals”); (5) any special adjustments that may need to be applied in
calculating whether the Performance Goals have been met to factor out
extraordinary items; (6) the formula for calculating the awards under
the Plan in relation to the Performance Goals (including instructions for
extrapolating the amounts payable when performance results fall in a range
between threshold, target and maximum goals), and; (7) the targeted
bonus amounts or Awards (expressed in absolute terms or as a percentage of base
compensation fixed at the time the performance formula is established) for each
Participant.
(b)
Timing of Committee
Action.
The Committee shall make the above determinations in
writing no later than ninety (90) days after the start of each measurement
period, on or before twenty-five percent (25%) of the measurement period has
elapsed, and while the outcome is substantially uncertain.
(c)
Maximum Award.
The
maximum Award that may be paid to any one Participant with respect to the
aggregate of all measurement periods in any fiscal year shall not exceed
$3,000,000.
(d)
Awards Intended to be “performance
based compensation” under Section 409A.
With respect to Awards
intended to be “performance based compensation” as defined in §1.409A-1(e) of
the final regulations under Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986,
as it may be amended from time to time (“Section 409A”), (1) the measurement
period shall be at least 12 consecutive months; (2) Performance Goals shall be
established in writing no later than 90 days after the commencement of the
period of service to which the criteria relates, provided that the outcome must
be substantially uncertain at the time the criteria are established; (3) the
Performance Goals may include subjective performance criteria, provided that the
subjective performance criteria are bona fide and relate to the performance of
the Participant, a group of service providers that includes the Participant, or
a business unit for which the Participant provides services (which may include
the entire organization); and (4) the Award must meet other applicable
requirements of Section 409A.
(e)
Changes in the Business, Executive
Officer Positions or Duties, Re-Set Events, Etc.
(1)
Awards Not Intended to Satisfy
Section 162(m).
With respect to Awards not intended to satisfy
Section 162(m), if the Committee determines that a change in the business,
operations, corporate structure or capital structure of the Company, including
any acquisition, disposition or merger, or the manner in which the Company or a
subsidiary or affiliate conducts its business, or other events or circumstances
render Performance Goals to be unsuitable for a measurement period, the
Committee may modify such Performance Goals in whole or in part, and/or such
measurement period, as the Committee deems appropriate. If a
Participant is promoted, demoted or transferred to a different business unit or
function during a measurement period, the Committee may determine that the
Performance Goals or measurement period are no longer appropriate and may (i)
adjust, change or eliminate the Performance Goals or the applicable measurement
period as it deems appropriate to make such goals and period comparable to the
initial Performance Goals and measurement period, or (ii) make an Award to the
Participant in amount determined by the Committee to be in the best interests of
the Company, in the Committee’s sole discretion. The foregoing two
sentences shall apply with respect to an Award that is not intended to satisfy
Section 162(m).
(2)
Awards Intended to Satisfy Section
162(m).
With respect to Awards intended to satisfy Section
162(m), unless otherwise specified by the Committee in its written
determinations establishing the business criteria for the particular measurement
period, if prior to the end of such measurement period the Company (i) disposes
of businesses or interests that, individually or in the aggregate, represent
either (A) five percent (5%) or more of the Company’s consolidated gross
revenues for the four fiscal quarters completed immediately preceding the
consummation of the dispositions or (B) five percent (5%) of the Company’s
consolidated property, plant and equipment, net, measured as of the last day of
the fiscal quarter immediately preceding the disposition or (ii) consummates one
or more acquisitions during the measurement period that, individually or in the
aggregate, constitute a Triggering Acquisition, in each case a “Re-Set Event,”
the Performance Goals shall be adjusted, effective as of the last day of the
fiscal quarter immediately before the consummation of the Re-Set Event, (x) to
reflect the business disposition by eliminating from the Performance Goals the
projected business results relating to the disposed business for the remainder
of the fiscal quarters of the measurement period, and (y) to reflect any
business acquisition, by establishing supplemental performance criteria in
compliance with Sections 5 and 6 (a) through (c) above, as the Committee deems
appropriate, with respect to the acquired business (which business shall be
tracked separately as an independent business unit for purposes of any such
supplemental performance criteria). For purposes of this Section, a
Triggering Acquisition means an acquisition (or combination of acquisitions) in
which either (i) the acquired entity’s gross revenues for the four quarters
completed immediately prior to consummation of the acquisition is equal to five
percent (5%) or more of the pro-forma gross revenues for the same four quarters
for the combination of the Company and its affiliates and the acquired entity,
or (ii) the acquired entity’s property, plant and equipment, net, equals or
exceeds five percent (5%) of the pro-forma property, plant and equipment, net,
for the combination of the Company and its affiliates and the acquired entity
. (If either the Company and its affiliates or the entity being
acquired had consummated other acquisitions during the four quarters in
question, the calculation described in the prior sentence shall be made using
pro-forma earnings for each member of the combined
entity.) Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing in this Section
6(d)(2) will be construed to authorize the Committee to take actions under this
Section 6(d)(2) that are not permitted by Section 162(m).
(f) Change
in Control.
(1)
Awards.
Notwithstanding
Section 6(d), in the event of a Change in Control (as defined below), each
measurement period shall be deemed to have ended as of the last day of the
fiscal month immediately preceding such Change in Control (the “CIC Termination
Date”). The Committee shall determine with respect to each
Participant
whether his or her Performance Goal(s) were Achieved (as defined below) as of
the CIC Termination Date. In the case of any such achievement, a
Participant shall receive, subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan,
including the Committee’s discretion and certification as set forth in Section 7
below, an Award payable within thirty days of the Certification
Date. Subject to the Committee’s discretion set forth in Section
7(b), Awards that are Achieved as defined in subsection 6(e)(2)(i) shall not be
pro-rated and Awards that are Achieved as defined in subsection 6(e)(2)(ii)
shall be pro-rated.
(2)
Definitions.
For
purposes of this Section 6, the following terms shall be defined as
follows:
“Achieved”
shall mean with respect to (i) a non-financial or non-numerical Performance
Goal, the full achievement of such Performance Goal; and (ii) a financial or
numerical Performance Goal, the achievement of results which, when extrapolated
over the remainder of the full measurement period, disregarding the CIC
Termination Date, would result in the Performance Goal being
satisfied.
“Change
in Control” means and includes the occurrence of any one of the following
events:
(i) individuals
who, on the date this Plan becomes effective (“Effective Date”), constitute the
Board of Directors of the Company (the “Incumbent Directors”) and who cease for
any reason to constitute at least a majority of such Board, provided that any
person becoming a director after the Effective Date and whose election or
nomination for election was approved by a vote of at least a majority of the
Incumbent Directors then on the Board shall be an Incumbent Director;
provided
,
however
, that no
individual initially elected or nominated as a director of the Company as a
result of an actual or threatened election contest with respect to the election
or removal of directors (“Election Contest”) or other actual or threatened
solicitation of proxies or consents by or on behalf of any Person other than the
Board (“Proxy Contest”), including by reason of any agreement intended to avoid
or settle any Election Contest or Proxy Contest, shall be deemed an Incumbent
Director; or
(ii) any
person is or becomes a “beneficial owner” (as defined in Rule 13d-3 under the
1934 Securities Exchange Act), directly or indirectly, of either (A) 35% or more
of the then-outstanding shares of common stock of the Company (“Company Common
Stock”) or (B) securities of the Company representing 35% or more of the
combined voting power of the Company’s then outstanding securities eligible to
vote for the election of directors (the “Company Voting Securities”);
provided
,
however
, that for
purposes of this subsection (ii), the following acquisitions shall not
constitute a Change in Control: (w) an acquisition directly from the Company,
(x) an acquisition by the Company or a subsidiary of the Company, (y) an
acquisition by any employee benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored or
maintained by the Company or any subsidiary of the Company, or (z) an
acquisition pursuant to a Non-Qualifying Transaction (as defined in subsection
(iii) below); or
(iii) the
consummation of a reorganization, merger, consolidation, statutory share
exchange or similar form of corporate transaction involving the Company or a
subsidiary (a “Reorganization”), or the sale or other disposition of all or
substantially all of the Company’s assets (a “Sale”) or the acquisition of
assets or stock of another corporation (an “Acquisition”), unless immediately
following such Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition: (A) all or substantially all
of the individuals and entities who were the beneficial owners, respectively, of
the outstanding Company Common Stock and outstanding Company Voting Securities
immediately prior to such Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition beneficially own,
directly or indirectly, more than 50% of, respectively, the then outstanding
shares of common stock and the combined voting power of the then outstanding
voting securities entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, as
the case may be, of the corporation resulting from such Reorganization, Sale or
Acquisition (including, without limitation, a corporation which as a result of
such transaction owns the Company or all or substantially all of the Company’s
assets or stock either directly or through one or more subsidiaries, the
“Surviving Corporation”) in substantially the same proportions as their
ownership, immediately prior to such Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition, of the
outstanding Company Common Stock and the outstanding Company Voting Securities,
as the case may be, and (B) no person (other than (x) the Company or any
subsidiary of the Company, (y) the Surviving Corporation or its ultimate parent
corporation, or (z) any employee benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored or
maintained by any of the foregoing is the beneficial owner, directly or
indirectly, of 35% or more of the total common stock or 35% or more of the total
voting power of the outstanding voting securities eligible to elect directors of
the Surviving Corporation, and (C) at least a majority of the members of the
board of directors of the Surviving Corporation were Incumbent Directors at the
time of the Board’s approval of the execution of the initial agreement providing
for such Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition (any Reorganization, Sale or
Acquisition which satisfies all of the criteria specified in (A), (B) and (C)
above shall be deemed to be a “Non-
Qualifying
Transaction”); or approval by the shareholders of the Company of a complete
liquidation or dissolution of the Company.
7. Determination
and Certification of Attainment of Performance Goals; Committee
Discretion.
(a)
Determination and Certification of
Awards.
As soon as practicable following the expiration of a
measurement period, the Committee shall determine, pursuant to the Performance
Goals and other elements established pursuant to Section 6 above, the Award to
be paid to each Participant for such measurement period. The Committee’s
determinations shall be final, binding and conclusive with respect to all
Interested Parties and shall be certified in writing by the Committee prior to
the payment of any such Award, which writing may take the form of a Committee
resolution passed by a majority of the Committee at a properly convened meeting
or through unanimous action by the Committee via action by written
consent. The certification requirement also may be satisfied by a
separate writing executed by the Chairman of the Committee, acting in his
capacity as such, following the foregoing Committee action or by the Chairman
executing approved minutes of the Committee in which such determinations were
made.
(b)
Committee
Discretion.
The Committee, in its sole discretion, based on
any factors the Committee deems appropriate, may reduce the Award to any
Participant in any measurement period (including reduction to zero if the
Committee so determines). The Committee shall make a determination of
whether and to what extent to reduce Awards under the Plan for each measurement
period at such time or times following the close of the measurement period as
the Committee shall deem appropriate. The reduction in the amount of an Award to
any Participant for a measurement period shall have no effect on (i.e., shall
neither increase nor decrease) the amount of the Award to any other Participant
for such measurement period.
8.
Payment of Awards.
Awards
shall be paid in cash, in a single lump sum, to the Participants as soon as
practicable following the Certification Date, provided that any Award intended
to satisfy the short-term deferral exemption specified in §1.409A-1(b)(4) of the
final regulations under Section 409A, will be paid on or before later of the
15
th
day of the third month following the end of the Participant’s first taxable year
in which the right to the payment is no longer subject to a substantial risk of
forfeiture or the 15
th
day of
the third month following the end of the Company’s first taxable year in which
the right to the payment is no longer subject to a substantial risk of
forfeiture. Notwithstanding the foregoing, subject to applicable law,
the Committee may permit or require a Participant to defer the receipt of an
Award. If any such deferral is permitted or required, the Board
shall, in its sole discretion, establish rules and procedures for such Award
deferrals which are compliant with Section 409A.
Payments
of Awards to Participants, if any, who are employees of subsidiaries or
affiliates of the Company shall be paid directly by such subsidiaries or
affiliates. The Company (or such subsidiary or affiliate as the case
may be) shall be authorized to withhold applicable taxes from an Award and such
other amounts as shall be required by law or as have been previously authorized
by the Participant.
9. Amendment;
Termination.
The
Committee shall be authorized to amend, modify, suspend or terminate the Plan,
in whole or in part, as the Committee shall deem proper and in the best
interests of the Company at any time for the purpose of meeting or addressing
any changes in legal requirements or for any other purpose permitted by law. The
Committee will seek shareholder approval of any amendment determined to require
shareholder approval pursuant to Section 162(m) or any other applicable law,
rule regulation or listing requirement.
Notwithstanding anything in the Plan or
the terms of any Award or other applicable agreement to the contrary, the
Committee may amend the Plan or any Award or other applicable agreement, to take
effect retroactively or otherwise, as deemed necessary or advisable for the
purpose of conforming the Plan, Award or other applicable agreement to any
present or future law relating to plans of this or similar nature (including,
but not limited to, Section 409A of the Code), and to the administrative
regulations and rulings promulgated thereunder. By participating in
this Plan, a Participant agrees to any amendment made pursuant to this Section
to any Award under the Plan without further consideration or
action.
10. Nonassignability.
No Award
or any other right or obligation under the Plan shall be conveyed, assigned,
encumbered, or transferred by any Participant or Eligible Participant
hereunder and any such attempted conveyance, assignment, encumbrance or transfer
shall be void.
11. No
Right to Continued Employment.
Nothing
in this Plan shall confer upon any employee who is an Executive Officer or
Participant any right to continue in the employ of the Company or shall
interfere with or restrict in any way the right of the Company to discharge such
employee at any time for any reason whatsoever, with or without good
cause.
12.
Effectiveness.
Upon
stockholder approval as described in Section 3, the Plan shall be effective for
measurement periods beginning on or after September 3, 2004.
13. Special
Provisions Related To Section 409A of the Code.
(a) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Award or other applicable agreement to the
contrary, to the extent that any amount or benefit that would constitute
non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of the Code
would otherwise be payable or distributable under the Plan or any Award or other
applicable agreement by reason of the occurrence of a change in control, or the
participant’s disability or separation from service, such amount or benefit will
not be payable or distributable to the Participant by reason of such
circumstance unless (i) the circumstances giving rise to such change in
control, disability or separation from service meet any description or
definition of “change in control event”, “disability” or “separation from
service”, as the case may be, in Section 409A and applicable regulations
(without giving effect to any elective provisions that may be available under
such definition), or (ii) the payment or distribution of such amount or
benefit would be exempt from the application of Section 409A by reason of
the short-term deferral exemption or otherwise. This provision does
not prohibit the vesting of any Award upon a change in control, disability or
separation from service, however defined. If this provision prevents
the payment or distribution of any amount or benefit, such payment or
distribution shall be made on the next earliest payment or distribution date or
event specified in the Award or other applicable agreement that is permissible
under Section 409A.
(b) If
any one or more Awards granted under the Plan to a Participant could qualify for
any separation pay exemption described in Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-1(b)(9),
but such Awards in the aggregate exceeds the dollar limit permitted for the
separation pay exemptions, the Company (acting through the Committee or the Head
of Human Resources) shall determine which Awards or portions thereof will be
subject to such exemptions.
(c) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Award or other applicable agreement to the
contrary, if any amount or benefit that would constitute non-exempt “deferred
compensation” for purposes of Section 409A would otherwise be payable or
distributable under this Plan or in any Award or other applicable agreement by
reason of Participant’s separation from service during a period in which the
Participant is a Specified Employee (as defined below), then, subject to any
permissible acceleration of payment by the Committee under Treas. Reg. Section
1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of
interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):
(i) if
the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, the Participant’s right to
receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be
delayed until the earlier of the Participant’s death or the first day of the
seventh month following the Participant’s separation from service;
and
(ii) if
the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt
deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month
period immediately following the Participant’s separation from service will be
accumulated and the Participant’s right to receive payment or distribution of
such accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of the Participant’s
death or the first day of the seventh month following the Participant’s
separation from service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or
distributed
to the
Participant and the normal payment or distribution schedule for any remaining
payments or distributions will resume.
For
purposes of this Plan, the term “Specified Employee” has the meaning given such
term in Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder, provided, however,
that, as permitted in such final regulations, the Company’s Specified Employees
and its application of the six-month delay rule of Code Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i)
shall be determined in accordance with rules adopted by the Board or any
committee of the Board, which shall be applied consistently with respect to all
nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements of the Company, including this
Plan.
7
Exhibit
10.3
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
1994
STOCK OPTION PLAN
1.
Purposes of the
Plan
. The purposes of this Stock Option Plan are:
·
to
attract and retain the best available personnel for positions of substantial
responsibility,
·
to
provide additional incentive to Employees and Consultants, and
·
to
promote the success of the Company’s business.
Options
granted under the Plan may be Incentive Stock Options or Nonstatutory Stock
Options, as determined by the Administrator at the time of grant.
2.
Definitions
. As
used herein, the following definitions shall apply:
(a) “
Administrator
” means
the Board or any of its Committees as shall be administering the Plan, in
accordance with Section 4 of the Plan.
(b) “
Affiliate
” means
(i) any subsidiary or parent company of the Company, or (ii) an entity that
directly or through one or more intermediaries controls, is controlled by or is
under common control with, the Company, as determined by the
Committee.
(c) “
Applicable Laws
”
means the legal requirements relating to the administration of stock option
plans under Delaware corporate and securities laws and the Code.
(d) “
Board
” means the
Board of Directors of the Company.
(e) "
Change in Control
"
means the acquisition by any person or entity, directly, indirectly or
beneficially, acting alone or in concert, of more than thirty-five percent (35%)
of the Common Stock of the Company outstanding at any time.
(f) “
Code
” means the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Reference to a specific Section of
the Code or regulation thereunder shall include such Section or regulation, any
valid regulation promulgated under such Section, and any comparable provision of
any future law, legislation or regulation amending, supplementing or superseding
such Section or regulation.
(g) “
Committee
” means a
Committee appointed by the Board in accordance with Section 4 of the
Plan.
(h) “
Common Stock
” means
the Common Stock of the Company.
(i) “
Company
” means Micron
Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation.
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
(j) “
Consultant
” means any
person, including an advisor, engaged by the Company or a Parent or Subsidiary
to render services and who is compensated for such services. The term
“Consultant” shall also include Directors who are not Employees of the
Company.
(k) “
Continuous Status as and
Employee or Consultant
” means that the employment or consulting
relationship with the Company, any Parent, or Subsidiary, is not interrupted or
terminated. Continuous Status as an Employee or Consultant shall not
be considered interrupted in the case of (i) any leave of absence approved by
the Company or (ii) transfers between locations of the Company or between the
Company, its Parent, any Subsidiary, or any successor. A leave of
absence approved by the Company shall include sick leave, military leave, or any
other personal leave approved by an authorized representative of the
Company. For purposes of Incentive Stock Options, no such leave may
exceed 90 days, unless reemployment upon expiration of such leave is guaranteed
by statute or contract. If reemployment upon expiration of a leave of
absence approved by the Company is not so guaranteed, on the 91st day of such
leave any Incentive Stock Option held by the Optionee shall cease to be treated
as an Incentive Stock Option and shall be treated for tax purposes as a
Nonstatutory Stock Option.
(l)
“
Director
”
means a member of the Board.
(m) “
Disability
” means
total and permanent disability as defined in Section 22(e)(3) of the Code.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, for any Options that constitute a nonqualified
deferred compensation plan within the meaning of Section 409A(d) of the Code,
“Disability” has the meaning given such term in Section 409A of the
Code.
(n) “
Employee
” means any
person, including Officers and Directors, employed by the Company or any Parent
or Subsidiary of the Company. Neither service as a Director nor
payment of a director’s fee by the Company shall be sufficient to constitute
“employment” by the Company.
(o) “
Exchange Act
” means
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
(p) “
Fair Market Value
”
means, as of any date, the value of Common Stock determined as
follows:
(i) If
the Common Stock is listed on any established stock exchange, including without
limitation the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”), or a national market system,
the Fair Market Value of a Share of Common Stock shall be the average closing
price for such stock (or the closing bid, if no sales were reported) as quoted
on such exchange or system (or the exchange with the greatest volume of trading
in Common Stock) for the last market trading day prior to the day of
determination, as reported by Bloomberg L.P.
or such other source as
the Administrator deems reliable;
(ii) If
the Common Stock is quoted on the over-the-counter market or is regularly quoted
by a recognized securities dealer, but selling prices are not reported, the Fair
Market Value of a Share of Common Stock shall be the mean between the high bid
and low
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
asked
prices for the Common Stock on the day of determination, as reported by
Bloomberg, L. P. or such other source as the Administrator deems
reliable;
(iii) In
the absence of an established market for the Common Stock, the Fair Market Value
shall be determined by such other method as the Committee determines in good
faith to be reasonable and in compliance with Code Section 409A.
(q) “
Incentive Stock
Option
” means an Option intended to qualify as an incentive stock option
within the meaning of Section 422 of the Code and the regulations promulgated
thereunder.
(r) “
Nonstatutory Stock
Option
” means an Option not intended to qualify as an Incentive Stock
Option.
(s) “
Notice of Grant
”
means a written notice evidencing certain terms and conditions of an individual
Option grant. The Notice of Grant is subject to the terms and
conditions of the Option Agreement.
(t) “
Officer
” means a
person who is an officer of the Company within the meaning of Section 16 of the
Exchange Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
(u) “
Option
” means a stock
option granted pursuant to the Plan.
(v) “
Option Agreement
”
means a written agreement between the Company and an Optionee evidencing the
terms and conditions of an individual Option grant. The Option
Agreement is subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan.
(w) “
Option Exchange
Program
” means a program whereby outstanding options are surrendered in
exchange for options with a lower exercise price.
(x) “
Optioned Stock
” means
the Common Stock subject to an Option.
(y) “
Optionee
” means an
Employee or Consultant who holds an outstanding Option.
(z) “
Parent
” means a
“parent corporation”, whether now or hereafter existing, as defined in Section
424(e) of the Code.
(aa) "
Plan
" means this 1994
Option Plan.
(bb) “
Rule 16b-3
” means
Rule 16b-3 of the Exchange Act or any successor to Rule 16b-3, as in effect when
discretion is being exercised with respect to the Plan.
(cc) “
Share
” means a share
of the Common Stock, as adjusted in accordance with Section 12 of the
Plan.
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
(dd) “
Subsidiary
” means a
“subsidiary corporation”, whether now or hereafter existing, as defined in
Section 424(f) of the Code. In the case of an Option that is not
intended to qualify as an Incentive Stock Option, the term “Subsidiary” shall
also include any other entity in which the Company, or any Parent or Subsidiary
of the Company has a significant ownership interest.
3.
Stock Subject to the
Plan
. Subject to the provisions of Section 12 of the Plan, the
maximum aggregate number of Shares which may be optioned and sold under the Plan
is 64,000,000 Shares. The
Shares may be authorized, but unissued, or reacquired Common Stock.
If an Option expires or becomes
unexercisable without having been exercised in full, or is surrendered pursuant
to an Option Exchange Program, the unpurchased Shares which were subject thereto
shall become available for future grant or sale under the Plan (unless the Plan
has terminated);
provided
, however,
that Shares that have actually been issued under the Plan shall not be returned
to the Plan and shall not become available for future distribution under the
Plan.
4.
Administration of the
Plan
.
(a)
Procedure
.
(i)
Multiple Administrative
Bodies
. If permitted by Rule 16b-3, the Plan may be
administered by different bodies with respect to Directors, Officers who are not
Directors, and Employees who are neither Directors nor Officers.
(ii)
Administration With Respect
to Directors and Officers Subject to Section 16(b)
. With
respect to Option grants made to Employees who are also Officers or Directors
subject to Section 16(b) of the Exchange Act, the Plan shall be administered by
(A) the Board, if the Board may administer the Plan in compliance with the rules
governing a plan intended to qualify as a discretionary plan under Rule 16b-3,
or (B) a committee designated by the Board to administer the Plan, which
committee shall be constituted to comply with the rules governing a plan
intended to qualify as a discretionary plan under Rule 16b-3. Once
appointed, such committee shall continue to serve in its designated capacity
until otherwise directed by the Board. From time to time the Board
may increase the size of the Committee and appoint additional members, remove
members (with or without cause) and substitute new members, fill vacancies
(however caused), and remove all members of the Committee and thereafter
directly administer the Plan, all to the extent permitted by the rules governing
a plan intended to qualify as a discretionary plan under Rule
16b-3.
(iii)
Administration With Respect
to Other Persons
. With respect to Option grants made to
Employees or Consultants who are neither Directors nor Officers of the Company,
the Plan shall be administered by (A) the Board or (B) a committee designated by
the Board, which committee shall be constituted to satisfy Applicable
Laws. Once appointed, such Board may increase the size of the
Committee and appoint additional members, remove members (with or without cause)
and substitute new members, fill vacancies (however caused), and
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
remove
all members of the Committee and thereafter directly administer the Plan, all to
the extent permitted by Applicable Laws.
(b)
Powers of the
Administrator
. Subject to the provisions of the Plan, and in
the case of a Committee, subject to the specific duties delegated by the Board
to such Committee, the Administrator shall have the authority, in its
discretion:
(i) to
determine the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock, in accordance with Section
2(o) of the Plan;
(ii) to
select the Consultants and Employees to whom Options may be
granted
hereunder;
(iii) to
determine whether and to what extent Options are granted hereunder;
(iv)
to determine the number of shares of Common Stock to be covered by each Option
granted hereunder;
(v) to
approve forms of agreement for use under the Plan;
(vi) to
determine the terms and conditions, not inconsistent with the terms of the Plan,
of any award granted hereunder. Such terms and conditions include,
but are not limited to, the exercise price, the time or times when Options may
be exercised (which may be based on performance criteria), any vesting
acceleration or waiver of forfeiture restrictions, and any restriction or
limitation regarding any Option or the shares of Common Stock relating thereto,
based in each case on such factors as the Administrator, in its sole discretion,
shall determine;
(vii) to
reduce the exercise price of any Option to the then current Fair Market Value if
the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock covered by such Option shall have
declined since the date the Option was granted;
(viii) to
construe and interpret the terms of the Plan and awards granted pursuant to the
Plan;
(ix) to
prescribe, amend, and rescind rules and regulations relating to the Plan,
including rules and regulations relating to sub-plans established for the
purpose of qualifying for preferred tax treatment under foreign tax
laws;
(x) to
modify or amend each Option (subject to Section 14(c) of the Plan), including
the discretionary authority to extend the post-termination exercisability period
of Options longer than is otherwise provided for in the Plan;
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
(xi) to
authorize any person to execute on behalf of the Company any instrument required
to effect the grant of an Option previously granted by the
Administrator;
(xii) to
institute and Option Exchange Program; and
(xiii) to
make all other determinations deemed necessary or advisable for administering
the Plan.
(c)
Effect of Administrator’s
Decision
. The Administrator’s decisions, determinations, and
interpretations shall be final and binding on all Optionees and any other
holders of Options.
5.
Eligibility
. Nonstatutory
Stock Options may be granted to Employees and Consultants. Incentive
Stock Options may be granted only to Employees. If otherwise
eligible, an Employee or Consultant who has been granted an Option may be
granted additional Options. Employees and Consultants who are service providers
to an Affiliate may be granted Options under this Plan only if the Affiliate
qualifies as an “eligible issuer of service recipient stock” within the meaning
of §1.409A-1(b)(5)(iii)(E) of the final regulations under Code Section
409A.
6.
Limitations
.
(a) Each
Option shall be designated in the Notice of Grant as either an Incentive Stock
Option or a Nonstatutory Stock Option. However, notwithstanding such
designations, to the extent that the aggregate Fair Market Value:
(i) of
Shares subject to an Optionee’s Incentive Stock Options granted by the Company
or any Parent or Subsidiary, which
(ii) become
exercisable for the first time during any calendar year (under all plans of the
Company or any Parent or Subsidiary) exceeds $100,000, such excess Options shall
be treated as Nonstatutory Stock Options. For purposes of this
Section 6(a), Incentive Stock Options shall be taken into account in the order
in which they were granted, and the Fair Market Value of the Shares shall be
determined as of the time of grant.
(b) Neither
the Plan nor any Option shall confer upon an Optionee any right with respect to
continuing the Optionee’s employment or consulting relationship with the
Company, nor shall they interfere in any way with the Optionee’s right or the
Company’s right to terminate such employment or consulting relationship at any
time, with or without cause.
(c) The
following limitations shall apply to grants of Options to
Employees:
(i) No
employee shall be granted, in any fiscal year of the Company, Options to
purchase more than 500,000 Shares.
(ii) The
foregoing limitations shall be adjusted proportionately in connection with any
change in the Company’s capitalization as described in Section 12.
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
(iii) If
an Option is canceled in the same fiscal year of the Company in which it was
granted (other than in connection with a transaction described in Section 12),
the canceled Option will be counted against the limit set forth in Section
6(c)(i). For this purpose, if the exercise price of an Option is
reduced, the transaction will be treated as a cancellation of the Option and the
grant of a new Option.
7.
Term of
Plan
. Subject to Section 18 of the Plan, the Plan shall become
effective upon the earlier to occur of its adoption by the Board or its approval
by the shareholders of the Company as described in Section 18 of the
Plan. It shall continue in effect for a term of ten (10) years unless
terminated earlier under Section 14 of the Plan.
8.
Term of
Option
. The term of each Option shall be stated in the Notice
of Grant; provided, however, that in the case of an Incentive Stock Option, the
term shall be ten (10) years from the date of grant or such shorter term as may
be provided in the Notice of Grant. Moreover, in the case of an
Incentive Stock Option granted to an Optionee who, at the time Incentive Stock
Option is granted, owns stock representing more than ten percent (10%) of the
voting power of all classes of stock of the Company or any Parent or Subsidiary,
the term of the Incentive Stock Option shall be five (5) years from the date of
grant or such shorter term as may be provided in the Notice of
Grant.
9.
Option Exercise Price and
Consideration
.
(a)
Exercise
Price
. The per share exercise price for the Shares to be
issued pursuant to exercise of an Option shall be determined by the
Administrator, subject to the following:
(i) In
the case of an Incentive Stock Option
(A) granted
to an Employee who, at the time the Incentive Stock Option is granted, owns
stock representing more than ten percent (10%) of the voting power of all
classes of stock of the Company or Parent or Subsidiary, the per Share exercise
price shall be no less than 110% of the Fair Market Value per Share on the date
of grant.
(B) granted
to any Employee other than an Employee described in paragraph (A) immediately
above, the per Share exercise price shall be no less than 100% of the Fair
Market Value per Share on the date of grant.
(ii) In
the case of a Nonstatutory Stock Option, the per Share exercise price shall be
no less than 100% of the Fair Market Value per Share on the date of
grant.
(b)
Waiting Period and Exercise
Dates
. At the time an Option is granted, the Administrator
shall fix the period within which the Option may be exercised and shall
determine any conditions which must be satisfied before the Option may be
exercised. In doing so, the
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
Administrator
may specify that an Option may not be exercised until the completion of a
service period.
(c)
Form of
Consideration
. The Administrator shall determine the
acceptable form of consideration for exercising an Option, including the method
of payment. In the case of an Incentive Stock Option, the
Administrator shall determine the acceptable form of consideration at the time
of grant. Such consideration may consist entirely of:
(i) cash;
(ii) check;
(iii) promissory
note;
(iv) other
Shares which have a Fair Market Value on the date of surrender equal to the
aggregate exercise price of the Shares as to which said Option shall be
exercised;
(v) delivery
of a properly executed exercise notice together with such other documentation as
the Administrator and the broker, if applicable, shall require to effect an
exercise of the Option and delivery to the Company of the sale or loan proceeds
required to pay the exercise price;
(vi) a
reduction in the amount of any Company liability to the Optionee, other than any
liability attributable to the Optionee’s participation in any Company-sponsored
deferred compensation program or arrangement;
(vii) any
combination of the foregoing methods of payment; or
(viii) such
other consideration and method of payment for the issuance of Shares to the
extent permitted by Applicable Laws.
10.
Exercise of
Option
.
(a)
Procedure for Exercise;
Rights as a Shareholder
. Any Option granted thereunder shall
be exercisable according to the terms of the Plan and at such times and under
such conditions as determined by the Administrator and set forth in the Option
Agreement.
An Option may not be exercised for a
fraction of a Share.
An Option shall be deemed exercised
when the Company receives: (i) written notice of exercise (in
accordance with the Option Agreement) from the person entitled to exercise the
Option, and (ii) full payment for the Shares with respect to which the Option is
exercised. Full payment may consist of any consideration and method
of payment authorized by the Administrator and permitted by the Option Agreement
and the Plan. Shares issued upon exercise of an Option shall be
issued in the name of the Optionee or, if requested by the
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
Optionee,
in the name of the Optionee and his or her spouse. Until the stock
certificate evidencing such Shares is issued (as evidenced by the appropriate
entry on the books of the Company or of a duly authorized transfer agent of the
Company), no right to vote or receive dividends or any other rights as a
shareholder shall exist with respect to the Optioned Stock, notwithstanding the
exercise of the Option. The Company shall issue (or cause to be
issued) such stock certificate, either in book entry form or in certificate
form, promptly after the Option is exercised. No adjustment will be
made for a dividend or other right for which the record date is prior to the
date the Shares are issued, except as provided in Section 12 of the
Plan.
Exercising an Option in any manner
shall decrease the number of Shares thereafter available, both for purposes of
the Plan and for sale under the Option, by the number of Shares as to which the
Option is exercised.
(b)
Termination of Employment or
Consulting Relationship
. Upon termination of an Optionee’s
Continuous Status as an Employee or Consultant, other than upon the Optionee’s
death or Disability, the Optionee may exercise his or her Option, but only
within such period of time as is specified in the Notice of Grant, and only to
the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise it as the date of
termination (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such
Option as set forth in the Notice of Grant). In the absence of a
specified time in the Notice of Grant, the Option shall remain
exercisable for 30 days following the Optionee’s termination of Continuous
Status as an Employee or Consultant. In the case of an Incentive
Stock Option, such period of time shall not exceed thirty (30) days from the
date of termination. If, at the date of termination, the Optionee is
not entitled to exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the
unexercisable portion of the Option shall revert to the Plan. If,
after termination, the Optionee does not exercise his or her Option within the
time specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by
such Option shall revert to the Plan.
(c)
Disability of
Optionee
. In the event that an Optionee’s Continuous Status as
an Employee or Consultant terminates as a result of the Optionee’s Disability,
the Optionee may exercise his or her Option at any time within twelve (12)
months from the date of such termination, but only to the extent that the
Optionee was entitled to exercise it at the date of such termination (but in no
event later than the expiration of the term of such Option as set forth in the
Notice of Grant). If, at the date of termination, the Optionee does
not exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable
portion of the Option shall revert to the Plan. If, after
termination, the Optionee does not exercise his or her option within the time
specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by such
Option shall revert to the Plan.
(d)
Death of
Optionee
. In the event of the death of an Optionee, the Option
may be exercised at any time within twelve (12) months following the date of
death (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such Option as
set forth in the Notice of Grant), by the Optionee’s estate or by a person who
acquired the right to exercise the Option by bequest or inheritance, but only to
the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise the Option at the date of
death. If, at any time of death, the Optionee was not entitled to
exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable
portion of the Option shall immediately revert to the Plan. If, after
death, the Optionee’s estate or a person who acquired the right to exercise
the
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
Option by
bequest or inheritance does not exercise the Option within the time specified
herein, the Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by such Option shall
revert to the Plan.
(e)
Rule
16b-3
. Options granted to individuals subject to Section 16 of
the Exchange Act (“Insiders”) must comply with the applicable provisions of Rule
16b-3 and shall contain such additional conditions or restrictions as may be
required thereunder to qualify for the maximum exemption from Section 16 of the
Exchange Act with respect to Plan transactions.
(f)
Suspension
. Any
Optionee who is also a participant in the Retirement at Micron ("RAM") Section
401(k) Plan and who requests and receives a hardship distribution from the RAM
Plan, is prohibited from making, and must suspend, his or her employee elective
contributions and employee contributions including, without limitation on the
foregoing, the exercise of any Option granted from the date of receipt by that
employee of the RAM hardship distribution.
11.
Non-Transferability of
Options
. An Option may not be sold, pledged, assigned,
hypothecated, transferred, or disposed of in any manner other than by will or by
laws of descent or distribution and may be exercised, during the lifetime of the
Optionee, only by the Optionee.
12.
Adjustments Upon Changes in
Capitalization, Dissolution, Merger, or Asset Sale
.
(a)
Changes in
Capitalization
.
Subject
to any required action by the shareholders of the Company, the number of shares
of Common Stock covered by each outstanding Option, and the number of issued
shares of Common Stock which have been authorized for issuance under the Plan
but as to which no Options have yet been granted or which have been returned to
the Plan upon cancellation or expiration of an Option, as well as the price per
share of Common Stock covered by each such outstanding Option, shall be
proportionately adjusted for any increase or decrease in the number of issued
shares of Common Stock resulting from a stock split, reverse stock split, stock
dividend, combination or reclassification of the Common Stock or any other
increase or decrease in the number of shares of Common Stock effected without
receipt of consideration by the Company; provided, however, that conversion of
any convertible securities of the Company shall not be deemed to have been
“effected without receipt of consideration.” Such adjustment shall be
made by the Board, whose determination in that respect shall be final, binding,
and conclusive. Without limiting the foregoing, in the event of a
subdivision of the outstanding Stock (stock-split), a declaration of a dividend
payable in Shares, or a combination or consolidation of the outstanding Stock
into a lesser number of Shares, the authorization limits under Section 3 and
6(c) shall automatically be adjusted proportionately, and the Shares then
subject to each Award shall automatically be adjusted proportionately without
any change in the aggregate purchase price therefor. To the extent
that any adjustments made pursuant to this Section 12 cause Incentive Stock
Options to cease to qualify as Incentive Stock Options, such Options shall be
deemed to be Nonstatutory Stock Options..
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
(b)
Dissolution or
Liquidation
. In the event of the proposed dissolution or
liquidation of the Company, to the extent that an Option has not been previously
exercised, it will terminate immediately prior to the consummation of such
proposed action. The Board may, in the exercise of its sole
discretion in such instances, declare that any Option shall terminate as of a
date fixed by the Board and give each Optionee the right to exercise his or her
Option as to all or any part of the Optioned stock, including Shares as to which
the Option would not otherwise be exercisable.
(c)
Merger or Asset
Sale
.
Upon the
occurrence or in anticipation of any corporate event or transaction involving
the Company (including, without limitation, any merger, reorganization,
recapitalization or combination or exchange of shares or any transaction
described in Section 12(a)), the Administrator may, in its sole discretion,
provide (i) that Options will be settled in cash rather than Common Stock, (ii)
that Options will become immediately vested and exercisable and will expire
after a designated period of time to the extent not then exercised, (iii) that
Options will be assumed by another party to a transaction or otherwise be
equitably converted or substituted in connection with such transaction, (iv)
that outstanding Options may be settled by payment in cash or cash equivalents
equal to the excess of the Fair Market Value of the underlying Common Stock, as
of a specified date associated with the transaction, over the exercise price of
the Option, or (v) any combination of the foregoing. The
Administrator’s determination need not be uniform and may be different for
different Optionees whether or not such Optionees are similarly
situated.
(d)
Change in
Control
. In the event of a Change in Control, the
unexercised portion of the Option shall become immediately exercisable, to the
extent such acceleration does not disqualify the Plan, or cause an Incentive
Stock Option to be treated as a Nonstatutory Stock Option without the consent of
the Optionee.
(e)
General
. Any
discretionary adjustments made pursuant to this Section 12 shall be subject to
the provisions of Section 14.
13.
Date of
Grant
. The date of grant of an Option shall be, for all
purposes, the date on which the Administrator makes the determination granting
such Option, or such other later date as is determined by the
Administrator. Notice of the determination shall be provided to each
Optionee within a reasonable time after the date of such grant.
14.
Amendment and Termination of
the Plan
.
(a)
Amendment and
Termination
. The Board may at any time amend, alter, suspend,
or terminate the Plan.
(b)
Shareholder
Approval
. The Company shall obtain shareholder approval of any
Plan amendment to the extent necessary and desirable to comply with Rule 16b-3
or with Section 422 of the Code (or any successor rule or statute or other
applicable law, rule, or
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
r
egulation,
including the requirements of any exchange or quotation system on which the
Common Stock is listed or quoted). Such shareholder approval, if
required, shall be obtained in such a manner and to such a degree as is required
by the applicable law, rule, or regulation.
(c)
Effect of Amendment or
Termination
. No amendment, alteration, suspension, or
termination of the Plan shall impair the rights of any Optionee, unless mutually
agreed otherwise between the Optionee and the Administrator, which agreement
must be in writing and signed by the Optionee and the Company.
(d)
Compliance
Amendments
. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to the contrary,
the Committee may amend the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or
other applicable agreement, to take effect retroactively or otherwise, as deemed
necessary or advisable for the purpose of conforming the Plan, Notice of Grant,
Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to any present or future law
relating to plans of this or similar nature (including, but not limited to,
Section 409A of the Code), and to the administrative regulations and rulings
promulgated thereunder. By accepting an Option under this Plan, a
Optionee agrees to any amendment made pursuant to this Section to any Option
granted under the Plan without further consideration or action.
15.
Conditions Upon Issuance of
Shares
.
(a)
Legal
Compliance
. Shares shall not be issued pursuant to the
exercise of an Option unless the exercise of such Option and the issuance and
delivery of such Shares shall comply with all relevant provisions of law,
including, without limitation, the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the
Exchange Act, the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, Applicable Laws,
and the requirements of any stock exchange or quotation system upon which the
Shares may then be listed or quoted, and shall be further subject to the
approval of counsel for the Company with respect to such
compliance.
(b)
Investment
Representations
. As a condition to the exercise of an Option,
the Company may require the person exercising such Option to represent and
warrant at the time of any such exercise that the Shares are being purchased
only for investment and without any present intention to sell or distribute such
Shares if, in the opinion of counsel for the Company, such a representation is
required.
16.
Liability of
Company
.
(a)
Inability to Obtain
Authority
. The inability of the Company to obtain authority
from any regulatory body having jurisdiction, which authority is deemed by the
Company’s counsel to be necessary to the lawful issuance and sale of any Shares
hereunder, shall relieve the Company of any liability in respect of the failure
to issue or sell such Shares as to which such requisite authority shall not have
been obtained.
(b)
Grants Exceeding Allotted
Shares
. If the Optioned Stock covered by an Option exceeds, as
of the date of grant, the number of Shares which may be issued under the Plan
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
without
additional shareholder approval, such Option shall be void with respect to such
excess Optioned Stock, unless shareholder approval of an amendment sufficiently
increasing the number of shares subject to the Plan is timely obtained in
accordance with Section 14(b) of the Plan.
17.
Reservation of
Shares
. The Company, during the term of this Plan, will at all
times reserve and keep available such number of Shares as shall be sufficient to
satisfy the requirements of the Plan.
18.
Shareholder
Approval
. Continuance of the Plan shall be subject to approval
by the shareholders of the Company within twelve (12) months before or after the
date the Plan is adopted. Such shareholder approval shall be obtained
in the manner and to the degree required under applicable federal and Delaware
law.
19. Special
Provisions Related To Section 409A of the Code.
(a) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, to the extent that any amount or benefit
that would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of
Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under
the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement
by reason of the occurrence of a Change in Control, or the Optionee’s Disability
or separation from service, such amount or benefit will not be payable or
distributable to the Optionee by reason of such circumstance unless (i) the
circumstances giving rise to such Change in Control, Disability or separation
from service meet any description or definition of “change in control event”,
“disability” or “separation from service”, as the case may be, in
Section 409A of the Code and applicable regulations (without giving effect
to any elective provisions that may be available under such definition), or
(ii) the payment or distribution of such amount or benefit would be exempt
from the application of Section 409A of the Code by reason of the
short-term deferral exemption or otherwise. This provision does not
prohibit the vesting of any Option upon a Change in Control, Disability or
separation from service, however defined. If this provision prevents
the payment or distribution of any amount or benefit, such payment or
distribution shall be made on the next earliest payment or distribution date or
event specified in the Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable
agreement that is permissible under Section 409A.
(b) If
any one or more Options granted under the Plan to a Optionee could qualify for
any separation pay exemption described in Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-1(b)(9),
but such Options in the aggregate exceed the dollar limit permitted for the
separation pay exemptions, the Company (acting through the Committee or the Head
of Human Resources) shall determine which Options or portions thereof will be
subject to such exemptions.
(c) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, if any amount or benefit that would
constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of
the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under this Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement by reason of a
Optionee’s separation from service during a period in which the Optionee is a
Specified Employee (as defined below), then, subject
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
to any
permissible acceleration of payment by the Committee under Treas. Reg. Section
1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of
interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):
(i) if
the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, the Optionee’s right to
receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be
delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or the first day of the
seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from service; and
(ii) if
the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt
deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month
period immediately following the Optionee’s separation from service will be
accumulated and the Optionee’s right to receive payment or distribution of such
accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or
the first day of the seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from
service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or distributed to the
Optionee and the normal payment or distribution schedule for any remaining
payments or distributions will resume.
For
purposes of this Plan, the term “Specified Employee” has the meaning given such
term in Code Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder, provided,
however, that, as permitted in such final regulations, the Company’s Specified
Employees and its application of the six-month delay rule of Code Section
409A(a)(2)(B)(i) shall be determined in accordance with rules adopted by the
Board or any committee of the Board, which shall be applied consistently with
respect to all nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements of the Company,
including this Plan.
Revised 12/11/2008
(409A amendments)
9/22/2003 change #2 (o),
(i)
Exhibit
10.5
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
1997
NONSTATUTORY STOCK OPTION PLAN
1. Purposes
of the Plan. The purposes of this Plan are:
·
|
to
attract and retain the best available personnel for positions of
substantial responsibility,
|
·
|
to
provide additional incentive to Employees and Consultants,
and
|
·
|
to
promote the success of the Company’s
business.
|
Nonstatutory
stock options may be granted under the Plan.
2.
Definitions
. As
used herein, the following definitions shall apply:
(a) “
Administrator
” means
the Board or any of its Committees as shall be administering the Plan, in
accordance with Section 4 of the Plan.
(b) “
Affiliate
” means
(i) any subsidiary or parent
company of the Company, or (ii) an entity that directly or through one or more
intermediaries controls, is controlled by or is under common control with, the
Company, as determined by the Committee.
(c) “
Applicable Laws
”
means the legal requirements relating to the administration of stock option
plans and the issuance of stock and stock options under federal securities laws,
Delaware corporate and securities laws, the Code, and the applicable laws of any
foreign country or jurisdiction where options will be or are being granted under
the Plan.
(d) “
Board
” means the
Board of Directors of the Company.
(e) "
Change in Control
"
means the acquisition by any person or entity, directly, indirectly or
beneficially, acting alone or in concert, of more than thirty-five percent (35%)
of the Common Stock of the Company outstanding at any time.
(f) “
Code
” means the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Reference to a specific Section of
the Code or regulation thereunder shall include such Section or regulation, any
valid regulation promulgated under such Section, and any comparable provision of
any future law, legislation or regulation amending, supplementing or superseding
such Section or regulation.
(g) “
Committee
” means a
Committee appointed by the Board in accordance with Section 4 of the
Plan.
(h) “
Common Stock
” means
the Common Stock of the Company.
(i) “
Company
” means Micron
Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation.
(j) “
Consultant
” means any
person, including an advisor, engaged by the Company or a parent, subsidiary or
Affiliate to render services. The term “Consultant” shall not include
any person who is also an Officer or Director of the Company.
(k) “
Continuous Status as an
Employee or Consultant
” means that the employment or consulting
relationship with the Company, any parent, subsidiary, or Affiliate, is not
interrupted or terminated. Continuous Status as an Employee or
Consultant shall not be considered interrupted in the case of (i) any leave of
absence approved by the Company, (ii) transfers between locations of the Company
or between the Company, its Parent, any Subsidiary, or any successor or
(iii) change in status from either an Employee to a Consultant or a
Consultant to an Employee. A leave of absence approved by the Company
shall include sick leave, military leave, or any other personal leave approved
by an authorized representative of the Company.
(l) “
Director
” means a
member of the Board.
(m) “
Disability
” means
total and permanent disability as defined in Section 22(e)(3) of the Code.
Notwithstanding the
foregoing, for any Options that constitute a nonqualified deferred compensation
plan within the meaning of Section 409A(d) of the Code, “Disability” has the
meaning given such term in Section 409A of the Code.
(n) “
Employee
” means any
person, except Officers and Directors, employed by the Company or any parent,
subsidiary or Affiliate of the Company.
(o) “
Fair Market Value
” of
the Stock, on any date, means: (i) if the Stock is listed or traded on any
Exchange, the average closing price for such Stock (or the closing bid, if no
sales were reported) as quoted on such Exchange (or, if more than one Exchange,
the Exchange with the greatest volume of trading in the Stock) for such date, or
if no sales or bids were reported for such date, on the last market trading day
prior to the day of determination, as reported by
Market Sweep
, a service from
Interactive Data Services, Inc., or or such other source as the Committee deems
reliable; (ii) if the Stock is quoted on the over-the-counter market or is
regularly quoted by a recognized securities dealer, but selling prices are not
reported, the Fair Market Value of the Stock shall be the mean between the high
bid and low asked prices for the Stock on such date, or if no sales or bids were
reported for such date, on the last market trading day prior to the day of
determination, as reported by
Market Sweep
, a service from
Interactive Data Services, Inc., or such other source as the Committee deems
reliable, or (iii) in the absence of an established market for the Stock, the
Fair Market Value shall be determined by such other method as the Committee
determines in good faith to be reasonable and in compliance with Code Section
409A.
(p) “
Notice of Grant
”
means a written notice evidencing certain terms and conditions of an individual
Option grant. The Notice of Grant is subject to the terms and
conditions of the Option Agreement.
(q) “
Officer
” means a
person who is an officer of the Company within the meaning of Section 16 of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations
promulgated thereunder.
(r) “
Option
” means a
nonstatutory stock option granted pursuant to the Plan. Such option
is not intended to qualify as an incentive stock option within the meaning of
Section 422 of the Code and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
(s) “
Option Agreement
”
means a written agreement between the Company and an Optionee evidencing the
terms and conditions of an individual Option grant. The Option
Agreement is subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan.
(t) “
Option Exchange
Program
” means a program whereby outstanding options are surrendered in
exchange for options with a lower exercise price.
(u) “
Optioned Stock
” means
the Common Stock subject to an Option.
(v) “
Optionee
” means an
Employee or Consultant who holds an outstanding Option.
(w) "
Plan
" means this
Nonstatutory Stock Option Plan.
(x) “
Share
” means a share
of the Common Stock, as adjusted in accordance with Section 12 of the
Plan.
3.
Stock Subject to the
Plan
. Subject to the provisions of Section 12 of the Plan, the
maximum aggregate number of Shares which may be optioned and sold under the Plan
is 800,000. The Shares may be authorized, but unissued, or reacquired
Common Stock.
If an
Option expires or becomes unexercisable without having been exercised in full,
or is surrendered pursuant to an Option Exchange Program, the unpurchased Shares
which were subject thereto shall become available for future grant or sale under
the Plan (unless the Plan has terminated).
4.
Administration of the
Plan
.
(a)
Procedure
. The
Plan shall be administered by (A) the Board or (B) a committee designated by the
Board, which committee shall be constituted to satisfy Applicable
Laws. Once appointed, such Board may increase the size of the
Committee and appoint additional members, remove members (with or without cause)
and substitute new members, fill vacancies (however caused), and remove all
members of the Committee and thereafter directly administer the Plan, all to the
extent permitted by Applicable Laws.
(b)
Powers of the
Administrator
. Subject to the provisions of the Plan, and in
the case of a Committee, subject to the specific duties delegated by the Board
to such Committee, the Administrator shall have the authority, in its
discretion:
(i)
to determine the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock;
(ii)
to select the Consultants and Employees to whom Options may be
granted
hereunder;
(iii)
to determine whether and to what extent Options are granted
hereunder;
(iv) to
determine the number of shares of Common Stock to be covered by each Option
granted hereunder;
(v) to
approve forms of agreement for use under the Plan;
(vi) to
determine the terms and conditions, not inconsistent with the terms of the Plan,
of any award granted hereunder. Such terms and conditions include,
but are not limited to, the exercise price, the time or times when Options may
be exercised (which may be based on performance criteria), any vesting
acceleration or waiver of forfeiture restrictions, and any restriction or
limitation regarding any Option or the shares of Common Stock relating thereto,
based in each case on such factors as the Administrator, in its sole discretion,
shall determine;
(vii) to
reduce the exercise price of any Option to the then current Fair Market Value if
the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock covered by such Option shall have
declined since the date the Option was granted;
(viii) to
construe and interpret the terms of the Plan and awards granted pursuant to the
Plan;
(ix) to
prescribe, amend, and rescind rules and regulations relating to the Plan,
including rules and regulations relating to sub-plans established for the
purpose of qualifying for preferred tax treatment under foreign tax
laws;
(x) to
modify or amend each Option (subject to Section 14(b) of the Plan), including
the discretionary authority to extend the post-termination exercisability period
of Options longer than is otherwise provided for in the Plan;
(xi) to
authorize any person to execute on behalf of the Company any instrument required
to effect the grant of an Option previously granted by the
Administrator;
(xii) to
institute an Option Exchange Program;
(xiii) to
allow Optionees to satisfy withholding tax obligations by electing to have the
Company withhold from the Shares to be issued upon exercise of an Option that
number of Shares having a Fair Market Value equal to the amount required to be
withheld; and
(xiv) to
make all other determinations deemed necessary or advisable for administering
the Plan.
(c)
Effect of Administrator’s
Decision
. The Administrator’s decisions, determinations, and
interpretations shall be final and binding on all Optionees and any other
holders of Options.
5.
Eligibility
. Options
may be granted to Employees and Consultants. Employees and Consultants who are
service providers to an Affiliate may be granted Options under this Plan only if
the Affiliate qualifies as an “eligible issuer of service recipient stock”
within the meaning of §1.409A-1(b)(5)(iii)(E) of the final regulations under
Code Section 409A.
6.
Limitations
. Neither
the Plan nor any Option shall confer upon an Optionee any right with respect to
continuing the Optionee’s employment or consulting relationship with the
Company, nor shall they interfere in any way with the Optionee’s right or the
Company’s right to terminate such employment or consulting relationship at any
time, with or without cause.
7.
Term of
Plan
. The Plan shall become effective upon its adoption by the
Board. It shall continue in effect until terminated under Section 14
of the Plan.
8.
Term of
Option
. The term of each Option shall be stated in the Notice
of Grant.
9.
Option Exercise Price and
Consideration
.
(a)
Exercise
Price
. The per share exercise price for the Shares to be
issued pursuant to exercise of an Option shall be determined by the
Administrator, but shall not be less than the Fair Market Value per share on the
date of grant of the Option.
(b)
Waiting Period and Exercise
Dates
. At the time an Option is granted, the Administrator
shall fix the period within which the Option may be exercised and shall
determine any conditions which must be satisfied before the Option may be
exercised. In doing so, the Administrator may specify that an Option
may not be exercised until either the completion of a service period or the
achievement of performance criteria with respect to the Company or the
Optionee.
(c)
Form of
Consideration
. The Administrator shall determine the
acceptable form of consideration for exercising an Option, including the method
of payment. Such consideration may consist entirely of:
(i) cash;
(ii) check;
(iii) promissory
note;
(iv) other
Shares which have a Fair Market Value on the date of surrender equal to the
aggregate exercise price of the Shares as to which said Option shall be
exercised;
(v) delivery
of a properly executed exercise notice together with such other documentation as
the Administrator and the broker, if applicable, shall require to effect an
exercise of the Option and delivery to the Company of the sale or loan proceeds
required to pay the exercise price;
(vi) a
reduction in the amount of any Company liability to the Optionee, other than any
liability attributable to the Optionee’s participation in any Company-sponsored
deferred compensation program or arrangement;
(vii)
any combination of the foregoing methods of payment; or
(viii)
such other consideration and method of payment for the issuance of Shares to the
extent permitted by Applicable Laws.
10.
Exercise of
Option
.
(a)
Procedure for Exercise;
Rights as a Shareholder
. Any Option granted thereunder shall
be exercisable according to the terms of the Plan and at such times and under
such conditions as determined by the Administrator and set forth in the Option
Agreement.
An Option
may not be exercised for a fraction of a Share.
An Option
shall be deemed exercised when the Company receives: (i) written
notice of exercise (in accordance with the Option Agreement) from the person
entitled to exercise the Option, and (ii) full payment for the Shares with
respect to which the Option is exercised. Full payment may consist of
any consideration and method of payment authorized by the Administrator and
permitted by the Option Agreement and the Plan. Shares issued upon
exercise of an Option shall be issued in the name of the Optionee or, if
requested by the Optionee, in the name of the Optionee and his or her
spouse. Until the Shares are issued (as evidenced by the appropriate
entry on the books of the Company or of a duly authorized transfer agent of the
Company), no right to vote or receive dividends or any other rights as a
shareholder shall exist with respect to the Optioned Stock, notwithstanding the
exercise of the Option. The Company shall issue (or cause to be
issued) such Shares, promptly after the Option is exercised. No
adjustment will be made for a dividend or other right for which the record date
is prior to the date the Shares are issued, except as provided in Section 12 of
the Plan.
Exercising
an Option in any manner shall decrease the number of Shares thereafter
available, both for purposes of the Plan and for sale under the Option, by the
number of Shares as to which the Option is exercised.
(b)
Termination of
Employment or Consulting Relationship
. Upon termination of an
Optionee’s Continuous Status as an Employee or Consultant, other than upon the
Optionee’s death or Disability, the Optionee may exercise his or her Option, but
only within such period of time as is specified in the Notice of Grant, and only
to the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise it as the date of
termination (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such
Option as set forth in the Notice of Grant). In the absence of a
specified time in the Notice of Grant, the Option shall remain
exercisable for 30 days following the Optionee’s termination of Continuous
Status as an Employee or Consultant. If, at the date of termination,
the Optionee is not entitled to exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares
covered by the unexercisable portion of the Option shall revert to the
Plan. If, after termination, the Optionee does not exercise his or
her Option within the time specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the
Shares covered by such Option shall revert to the Plan.
(c)
Disability of
Optionee
. In the event that an Optionee’s Continuous Status as
an Employee or Consultant terminates as a result of the Optionee’s Disability,
the Optionee may exercise his or her Option at any time within twelve (12)
months from the date of such termination, but only to the extent that the
Optionee was entitled to exercise it at the date of such termination (but in no
event later than the expiration of the term of such Option as set forth in the
Notice of Grant). If, at the date of termination, the Optionee does
not exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable
portion of the Option shall revert to the Plan. If, after
termination, the Optionee does not
exercise
his or her option within the time specified herein, the Option shall terminate,
and the Shares covered by such Option shall revert to the Plan.
(d)
Death of
Optionee
. In the event of the death of an Optionee, the Option
may be exercised at any time within twelve (12) months following the date of
death (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such Option as
set forth in the Notice of Grant), by the Optionee’s estate or by a person who
acquired the right to exercise the Option by bequest or inheritance, but only to
the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise the Option at the date of
death. If, at any time of death, the Optionee was not entitled to
exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable
portion of the Option shall immediately revert to the Plan. If, after
death, the Optionee’s estate or a person who acquired the right to exercise the
Option by bequest or inheritance does not exercise the Option within the time
specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by such
Option shall revert to the Plan.
(e)
Suspension
. Any
Optionee who is also a participant in the Retirement at Micron ("RAM") Section
401(k) Plan and who requests and receives a hardship distribution from the RAM
Plan, is prohibited from making, and must suspend, his or her employee elective
contributions and employee contributions including, without limitation on the
foregoing, the exercise of any Option granted from the date of receipt by that
employee of the RAM hardship distribution.
11.
Non-Transferability of
Options
. Unless otherwise specified by the Administrator in
the Option Agreement, an Option may not be sold, pledged, assigned,
hypothecated, transferred, or disposed of in any manner other than by will or by
laws of descent or distribution and may be exercised, during the lifetime of the
Optionee, only by the Optionee.
12.
Adjustments Upon Changes in
Capitalization, Dissolution, Merger, or Asset Sale
.
(a)
Changes in
Capitalization
.
Subject
to any required action by the shareholders of the Company, the number of shares
of Common Stock covered by each outstanding Option, and the number of issued
shares of Common Stock which have been authorized for issuance under the Plan
but as to which no Options have yet been granted or which have been returned to
the Plan upon cancellation or expiration of an Option, as well as the price per
share of Common Stock covered by each such outstanding Option, shall be
proportionately adjusted for any increase or decrease in the number of issued
shares of Common Stock resulting from a stock split, reverse stock split, stock
dividend, combination or reclassification of the Common Stock or any other
increase or decrease in the number of shares of Common Stock effected without
receipt of consideration by the Company; provided, however, that conversion of
any convertible securities of the Company shall not be deemed to have been
effected without receipt of consideration. Such adjustment shall be
made by the Board, whose determination in that respect shall be final, binding,
and conclusive. Without limiting the foregoing, in the event of a
subdivision of the outstanding Stock (stock-split), a declaration of a dividend
payable in Shares, or a combination or consolidation of the outstanding Stock
into a lesser number of Shares, the authorization limits under Section 3 shall
automatically be adjusted proportionately, and the Shares then subject to each
Award shall automatically be adjusted proportionately without any change in the
aggregate purchase price therefor. To the extent that any adjustments
made
pursuant
to this Section 12 cause Incentive Stock Options to cease to qualify as
Incentive Stock Options, such Options shall be deemed to be Nonstatutory Stock
Options.
(b)
Dissolution or
Liquidation
. In the event of the proposed dissolution or
liquidation of the Company, to the extent that an Option has not been previously
exercised, it will terminate immediately prior to the consummation of such
proposed action. The Board may, in the exercise of its sole
discretion in such instances, declare that any Option shall terminate as of a
date fixed by the Board and give each Optionee the right to exercise his or her
Option as to all or any part of the Optioned stock, including Shares as to which
the Option would not otherwise be exercisable.
(c)
Merger or Asset
Sale
.
Upon the
occurrence or in anticipation of any corporate event or transaction involving
the Company (including, without limitation, any merger, reorganization,
recapitalization or combination or exchange of shares or any transaction
described in Section 12(a)), the Administrator may, in its sole discretion,
provide (i) that Options will be settled in cash rather than Common Stock, (ii)
that Options will become immediately vested and exercisable and will expire
after a designated period of time to the extent not then exercised, (iii) that
Options will be assumed by another party to a transaction or otherwise be
equitably converted or substituted in connection with such transaction, (iv)
that outstanding Options may be settled by payment in cash or cash equivalents
equal to the excess of the Fair Market Value of the underlying Common Stock, as
of a specified date associated with the transaction, over the exercise price of
the Option, or (v) any combination of the foregoing. The
Administrator’s determination need not be uniform and may be different for
different Optionees whether or not such Optionees are similarly
situated.
(d)
Change in
Control
. In the event of a Change in Control, the
unexercised portion of the Option shall become immediately
exercisable.
(e)
General
. Any
discretionary adjustments made pursuant to this Section 12 shall be subject to
the provisions of Section 14.
13.
Date of
Grant
. The date of grant of an Option shall be, for all
purposes, the date on which the Administrator makes the determination granting
such Option, or such other later date as is determined by the
Administrator. Notice of the determination shall be provided to each
Optionee within a reasonable time after the date of such grant.
14.
Amendment and Termination of
the Plan
.
(a)
Amendment and
Termination
. Except as provided herein, the Board may at any
time amend, alter, suspend, or terminate the Plan without shareholder approval;
provided, however, that the Board may condition any amendment or modification on
the approval of shareholders of the Company if such approval is necessary or
deemed advisable with respect to tax, securities or other applicable laws,
policies or regulations. No termination can affect options previously
granted, nor may an amendment make any change in any option theretofore granted
which adversely affects the rights of any Optionee, nor
may an
amendment be made without prior approval of the shareholders of the Company if
such amendment would:
(i)
increase
the number of shares that may be issued under the Plan;
(ii)
change
the designation of the employees (or class of employees) eligible for
participation in the Plan; or
(iii)
materially
increase the benefits which may accrue to participants under the
Plan.
(b)
Effect of Amendment or
Termination
. No amendment, alteration, suspension, or
termination of the Plan shall impair the rights of any Optionee, unless mutually
agreed otherwise between the Optionee and the Administrator, which agreement
must be in writing and signed by the Optionee and the Company.
(c)
Compliance
Amendments
. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to the contrary,
the Committee may amend the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or
other applicable agreement, to take effect retroactively or otherwise, as deemed
necessary or advisable for the purpose of conforming the Plan, Notice of Grant,
Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to any present or future law
relating to plans of this or similar nature (including, but not limited to,
Section 409A of the Code), and to the administrative regulations and rulings
promulgated thereunder. By accepting an Option under this Plan, a
Optionee agrees to any amendment made pursuant to this Section to any Option
granted under the Plan without further consideration or action.
15.
Conditions Upon Issuance of
Shares
.
(a)
Legal
Compliance
. Shares shall not be issued pursuant to the
exercise of an Option unless the exercise of such Option and the issuance and
delivery of such Shares shall comply with all Applicable Laws and the
requirements of any stock exchange or quotation system upon which the Shares may
then be listed or quoted, and shall be further subject to the approval of
counsel for the Company with respect to such compliance.
(b)
Investment
Representations
. As a condition to the exercise of an Option,
the Company may require the person exercising such Option to represent and
warrant at the time of any such exercise that the Shares are being purchased
only for investment and without any present intention to sell or distribute such
Shares if, in the opinion of counsel for the Company, such a representation is
required.
16.
Liability of
Company
. The inability of the Company to obtain authority from
any regulatory body having jurisdiction, which authority is deemed by the
Company’s counsel to be necessary to the lawful issuance and sale of any Shares
hereunder, shall relieve the Company of any liability in respect of the failure
to issue or sell such Shares as to which such requisite authority shall not have
been obtained.
17.
Reservation of
Shares
. The Company, during the term of this Plan, will at all
times reserve and keep available such number of Shares as shall be sufficient to
satisfy the requirements of the Plan.
18.
Restriction on
Repricing
. Without the prior approval of the shareholders of
the Company, the Administrator shall not reprice any Options issued under the
Plan through cancellation and regrant, by lowering the exercise price, or by any
other means.
19.
Special Provisions Related
To Section 409A of the Code
.
(a) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, to the extent that any amount or benefit
that would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of
Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under
the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement
by reason of the occurrence of a Change in Control, or the Optionee’s Disability
or separation from service, such amount or benefit will not be payable or
distributable to the Optionee by reason of such circumstance unless (i) the
circumstances giving rise to such Change in Control, Disability or separation
from service meet any description or definition of “change in control event”,
“disability” or “separation from service”, as the case may be, in
Section 409A of the Code and applicable regulations (without giving effect
to any elective provisions that may be available under such definition), or
(ii) the payment or distribution of such amount or benefit would be exempt
from the application of Section 409A of the Code by reason of the
short-term deferral exemption or otherwise. This provision does not
prohibit the
vesting
of
any Option upon a Change in Control, Disability or separation from service,
however defined. If this provision prevents the payment or
distribution of any amount or benefit, such payment or distribution shall be
made on the next earliest payment or distribution date or event specified in the
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement that is
permissible under Section 409A.
(b) If
any one or more Options granted under the Plan to a Optionee could qualify for
any separation pay exemption described in Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-1(b)(9),
but such Options in the aggregate exceed the dollar limit permitted for the
separation pay exemptions, the Company (acting through the Committee or the Head
of Human Resources) shall determine which Options or portions thereof will be
subject to such exemptions.
(c) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, if any amount or benefit that would
constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of
the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under this Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement by reason of a
Optionee’s separation from service during a period in which the Optionee is a
Specified Employee (as defined below), then, subject to any permissible
acceleration of payment by the Committee under Treas. Reg. Section
1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of
interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):
(i) if
the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, the Optionee’s right to
receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be
delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or the first day of the
seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from service; and
(ii) if
the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt
deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month
period immediately following the Optionee’s separation from service will be
accumulated and the Optionee’s right to receive payment or distribution of such
accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or
the first day of the seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from
service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or distributed to the
Optionee and the normal payment or distribution schedule for any remaining
payments or distributions will resume.
For
purposes of this Plan, the term “Specified Employee” has the meaning given such
term in Code Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder,
provided, however
, that, as
permitted in such final regulations, the Company’s Specified Employees and its
application of the six-month delay rule of Code Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) shall
be determined in accordance with rules adopted by the Board or any committee of
the Board, which shall be applied consistently with respect to all nonqualified
deferred compensation arrangements of the Company, including this
Plan.
12
Exhibit
10.6
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
AMENDED
AND RESTATED
1998
NON-EMPLOYEE DIRECTOR STOCK INCENTIVE PLAN
1.
Purpose
. The purpose
of the Micron Technology, Inc. 1998 Non-Employee Director Stock Incentive Plan
is to attract, retain and compensate highly-qualified individuals who are not
employees of Micron Technology, Inc. or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates
for service
as members of the
Board by providing them
with an ownership interest in the Common Stock of the Company. The Company
intends that the Plan will benefit the Company and its stockholders by allowing
Non-Employee Directors to have a personal financial stake in the Company through
an ownership interest in the Common Stock and will closely associate the
interests of Non-Employee Directors with that of the Company's
stockholders.
2.
Defined Terms
. Unless
the context clearly indicates otherwise, the following terms shall have the
following meanings:
"Board" means the Board of Directors of
the Company.
“Change in Control” means “change of
control” or “change in effective control” of the Company, or “change in the
ownership of a substantial portion of the assets” of the Company as described or
defined in Section 409A of the Code and applicable regulations (without
giving effect to any elective provisions that may be available under such
definition).
“Code” means the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986, as amended. Reference to a specific Section of the Code or regulation
thereunder shall include such Section or regulation, any valid regulation
promulgated under such Section, and any comparable provision of any future law,
legislation or regulation amending, supplementing or superseding such Section or
regulation.
"Company" means Micron Technology,
Inc.
"Committee" has the meaning assigned
such term in Section 3.
"Common Stock" means the common stock,
par value $0.10 per share, of the Company.
"Deferral Period" has the meaning set
forth in Section 6(e) of the Plan.
"Deferred Stock Rights" means the right
to receive shares of Common Stock upon Separation from Services, as described in
Section 6(e) of the Plan.
"Dividend" has the meaning set forth in
Section 6(e) of the Plan.
"Election Form" means a form approved
by the Committee pursuant to which a Non-Employee Director elects a form of
payment of his or her Retainer, as provided in Section 6(a).
"Exchange Act" means the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
"Fair Market Value," means, as of any
date, the value of Common Stock determined as follows:
(a)
If the Common Stock is listed on any established stock exchange, including
without limitation the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”), or a national market
system, the Fair Market Value of a Share of Common Stock shall be the average
closing price for such stock (or the closing bid, if no sales were reported) as
quoted on such exchange or system (or the exchange with the greatest volume of
trading in Common Stock) for the last market trading day prior to the day of
determination, as reported by Bloomberg L.P. or such other source as the
Administrator deems reliable;
or
(b) If
the Common Stock is quoted on the over-the-counter market or is regularly quoted
by a recognized securities dealer, but selling prices are not reported, the Fair
Market Value of a Share of Common Stock shall be the mean between the high bid
and low asked prices for the Common Stock on the last market trading day prior
to the day of determination, as reported by Bloomberg L.P. or such other source
as the Administrator deems reliable; or
(c) in
the absence of an established market for the Common Stock, the Fair Market Value
shall be determined by such other method as the Committee determines in good
faith to be reasonable and in compliance with Code Section 409A..
"Non-Employee Director" means a
director of the Company who is not an employee of the Company or of any of its
subsidiaries or affiliates.
"Participant" means any Non-Employee
Director who is participating in the Plan.
"Plan" means the Micron Technology,
Inc. 1998 Non-Employee Director Stock Incentive Plan, as amended from time to
time.
"Plan Administrator" means the person
or persons designated by the Committee to administer the Plan in accordance with
Section 3 of the Plan. If no such administrator is designated, the
Plan Administrator shall be the Committee or the Board, as the case may be,
administering the Plan pursuant to Section 3.
"Plan Year" means the twelve-month
period ending on December 31 of each year which, for purposes of the Plan, is
the period for which Retainer is earned.
"Quarterly Grant Date" has the meaning
set forth in Section 6(c) of the Plan.
"Quarterly Service Period" has the
meaning set forth in Section 6(c) of the Plan.
"Retainer" means the compensation
payable by the Company to a Non-Employee Director for service as a director
(and, if applicable, as the member of a committee of the Board) of the Company,
as such amount may be changed from time to time.
"Rule 16b-3" means Rule 16b-3, as
amended from time to time, of the Securities and Exchange Commission as
promulgated under the Exchange Act.
"Securities Act" means the Securities
Act of 1933, as amended.
“Separation
from Service” means the good faith and complete termination of the Non-Employee
Director’s services to the Company without anticipation of the renewal of
services.
"Shares" means shares of Common
Stock.
"Stock Equivalent Amount" means the
portion (in 25% increments) of a Non- Employee Director's Retainer for a Plan
Year that he or she has elected to receive in the form of Common Stock or
Deferred Stock Rights.
"Unforeseeable Emergency" has the
meaning set forth in Section 6(f) of the Plan.
3.
Administration
. The
Plan shall be administered by the Compensation Committee of the Board of
Directors (the "Committee"). Subject to the provisions of the Plan, the
Committee shall be authorized to interpret the Plan, to establish, amend and
rescind any rules and regulations relating to the Plan, and to make all other
determinations necessary or advisable for the administration of the Plan;
provided, however, that the Committee shall have no discretion with respect to
the eligibility or selection of Non-Employee Directors to receive awards under
the Plan, the number of Shares subject to any such awards or the time at which
any such awards are to be granted. The Committee's interpretation of the Plan,
and all actions taken and determinations made by the Committee pursuant to the
powers vested in it hereunder, shall be conclusive and binding upon all parties
concerned including the Company, its stockholders and persons granted awards
under the Plan. The Committee may appoint a plan administrator to carry out the
ministerial functions of the Plan, but the administrator shall have no other
authority or powers of the Committee. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Board
shall exercise any and all rights, duties and powers of the Committee under the
Plan to the extent required by the applicable exemptive conditions of Rule
16b-3, as determined by the Board its sole discretion.
4.
Shares Subject to
Plan
. The Shares issued under the Plan shall not exceed in the aggregate
250,000 shares of Common Stock. Such Shares may be authorized and unissued
shares or treasury shares.
5.
Participants
. All
active Non-Employee Directors shall be eligible to participate in the
Plan.
6.
Form of Payment of
Retainer
.
(a)
Annual and Initial
Elections
. On or before November 30 of each year (December 31, 1998 in
the case of the first Plan Year), each Non-Employee Director shall file with the
Plan Administrator an election form prescribed by the Plan Administrator (the
"Election Form"), in which such Non-Employee Director shall indicate his or her
preference to receive some or all of his or her Retainer for the following Plan
Year in the form of (i) cash, (ii) Common Stock, or (iii) Deferred Stock Rights.
Such elections shall be made in increments of 25% of the Retainer. Individuals
who are nominated to become Non-Employee Directors may make such election no
later than 30 days after the date the Non-Employee Director first becomes
eligible to participate in the Plan. If a Non-Employee Director fails
to timely file an Election Form for a Plan Year, then 100% of his or her
Retainer for such Plan Year will be paid in cash. If a Non-Employee Director
makes an election for any Plan Year and does not revoke such election before the
beginning of any subsequent Plan Year, such election shall remain in effect for
each such subsequent Plan Year and shall be irrevocable through the end of such
subsequent Plan Year.
(b)
Cash Payments
. That
portion of the Retainer to be paid in cash will be paid monthly for services
rendered during the preceding month.
(c)
Grant Dates and Formula for
Stock Grants
. To the extent that a Non-Employee Director has elected to
receive some or all of his or her Retainer in the form of Common Stock and has
not elected to defer receipt of such shares pursuant to Section 6(e), shares of
Common Stock shall be automatically granted to such Non-Employee Director on
March 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31 of each Plan Year (each such
date is hereinafter referred to as a "Quarterly Grant Date"). The total number
of Shares included in each grant under this Section 6(c) shall be determined by
(i) dividing the Stock Equivalent Amount earned by the Non-Employee Director
during the three-month period immediately preceding the Quarterly Grant Date
(the "Quarterly Service Period") by the Fair Market Value per Share on the
Quarterly Grant Date, and (ii) and subtracting any Shares to be deferred
pursuant to Section 6(e). Fractions will be rounded to the next highest
Share.
(d)
Separation from Service
During Quarterly Service Period
. In the event of Separation from
ServiceSeparation from Service on the Board by any Participant during a
Quarterly Service Period, such Participant's award for the Quarterly Service
Period shall be determined in accordance with Sections 6(b) based upon the Stock
Equivalent Amount earned during such Quarterly Service Period through the date
of Separation from Service, provided, that the grant date shall be the date of
Separation from Service unless the grant has been deferred pursuant
to Section 6(e).
(e)
Deferred Stock
Rights
.
(i)
Election to Defer
.
Each Participant will have the right to elect, in his or her Election Form
delivered to the Plan Administrator prior to the commencement of each Plan Year,
to defer until after the Participant's Separation from Service the grant of the
Shares that would otherwise be granted to the Participant during the next
ensuing Plan Year ("Deferred Stock Rights"). Pursuant to this Election Form, the
Participant will elect whether all of the deferred grant for the applicable Plan
Year will be (a) granted within 30 days after Separation from Service or (b)
granted in approximately equal annual installments of Shares over a period of
two to five years (as the Participant may elect) after the Separation from
Service, each such annual grant to be made within 30 days after the anniversary
of the Separation from Service. The deferral Election Form signed by the
Participant prior to the Plan Year will be irrevocable except in case of an
Unforeseeable Emergency (as defined in Section 6(f)). No Shares
will be issued until the grant date(s) so deferred (the "Deferred Grant Date")
at which time the Company agrees to issue the Shares to the Participant. The
Participant will have no rights as a stockholder with respect to the Deferred
Stock Rights, and the Deferred Stock Rights will be unsecured.
(ii)
Deferred Dividend
Account
. If any cash dividends ("Dividends") are distributed to holders
of Common Stock during the period from the applicable Quarterly Grant Date until
the Deferred Grant Date (the "Deferral Period") but prior to the Participant's
Separation from Service, an amount equal to the cash value of such Dividends on
their distribution date, as such value is determined by the Committee, will be
credited to a deferred dividend account for the Participant as follows: the
account will be credited with the right to receive Shares having a Fair Market
Value as of the date of the Dividend equal to the cash value of the Dividend.
The Company will issue Shares equal to the cumulative total of rights to Shares
in such account within 30 days after the Participant's Separation from
Service.
If a Dividend is distributed to holders
of Common Stock after the Participant's Separation from Service but prior to the
issuance in full of the deferred Shares, an amount equal to the cash value of
such Dividends pertaining to any Shares still deferred shall be converted into
Shares equivalent in value to the Dividend (based on the Fair Market Value as of
the date of distribution of the Dividend) and such Shares will be issued to the
Participant within 30 days after the date of the distribution of the
Dividend. No right or interest in the Deferred Stock Rights or in the
deferred dividend account shall be subject to liability for the debts, contracts
or engagements of the Participant or shall be subject to disposition by
transfer, alienation, anticipation, pledge, encumbrance, assignment or any other
means whether such disposition be voluntary or involuntary or by operation of
law by judgment, levy, attachment, garnishment or any other legal or equitable
proceedings (including bankruptcy), and any attempted disposition thereof shall
be null and void and of no effect; provided, however, that nothing in this
Section 6(e) shall prevent transfers by will or by the applicable laws of
descent and distribution. The Committee will have the right to adopt other
regulations and procedures to govern deferral of grants of Shares.
(f) Unforeseeable
Emergency. For purposes of this Plan, an “unforeseeable emergency”
means a severe financial hardship to the Participant resulting from illness or
accident of the Participant, the Participant's spouse, or a dependent (as
defined in Section 152(a) of the Code) of the Participant, loss of the
Participant's property due to casualty, or other similar extraordinary and
unforeseeable circumstances arising as a result of events beyond the control of
the Participant. The amounts distributable because of an
unforeseeable emergency cannot exceed the amounts necessary to satisfy such
emergency plus amounts necessary to pay taxes reasonably anticipated as a result
of the distribution, after taking into account the extent to which such
emergency is or may be relieved through reimbursement or compensation by
insurance or otherwise or by liquidation of the Participant's assets (to the
extent the liquidation of such assets would not itself cause severe financial
hardship). Notwithstanding any provision in the Plan to the contrary,
any payment made pursuant to this Section 6(g) shall comply with Section
409A(a)(2)(A)(vi) of the Code and the regulations (or similar guidance)
promulgated thereunder (or any successor provisions).
(g) No
Participant shall have the right to accelerate any amounts payable under this
Plan. The Committee may accelerate amounts payable under this Plan
only if there is an exception to the prohibition on acceleration of payments as
set forth in Treasury Regulation Section 1.409A-3(j)(4).
(h) Notwithstanding
anything herein to the contrary, to the extent that any amount or benefit that
would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of
Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable to a
Participant by reason of the occurrence of a change in control or similar
corporate event or transaction involving the Company, or a Participant’s
disability or separation from service, such amount or benefit will not be
payable or distributable by reason of such circumstance unless (i) the
circumstances giving rise to such transaction, disability or separation from
service meet any description or definition of “change in control event”,
“disability” or “separation from service”, as the case may be, in
Section 409A of the Code and applicable regulations (without giving effect
to any elective provisions that may be available under such definition), or
(ii) the payment or distribution of such amount or benefit would be exempt
from the application of Section 409A of the Code by reason of the
short-term deferral exemption or otherwise. If this provision
prevents the payment or distribution of any amount or benefit, such payment or
distribution shall be made on the next earliest payment or distribution date or
event specified in this Plan that is permissible under Section
409A.
7.
Prorated Grants
. If
on any Quarterly Grant Date, shares of Common Stock are not available under the
Plan to grant to Non-Employee Directors the full amount of a grant contemplated
by the Plan, then each such director shall receive an award equal to the number
of shares of Common Stock then available under the Plan divided by the number of
Non-Employee Directors entitled to a grant of shares on such date. Fractional
shares shall be ignored and not granted. Any shortfall resulting from
such proration shall be paid in the form of cash.
8.
Withholding
. Whenever
the Company issues Shares under the Plan, the Company shall have the right to
withhold from sums due the recipient, or to require the recipient to remit to
the Company, any amount sufficient to satisfy any federal, state and/or local
withholding tax requirements prior to the delivery of any certificate for such
Shares.
9.
Adjustments
.
(a)
Changes in
Capitalization
.
(i)
The number of Common Stock shares
subject to a stock right shall be proportionally adjusted to reflect a stock
split (including a reverse stock split) or stock dividend, provided the only
effect of the stock split or stock dividend is to increase (or decrease) on a
pro rata basis the number of shares owned by each shareholder of the class of
stock subject to the stock right.
(ii)
Discretionary
Adjustments
. Upon the occurrence or in anticipation of any
corporate event or transaction involving the Company (including, without
limitation, any merger, reorganization, recapitalization or combination or
exchange of shares, or any transaction described in Section 9(a)(i)), the
Committee may, in its sole discretion, provide (i) that awards hereunder will be
settled in cash rather than Common Stock, (ii) that awards hereunder will become
immediately vested and exercisable and will expire after a designated period of
time to the extent not then exercised, (iii) that awards hereunder will be
assumed by another party to a transaction or otherwise be equitably converted or
substituted in connection with such transaction, or (iv) any combination of the
foregoing. The Committee’s determination need not be uniform and may
be different for different Non-Employee Directors whether or not such
Non-Employee Directors are similarly situated.
(iii)
General
. Any
discretionary adjustments made pursuant to this Section 9(a) shall be subject to
the provisions of Section 10.
(b) In
the event of a Change in Control,all Deferred Stock Rights shall become
immediately due and payable.
(c) The
number of Shares finally granted under this Plan shall always be rounded to the
next highest whole Share.
(d) Any
decision of the Committee pursuant to the terms of this Section 9 shall be
final, binding and conclusive upon the Participants, the Company and all other
interested parties; provided, however, that to the extent required by the
applicable exemptive conditions of Rule 16b-3, any such decision shall be
subject to approval by the Board.
10.
Amendment
.
(i)
In General
. The
Committee may terminate or suspend the Plan at any time, without stockholder
approval. The Committee may amend the Plan at any time and for any reason
without stockholder approval; provided, however, that the Committee may
condition any amendment on the approval of stockholders of the Company if such
approval is necessary or deemed advisable with respect to tax, securities or
other applicable laws, policies or regulations. No termination, modification or
amendment of the Plan may, without the consent of a Participant, adversely
affect a Participant's rights under an award granted prior thereto.
(ii)
Compliance
Amendments
. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan, Election
Form or other applicable agreement to the contrary, the Committee may amend the
Plan, Election Form or other applicable agreement, to take effect retroactively
or otherwise, as deemed necessary or advisable for the purpose of conforming the
Plan, Election Form or other applicable agreement to any present or future law
relating to plans of this or similar nature (including, but not limited to,
Section 409A of the Code), and to the administrative regulations and rulings
promulgated thereunder. By participating in this Plan, a Non-Employee
Director agrees to any amendment made pursuant to this Section to any
compensation granted under the Plan without further consideration or
action.
11.
Indemnification
. Each
person who is or has been a member of the Committee or who otherwise
participates in the administration or operation of this Plan shall be
indemnified by the Company against, and held harmless from, any loss, cost,
liability or expense that may be imposed upon or incurred by him or her in
connection with or resulting from any claim, action, suit or proceeding in which
such person may be involved by reason of any action taken or failure to act
under the Plan and shall be fully reimbursed by the Company for any and all
amounts paid by such person in satisfaction of judgment against him or her in
any such action, suit or proceeding, provided he or she will give the Company an
opportunity, by written notice to the Committee, to defend the same at the
Company's own expense before he or she undertakes to defend it on his or her own
behalf. This right of indemnification shall not be exclusive of any other rights
of indemnification.
The Committee and the Board may rely
upon any information furnished by the Company, its public accountants and other
experts. No individual will have personal liability by reason of anything done
or omitted to be done by the Company, the Committee or the Board in connection
with the Plan.
12.
Duration of the Plan
.
The Plan shall remain in effect until ten years from the Effective Date, unless
terminated earlier by the Committee.
13.
Expenses of the Plan
.
The expenses of administering the Plan shall be borne by the
Company.
14.
Effective Date
. The
Plan was originally adopted by the Board on November 23, 1998, and became
effective upon the approval thereof by the stockholders of the Company on
January 14, 1999 (the "Effective Date").
- 7
-
Exhibit
10.7
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
NONSTATUTORY
STOCK OPTION PLAN
1. Purposes
of the Plan. The purposes of this Plan are:
·
|
to
attract and retain the best available personnel for positions of
substantial responsibility,
|
·
|
to
provide additional incentive to Employees and Consultants,
and
|
·
|
to
promote the success of the Company’s
business.
|
Nonstatutory
stock options may be granted under the Plan.
2.
Definitions
. As
used herein, the following definitions shall apply:
(a) “
Administrator
” means
the Board or any of its Committees as shall be administering the Plan, in
accordance with Section 4 of the Plan.
(b) “
Affiliate
” means
(i) any subsidiary or parent company of the Company, or (ii) an entity that
directly or through one or more intermediaries controls, is controlled by or is
under common control with, the Company, as determined by the
Committee.
(c) “
Applicable Laws
”
means the legal requirements relating to the administration of stock option
plans and the issuance of stock and stock options under federal securities laws,
Delaware corporate and securities laws, the Code, and the applicable laws of any
foreign country or jurisdiction where options will be or are being granted under
the Plan.
(d) “
Board
” means the
Board of Directors of the Company.
(e) “
Change in Control
”
means the acquisition by any person or entity, directly, indirectly or
beneficially, acting alone or in concert, of more than thirty-five percent (35%)
of the Common Stock of the Company outstanding at any time.
(f) “
Code
” means the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Reference to a specific
Section of the Code or regulation thereunder shall include such Section or
regulation, any valid regulation promulgated under such Section, and any
comparable provision of any future law, legislation or regulation amending,
supplementing or superseding such Section or regulation.
(g) “
Committee
” means a
Committee appointed by the Board in accordance with Section 4 of the
Plan.
(h) “
Common Stock
” means
the Common Stock of the Company.
(i) “
Company
” means Micron
Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation.
(j) “
Consultant
” means any
person, including an advisor, engaged by the Company or a parent, subsidiary or
Affiliate to render services. The term “Consultant” shall not include
any person who is also an Officer or Director of the Company.
(k) “
Continuous Status as an
Employee or Consultant
” means that the employment or consulting
relationship with the Company, any parent, subsidiary, or Affiliate, is not
interrupted or terminated. Continuous Status as an Employee or
Consultant shall not be considered interrupted in the case of (i) any leave of
absence approved by the Company, (ii) transfers between locations of the Company
or between the Company, its Parent, any Subsidiary, or any successor or
(iii) change in status from either an Employee to a Consultant or a
Consultant to an Employee. A leave of absence approved by the Company
shall include sick leave, military leave, or any other personal leave approved
by an authorized representative of the Company.
(l) “
Director
” means a
member of the Board.
(m) “
Disability
” means
total and permanent disability as defined in Section 22(e)(3) of the
Code. Notwithstanding the foregoing, for any Options that constitute
a nonqualified deferred compensation plan within the meaning of Section 409A(d)
of the Code, “Disability” has the meaning given such term in Section 409A of the
Code.
(n) “
Employee
” means any
person, except Officers and Directors, employed by the Company or any parent,
subsidiary or Affiliate of the Company.
(o) “
Fair Market Value
” of
the Stock, on any date, means: (i) if the Stock is listed or traded on any
Exchange, the average closing price for such Stock (or the closing bid, if no
sales were reported) as quoted on such Exchange (or, if more than one Exchange,
the Exchange with the greatest volume of trading in the Stock) for such date, or
if no sales or bids were reported for such date, on the last market trading day
prior to the day of determination, as reported by
Market Sweep
, a service from
Interactive Data Services, Inc., or or such other source as the Committee deems
reliable; (ii) if the Stock is quoted on the over-the-counter market or is
regularly quoted by a recognized securities dealer, but selling prices are not
reported, the Fair Market Value of the Stock shall be the mean between the high
bid and low asked prices for the Stock on such date, or if no sales or bids were
reported for such date, on the last market trading day prior to the day of
determination, as reported by
Market Sweep
, a service from
Interactive Data Services, Inc., or such other source as the Committee deems
reliable, or (iii) in the absence of an established market for the Stock, the
Fair Market Value shall be determined by such other method as the Committee
determines in good faith to be reasonable and in compliance with Code Section
409A.
(p) “
Notice of Grant
”
means a written notice evidencing certain terms and conditions of an individual
Option grant. The Notice of Grant is subject to the terms and
conditions of the Option Agreement.
(q) “
Officer
” means a
person who is an officer of the Company within the meaning of Section 16 of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations
promulgated thereunder.
(r) “
Option
” means a
nonstatutory stock option granted pursuant to the Plan. Such option
is not intended to qualify as an incentive stock option within the meaning of
Section 422 of the Code and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
(s) “
Option Agreement
”
means a written agreement between the Company and an Optionee evidencing the
terms and conditions of an individual Option grant. The Option
Agreement is subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan.
(t) “
Option Exchange
Program
” means a program whereby outstanding options are surrendered in
exchange for options with a lower exercise price.
(u) “
Optioned Stock
” means
the Common Stock subject to an Option.
(v) “
Optionee
” means an
Employee or Consultant who holds an outstanding Option.
(w) “
Plan
” means this
Nonstatutory Stock Option Plan.
(x) “
Share
” means a share
of the Common Stock, as adjusted in accordance with Section 12 of the
Plan.
3.
Stock Subject to the
Plan
. Subject to the provisions of Section 12 of the Plan, the
maximum aggregate number of Shares, which may be optioned and sold under the
Plan, is 59,603,088. The Shares may be authorized, but, unissued, or
reacquired Common Stock.
If an
Option expires or becomes unexercisable without having been exercised in full,
or is surrendered pursuant to an Option Exchange Program, the unpurchased Shares
which were subject thereto shall become available for future grant or sale under
the Plan (unless the Plan has terminated).
4.
Administration of the
Plan
.
(a)
Procedure
. The
Plan shall be administered by (A) the Board or (B) a committee designated by the
Board, which committee shall be constituted to satisfy Applicable
Laws. Once appointed, such Board may increase the size of the
Committee and appoint additional members, remove members (with or without cause)
and substitute new members, fill vacancies (however caused), and remove all
members of the Committee and thereafter directly administer the Plan, all to the
extent permitted by Applicable Laws.
(b)
Powers of the
Administrator
. Subject to the provisions of the Plan, and in
the case of a Committee, subject to the specific duties delegated by the Board
to such Committee, the Administrator shall have the authority, in its
discretion:
(i) to
determine the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock;
(ii) to
select the Consultants and Employees to whom Options may be
granted
hereunder;
(iii) to
determine whether and to what extent Options are granted hereunder;
(iv) to
determine the number of shares of Common Stock to be covered by each Option
granted hereunder;
(v) to
approve forms of agreement for use under the Plan;
(vi) to
determine the terms and conditions, not inconsistent with the terms of the Plan,
of any award granted hereunder. Such terms and conditions include,
but are not limited to, the exercise price, the time or times when Options may
be exercised (which may be based on performance criteria), any vesting
acceleration or waiver of forfeiture restrictions, and any restriction or
limitation regarding any Option or the shares of Common Stock relating thereto,
based in each case on such factors as the Administrator, in its sole discretion,
shall determine;
(vii) to
reduce the exercise price of any Option to the then current Fair Market Value if
the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock covered by such Option shall have
declined since the date the Option was granted;
(viii) to
construe and interpret the terms of the Plan and awards granted pursuant to the
Plan;
(ix) to
prescribe, amend, and rescind rules and regulations relating to the Plan,
including rules and regulations relating to sub-plans established for the
purpose of qualifying for preferred tax treatment under foreign tax
laws;
(x) to
modify or amend each Option (subject to Section 14(b) of the Plan), including
the discretionary authority to extend the post-termination exercisability period
of Options longer than is otherwise provided for in the Plan;
(xi) to
authorize any person to execute on behalf of the Company any instrument required
to effect the grant of an Option previously granted by the
Administrator;
(xii) to
institute and Option Exchange Program;
(xiii) to
allow Optionees to satisfy withholding tax obligations by electing to have the
Company withhold from the Shares to be issued upon exercise of an Option that
number of Shares having a Fair Market Value equal to the amount required to be
withheld; and
(xiv) to
make all other determinations deemed necessary or advisable for administering
the Plan.
(c)
Effect of Administrator’s
Decision
. The Administrator’s decisions, determinations, and
interpretations shall be final and binding on all Optionees and any other
holders of Options.
5.
Eligibility
. Options
may be granted to Employees and Consultants. Employees and
Consultants who are service providers to an Affiliate may be granted Options
under this Plan only if the Affiliate qualifies as an “eligible issuer of
service recipient stock” within the meaning of §1.409A-1(b)(5)(iii)(E) of the
final regulations under Code Section 409A.
6.
Limitations
. Neither
the Plan nor any Option shall confer upon an Optionee any right with respect to
continuing the Optionee’s employment or consulting relationship with the
Company, nor shall they interfere in any way with the Optionee’s right or the
Company’s right to terminate such employment or consulting relationship at any
time, with or without cause.
7.
Term of
Plan
. The Plan shall become effective upon its adoption by the
Board. It shall continue in effect until terminated under Section 14
of the Plan.
8.
Term of
Option
. The term of each Option shall be stated in the Notice
of Grant.
9.
Option Exercise Price and
Consideration
.
(a)
Exercise
Price
. The per share exercise price for the Shares to be
issued pursuant to exercise of an Option shall be determined by the
Administrator, but shall not be less than the Fair Market Value per share on the
date of grant of the Option.
(b)
Waiting Period and Exercise
Dates
. At the time an Option is granted, the Administrator
shall fix the period within which the Option may be exercised and shall
determine any conditions which must be satisfied before the Option may be
exercised. In doing so, the Administrator may specify that an Option
may not be exercised until either the completion of a service period or the
achievement of performance criteria with respect to the Company or the
Optionee.
(c)
Form of
Consideration
. The Administrator shall determine the
acceptable form of consideration for exercising an Option, including the method
of payment. Such consideration may consist entirely of:
(i) cash;
(ii) check;
(iii) promissory
note;
(iv) other
Shares which have a Fair Market Value on the date of surrender equal to the
aggregate exercise price of the Shares as to which said Option shall be
exercised;
(v) delivery
of a properly executed exercise notice together with such other documentation as
the Administrator and the broker, if applicable, shall require to effect an
exercise of the Option and delivery to the Company of the sale or loan proceeds
required to pay the exercise price;
(vi) a
reduction in the amount of any Company liability to the Optionee, other than any
liability attributable to the Optionee’s participation in any Company-sponsored
deferred compensation program or arrangement;
(vii) any
combination of the foregoing methods of payment; or
(viii) such
other consideration and method of payment for the issuance of Shares to the
extent permitted by Applicable Laws.
10.
Exercise of
Option
.
(a)
Procedure for Exercise;
Rights as a Shareholder
. Any Option granted thereunder shall
be exercisable according to the terms of the Plan and at such times and under
such conditions as determined by the Administrator and set forth in the Option
Agreement.
An Option
may not be exercised for a fraction of a Share.
An Option
shall be deemed exercised when the Company receives: (i) written
notice of exercise (in accordance with the Option Agreement) from the person
entitled to exercise the Option, and (ii) full payment for the Shares with
respect to which the Option is exercised. Full payment may consist of
any consideration and method of payment authorized by the Administrator and
permitted by the Option Agreement and the Plan. Shares issued upon
exercise of an Option shall be issued in the name of the Optionee or, if
requested by the Optionee, in the name of the Optionee and his or her
spouse. Until the Shares are issued (as evidenced by the appropriate
entry on the books of the Company or of a duly authorized transfer agent of the
Company), no right to vote or receive dividends or any other rights as a
shareholder shall exist with respect to the Optioned Stock, notwithstanding the
exercise of the Option. The Company shall issue (or cause to be
issued) such Shares, promptly after the Option is exercised. No
adjustment will be made for a dividend or other right for which the record date
is prior to the date the Shares are issued, except as provided in Section 12 of
the Plan.
Exercising
an Option in any manner shall decrease the number of Shares thereafter
available, both for purposes of the Plan and for sale under the Option, by the
number of Shares as to which the Option is exercised.
(b)
Termination of Employment or
Consulting Relationship
. Upon termination of an Optionee’s
Continuous Status as an Employee or Consultant, other than upon the Optionee’s
death or Disability, the Optionee may exercise his or her Option, but only
within such period of time as is specified in the Notice of Grant, and only to
the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise it as the date of
termination (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such
Option as set forth in the Notice of Grant). In the absence of a
specified time in the Notice of Grant, the Option shall remain exercisable for
30 days following the Optionee’s termination of Continuous Status as an Employee
or Consultant. If, at the date of termination, the Optionee is not
entitled to exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the
unexercisable portion of the Option shall revert to the Plan. If,
after termination, the Optionee does not exercise his or her Option within the
time specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by
such Option shall revert to the Plan.
(c)
Disability of
Optionee
. In the event that an Optionee’s Continuous Status as
an Employee or Consultant terminates as a result of the Optionee’s Disability,
the Optionee may exercise his or her Option at any time within twelve (12)
months from the date of such termination, but only to the extent that the
Optionee was entitled to exercise it at the date of such termination (but in no
event later than the expiration of the term of such Option as set forth in the
Notice of Grant). If, at the date of termination, the Optionee does
not exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable
portion of the Option shall revert to the Plan. If, after
termination, the Optionee does not
exercise
his or her option within the time specified herein, the Option shall terminate,
and the Shares covered by such Option shall revert to the Plan.
(d)
Death of
Optionee
. In the event of the death of an Optionee, the Option
may be exercised at any time within twelve (12) months following the date of
death (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such Option as
set forth in the Notice of Grant), by the Optionee’s estate or by a person who
acquired the right to exercise the Option by bequest or inheritance, but only to
the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise the Option at the date of
death. If, at any time of death, the Optionee was not entitled to
exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable
portion of the Option shall immediately revert to the Plan. If, after
death, the Optionee’s estate or a person who acquired the right to exercise the
Option by bequest or inheritance does not exercise the Option within the time
specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by such
Option shall revert to the Plan.
(e)
Suspension
. Any
Optionee who is also a participant in the Retirement at Micron (“RAM”) Section
401(k) Plan and who requests and receives a hardship distribution from the RAM
Plan, is prohibited from making, and must suspend, his or her employee elective
contributions and employee contributions including, without limitation on the
foregoing, the exercise of any Option granted from the date of receipt by that
employee of the RAM hardship distribution.
11.
Non-Transferability of
Options
. Unless otherwise specified by the Administrator in
the Option Agreement, an Option may not be sold, pledged, assigned,
hypothecated, transferred, or disposed of in any manner other than by will or by
laws of descent or distribution and may be exercised, during the lifetime of the
Optionee, only by the Optionee.
12.
Adjustments Upon Changes in
Capitalization, Dissolution, Merger, or Asset Sale
.
(a)
Changes in
Capitalization
.
Subject
to any required action by the shareholders of the Company, the number of shares
of Common Stock covered by each outstanding Option, and the number of issued
shares of Common Stock which have been authorized for issuance under the Plan
but as to which no Options have yet been granted or which have been returned to
the Plan upon cancellation or expiration of an Option, as well as the price per
share of Common Stock covered by each such outstanding Option, shall be
proportionately adjusted for any increase or decrease in the number of issued
shares of Common Stock resulting from a stock split, reverse stock split, stock
dividend, combination or reclassification of the Common Stock or any other
increase or decrease in the number of shares of Common Stock effected without
receipt of consideration by the Company; provided, however, that conversion of
any convertible securities of the Company shall not be deemed to have been
effected without receipt of consideration. Such adjustment shall be
made by the Board, whose determination in that respect shall be final, binding,
and conclusive. Without limiting the foregoing, in the event of a
subdivision of the outstanding Stock (stock-split), a declaration of a dividend
payable in Shares, or a combination or consolidation of the outstanding Stock
into a lesser number of Shares, the authorization limit under Section 3 shall
automatically be adjusted proportionately, and the Shares then subject to each
Award shall automatically be adjusted proportionately without any change in the
aggregate purchase price therefor. To the extent that any adjustments
made pursuant to this Section 12 cause Incentive Stock Options to cease to
qualify as Incentive Stock Options, such Options shall be deemed to be
Nonstatutory Stock Options.
(b)
Dissolution or
Liquidation
. In the event of the proposed dissolution or
liquidation of the Company, to the extent that an Option has not been previously
exercised, it will terminate immediately prior to the consummation of such
proposed action. The Board may, in the exercise of its sole
discretion in such instances, declare that any Option shall terminate as of a
date fixed by the Board and give each Optionee the right to exercise his or her
Option as to all or any part of the Optioned stock, including Shares as to which
the Option would not otherwise be exercisable.
(c)
Merger or Asset
Sale
.
Upon the
occurrence or in anticipation of any corporate event or transaction involving
the Company (including, without limitation, any merger, reorganization,
recapitalization or combination or exchange of shares or any transaction
described in Section 12(a)), the Administrator may, in its sole discretion,
provide (i) that Options will be settled in cash rather than Common Stock, (ii)
that Options will become immediately vested and exercisable and will expire
after a designated period of time to the extent not then exercised, (iii) that
Options will be assumed by another party to a transaction or otherwise be
equitably converted or substituted in connection with such transaction, (iv)
that outstanding Options may be settled by payment in cash or cash equivalents
equal to the excess of the Fair Market Value of the underlying Common Stock, as
of a specified date associated with the transaction, over the exercise price of
the Option, or (v) any combination of the foregoing. The
Administrator’s determination need not be uniform and may be different for
different Optionees whether or not such Optionees are similarly
situated.
(d)
Change in
Control
. In the event of a Change in Control, the
unexercised portion of the Option shall become immediately
exercisable.
(e)
General
. Any
discretionary adjustments made pursuant to this Section 12 shall be subject to
the provisions of Section 14.
13.
Date of
Grant
. The date of grant of an Option shall be, for all
purposes, the date on which the Administrator makes the determination granting
such Option, or such other later date as is determined by the
Administrator. Notice of the determination shall be provided to each
Optionee within a reasonable time after the date of such grant.
14.
Amendment and Termination of
the Plan
.
(a)
Amendment and
Termination
. Except as provided herein, the Board may at any
time amend, alter, suspend, or terminate the Plan without shareholder approval;
provided, however, that the Board may condition any amendment or modification on
the approval of shareholders of the Company if such approval is necessary or
deemed advisable with respect to tax, securities or other applicable laws,
policies or regulations. No termination can affect options previously
granted, nor may an amendment make any change in any option theretofore granted
which adversely affects the rights of any Optionee, nor may an amendment be made
without prior approval of the shareholders of the Company if such amendment
would:
(i)
increase
the number of shares that may be issued under the Plan;
(ii)
change
the designation of the employees (or class of employees) eligible for
participation in the Plan; or
(iii)
materially
increase the benefits which may accrue to participants under the
Plan.
(b)
Effect of Amendment or
Termination
. No amendment, alteration, suspension, or
termination of the Plan shall impair the rights of any Optionee, unless mutually
agreed otherwise between the Optionee and the Administrator, which agreement
must be in writing and signed by the Optionee and the Company.
(c)
Compliance
Amendments
. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to the contrary,
the Committee may amend the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or
other applicable agreement, to take effect retroactively or otherwise, as deemed
necessary or advisable for the purpose of conforming the Plan, Notice of Grant,
Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to any present or future law
relating to plans of this or similar nature (including, but not limited to,
Section 409A of the Code), and to the administrative regulations and rulings
promulgated thereunder. By accepting an Option under this Plan, a
Optionee agrees to any amendment made pursuant to this Section to any Option
granted under the Plan without further consideration or action.
15.
Conditions Upon Issuance of
Shares
.
(a)
Legal
Compliance
. Shares shall not be issued pursuant to the
exercise of an Option unless the exercise of such Option and the issuance and
delivery of such Shares shall comply with all Applicable Laws and the
requirements of any stock exchange or quotation system upon which the Shares may
then be listed or quoted, and shall be further subject to the approval of
counsel for the Company with respect to such compliance.
(b)
Investment
Representations
. As a condition to the exercise of an Option,
the Company may require the person exercising such Option to represent and
warrant at the time of any such exercise that the Shares are being purchased
only for investment and without any present intention to sell or distribute such
Shares if, in the opinion of counsel for the Company, such a representation is
required.
16.
Liability of
Company
. The inability of the Company to obtain authority from
any regulatory body having jurisdiction, which authority is deemed by the
Company’s counsel to be necessary to the lawful issuance and sale of any Shares
hereunder, shall relieve the Company of any liability in respect of the failure
to issue or sell such Shares as to which such requisite authority shall not have
been obtained.
17.
Reservation of
Shares
. The Company, during the term of this Plan, will at all
times reserve and keep available such number of Shares as shall be sufficient to
satisfy the requirements of the Plan.
18.
Restriction on
Repricing
. Without the prior approval of the shareholders of
the Company, the Administrator shall not reprice any Options issued under the
Plan through cancellation and regrant, by lowering the exercise price, or by any
other means.
19.
Special Provisions Related
To Section 409A of the Code
.
(a) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, to the extent that any amount or benefit
that would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of
Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under
the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement
by reason of the occurrence of a Change in Control, or the Optionee’s Disability
or separation from service, such amount or benefit will not be payable or
distributable to the Optionee by reason of such circumstance unless (i) the
circumstances giving rise to such Change in Control, Disability or separation
from service meet any description or definition of “change in control event”,
“disability” or “separation from service”, as the case may be, in
Section 409A of the Code and applicable regulations (without giving effect
to any elective provisions that may be available under such definition), or
(ii) the payment or distribution of such amount or benefit would be exempt
from the application of Section 409A of the Code by reason of the
short-term deferral exemption or otherwise. This provision does not
prohibit the
vesting
of
any Option upon a Change in Control, Disability or separation from service,
however defined. If this provision prevents the payment or
distribution of any amount or benefit, such payment or distribution shall be
made on the next earliest payment or distribution date or event specified in the
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement that is
permissible under Section 409A.
(b) If
any one or more Options granted under the Plan to a Optionee could qualify for
any separation pay exemption described in Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-1(b)(9),
but such Options in the aggregate exceed the dollar limit permitted for the
separation pay exemptions, the Company (acting through the Committee or the Head
of Human Resources) shall determine which Options or portions thereof will be
subject to such exemptions.
(c) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, if any amount or benefit that would
constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of
the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under this Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement by reason of a
Optionee’s separation from service during a period in which the Optionee is a
Specified Employee (as defined below), then, subject to any permissible
acceleration of payment by the Committee under Treas. Reg. Section
1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of
interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):
(i) if
the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, the Optionee’s right to
receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be
delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or the first day of the
seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from service; and
(ii) if
the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt
deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month
period immediately following the Optionee’s separation from service will be
accumulated and the Optionee’s right to receive payment or distribution of such
accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or
the first day of the seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from
service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or distributed to the
Optionee and the normal payment or distribution schedule for any remaining
payments or distributions will resume.
For
purposes of this Plan, the term “Specified Employee” has the meaning given such
term in Code Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder,
provided, however
, that, as
permitted in such final regulations, the Company’s Specified Employees and its
application of the six-month delay rule of Code Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) shall
be determined in accordance with rules adopted by the Board or any committee of
the Board, which shall be applied consistently with respect to all nonqualified
deferred compensation arrangements of the Company, including this
Plan.
Exhibit
10.8
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
2001
STOCK OPTION PLAN
1.
Purposes
of the Plan
. The purposes of this Stock Option Plan
are:
•
to attract and retain the best available personnel for
positions of substantial responsibility,
•
to provide additional incentive to Employees,
Directors, and Consultants, and
•
to promote the success of the Company’s
business.
Options
granted under the Plan may be Incentive Stock Options or Nonstatutory Stock
Options, as determined by the Administrator at the time of grant.
2.
Definitions
. As
used herein, the following definitions shall apply:
(a) “
Administrator
” means
the Board or any of its Committees as shall be administering the Plan, in
accordance with Section 4 of the Plan.
(b) “
Affiliate
” means
(i) any subsidiary or parent company of the Company, or (ii) an entity that
directly or through one or more intermediaries controls, is controlled by or is
under common control with, the Company, as determined by the
Committee.
(c) “
Applicable Laws
”
means the legal requirements relating to the administration of stock option
plans under Delaware corporate and securities laws and the Code.
(d) “
Board
” means the
Board of Directors of the Company.
(e) “
Change in Control
”
means the acquisition by any person or entity, directly, indirectly or
beneficially, acting alone or in concert, of more than thirty-five percent (35%)
of the Common Stock of the Company outstanding at any time.
(f) “
Code
” means the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Reference to a specific Section of
the Code or regulation thereunder shall include such Section or regulation, any
valid regulation promulgated under such Section, and any comparable provision of
any future law, legislation or regulation amending, supplementing or superseding
such Section or regulation.
(g) “
Committee
” means a
Committee appointed by the Board in accordance with Section 4 of the
Plan.
(h) “
Common Stock
” means
the Common Stock of the Company.
(i) “
Company
” means Micron
Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation.
(j) “
Consultant
” means any
person, including an advisor, engaged by the Company or a Parent or Subsidiary
to render services and who is compensated for such services.
(k) “
Continuous Status as an
Employee or Consultant
” means that the employment or consulting
relationship with the Company, any Parent, or Subsidiary, is not interrupted or
terminated. Continuous Status as an Employee or Consultant shall not be
considered interrupted in the case of (i) military leave, sick leave, or any
personal leave of absence approved by the Company, or (ii) transfers between
locations of the Company or between the Company, its Parent, any Subsidiary, or
any successor, or (iii) in the discretion of the Administrator as specified at
or prior to such occurrence, in the case of a spin-off, sale, or disposition of
the Optionee’s employer from the Company or any Parent or Subsidiary. For
purposes of Incentive Stock Options, no such leave may exceed
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– changes # 14(a)(i)(ii)(iii)
90 days,
unless reemployment upon expiration of such leave is guaranteed by statute or
contract. If reemployment upon expiration of a leave of absence approved by the
Company is not so guaranteed, on the 91st day of such leave any Incentive Stock
Option held by the Optionee shall cease to be treated as an Incentive Stock
Option and shall be treated for tax purposes as a Nonstatutory Stock
Option.
(l) “
Director
” means a
member of the Board.
(m) “
Disability
” means
total and permanent disability as defined in Section 22(e)(3) of the Code.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, for any Options that constitute a nonqualified
deferred compensation plan within the meaning of Section 409A(d) of the Code,
“Disability” has the meaning given such term in Section 409A of the
Code.
(n) “
Employee
” means any
person, including Officers and Directors, employed by the Company or any Parent
or Subsidiary of the Company. Neither service as a Director nor payment of a
director’s fee by the Company shall be sufficient to constitute “employment” by
the Company.
(o) “
Exchange Act
” means
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
(p) “
Fair Market Value
”
means, as of any date, the value of Common Stock determined as
follows:
(i) If
the Common Stock is listed on any established stock exchange, including without
limitation the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”), or a national market system,
the Fair Market Value of a Share of Common Stock shall be the average closing
price for such stock (or the closing bid, if no sales were reported) as quoted
on such exchange or system (or the exchange with the greatest volume of trading
in Common Stock) for the last market trading day prior to the day of
determination, as reported by Bloomberg L.P
.
or such other source as the
Administrator deems reliable;
(ii) If
the Common Stock is quoted on the over-the-counter market or is regularly quoted
by a recognized securities dealer, but selling prices are not reported, the Fair
Market Value of a Share of Common Stock shall be the mean between the high bid
and low asked prices for the Common Stock on the last market trading day prior
to the day of determination, as reported by Bloomberg L.P
.
or such other source as the
Administrator deems reliable;
(iii) In
the absence of an established market for the Common Stock, the Fair Market Value
shall be determined by such other method as the Committee determines in good
faith to be reasonable and in compliance with Code Section 409A.
(q) “
Incentive Stock
Option
” means an Option that qualifies as an incentive stock option
within the meaning of Section 422 of the Code and the regulations promulgated
thereunder.
(r) “
Nonstatutory Stock
Option
” means an Option that does not qualify as an Incentive Stock
Option.
(s) “
Notice of Grant
”
means a written notice evidencing certain terms and conditions of an individual
Option grant. The Notice of Grant is subject to the terms and conditions of the
Option Agreement.
(t) “
Officer
” means a
person who is an officer of the Company within the meaning of Section 16 of the
Exchange Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
(u) “
Option
” means a stock
option granted pursuant to the Plan.
(v) “
Option Agreement
”
means a written agreement between the Company and an Optionee evidencing the
terms and conditions of an individual Option grant. The Option Agreement is
subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan.
(w) “
Optioned Stock
” means
the Common Stock subject to an Option.
(x) “
Optionee
” means an
Employee or Consultant who holds an outstanding Option.
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– changes # 14(a)(i)(ii)(iii)
(y) “
Parent
” means a
“parent corporation”, whether now or hereafter existing, as defined in Section
424(e) of the Code.
(z) “
Plan
” means this 2001
Option Plan.
(aa) “
Rule 16b-3
” means
Rule 16b-3 of the Exchange Act or any successor to Rule 16b-3, as in effect when
discretion is being exercised with respect to the Plan.
(bb) “
Share
” means a share
of the Common Stock, as adjusted in accordance with Section 12 of the
Plan.
(cc) “
Subsidiary
” means a
“subsidiary corporation”, whether now or hereafter existing, as defined in
Section 424(f) of the Code. In the case of an Option that is not intended to
qualify as an Incentive Stock Option, the term “Subsidiary” shall also include
any other entity in which the Company, or any Parent or Subsidiary of the
Company has a significant ownership interest.
3.
Stock Subject to the
Plan
. Subject to the provisions of Section 12 of the Plan, the
maximum aggregate number of Shares which may be optioned and sold under the Plan
is 47,000,000 Shares. The Shares may be authorized, but unissued, or reacquired
Common Stock.
If an Option expires or becomes
unexercisable without having been exercised in full, the unpurchased Shares
which were subject thereto shall become available for future grant or sale under
the Plan (unless the Plan has terminated);
provided
, however,
that Shares that have actually been issued under the Plan shall not be returned
to the Plan and shall not become available for future distribution under the
Plan.
4.
Administration of the Plan.
(a)
Administrator
. The
Plan shall be administered by a Committee appointed by the Board (which
Committee shall consist of two or more directors) or, at the discretion of the
Board from time to time, the Plan may be administered by the
Board. It is intended that the directors appointed to serve on the
Committee shall be “non-employee directors” (within the meaning of Rule 16b-3)
and “outside directors” (within the meaning of Code Section
162(m)). However, the mere fact that a Committee member shall fail to
qualify under either of the foregoing requirements shall not invalidate any
Option granted by the Committee which Option is otherwise validly made under the
Plan. The members of the Committee shall be appointed by, and may be
changed at any time and from time to time in the discretion of, the
Board. The Board, in its discretion, may delegate to a special
Committee all or part of the Administrator’s authority and duties with respect
to grants and awards to individuals who at the time of grant are not, and are
not anticipated to become, either (i) “covered employees,” as defined in Code
Section 162(m)(3), or (ii) persons subject to the reporting and other provisions
of Section 16 of the Exchange Act. The Board may revoke or amend
the terms of a delegation at any time but such action shall not invalidate any
prior actions of the delegate or delegates that were consistent with the terms
of the Plan.
(b)
Powers of the
Administrator
. Subject to the provisions of the Plan, and in
the case of a Committee, subject to the specific duties delegated by the Board
to such Committee, the Administrator shall have the authority, in its
discretion:
(i) to
determine the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock, in accordance with Section
2(o) of the Plan;
(ii) to
select the Employees, Directors, and Consultants to whom Options may be granted
hereunder;
(iii) to
determine whether and to what extent Options are granted;
(iv) to
determine the number of shares of Common Stock to be covered by each Option
granted hereunder;
(v) to
approve forms of agreement for use under the Plan;
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– changes # 14(a)(i)(ii)(iii)
(vi) to
determine the terms and conditions, not inconsistent with the terms of the Plan,
of any award granted hereunder. Such terms and conditions include, but are not
limited to, the exercise price, the time or times when Options may be exercised
(which may be based on performance criteria), any vesting acceleration or waiver
of forfeiture restrictions, and any restriction or limitation regarding any
Option or the shares of Common Stock relating thereto, based in each case on
such factors as the Administrator, in its sole discretion, shall
determine;
(vii) to
construe and interpret the terms of the Plan and awards granted pursuant to the
Plan;
(viii) to
prescribe, amend, and rescind rules and regulations relating to the Plan,
including rules and regulations relating to sub-plans established for the
purpose of qualifying for preferred tax treatment under foreign tax
laws;
(ix) to
authorize any person to execute on behalf of the Company any instrument required
to effect the grant of an Option previously granted by the
Administrator;
(x) to
make all other determinations deemed necessary or advisable for administering
the Plan; and
(xi) to
allow Optionees to satisfy withholding tax obligations by electing to have the
Company withhold from the Shares to be issued upon exercise of an Option that
number of Shares having a Fair Market Value equal to the amount required to be
withheld. The Fair Market Value of the Shares to be withheld shall be determined
on the date that the amount of tax to be withheld is to be determined. All
elections by an Optionee to have Shares withheld for this purpose shall be made
in such form and under such conditions as the Administrator may deem necessary
or advisable.
(c)
Effect of Administrator’s
Decision
. The Administrator’s decisions, determinations, and
interpretations shall be final and binding on all Optionees and any other
holders of Options.
5.
Eligibility
. Nonstatutory
Stock Options may be granted to Employees, Directors, and Consultants. Incentive
Stock Options may be granted only to Employees. If otherwise eligible, an
Employee or Consultant who has been granted an Option may be granted additional
Options. Employees and Consultants who are service providers to an Affiliate may
be granted Options under this Plan only if the Affiliate qualifies as an
“eligible issuer of service recipient stock” within the meaning of
§1.409A-1(b)(5)(iii)(E) of the final regulations under Code Section
409A.
6.
Limitations.
(a) Each
Option shall be designated in the Notice of Grant as either an Incentive Stock
Option or a Nonstatutory Stock Option. However, notwithstanding such
designations, to the extent that the aggregate Fair Market Value of Shares
subject to an Optionee’s Incentive Stock Options granted by the Company or any
Parent or Subsidiary, which become exercisable for the first time during any
calendar year (under all plans of the Company or any Parent or Subsidiary)
exceeds $100,000, such excess Options shall be treated as Nonstatutory Stock
Options. For purposes of this Section 6(a), Incentive Stock Options shall be
taken into account in the order in which they were granted, and the Fair Market
Value of the Shares shall be determined as of the time of grant.
(b) Neither
the Plan nor any Option shall confer upon an Optionee any right with respect to
continuing the Optionee’s employment or consulting relationship with the
Company, nor shall they interfere in any way with the Optionee’s right or the
Company’s right to terminate such employment or consulting relationship at any
time, with or without cause.
(c) The
following limitations shall apply to grants of Options to
Employees:
(i) No
Employee shall be granted, in any fiscal year of the Company, Options to
purchase more than 2,000,000 Shares.
(ii) The
foregoing limitations shall be adjusted proportionately in connection with any
change in the Company’s capitalization as described in Section 12.
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– changes # 14(a)(i)(ii)(iii)
7.
Term of
Plan
. Subject to Section 18 of the Plan, the Plan shall become
effective upon the earlier to occur of its adoption by the Board or its approval
by the shareholders of the Company as described in Section 18 of the Plan. It
shall continue in effect for a term of ten (10) years unless terminated earlier
under Section 14 of the Plan.
8.
Term of
Option
. The term of each Option shall be stated in the Notice
of Grant, but shall not exceed ten (10) years; provided, however, that in the
case of an Incentive Stock Option granted to an Optionee who, at the time
Incentive Stock Option is granted, owns stock representing more than ten percent
(10%) of the voting power of all classes of stock of the Company or any Parent
or Subsidiary, the term of the Incentive Stock Option shall not be longer than
five (5) years from the date of grant.
9.
Option Exercise Price and
Consideration.
(a)
Exercise
Price
. The per share exercise price for the Shares to be
issued pursuant to exercise of an Option shall be determined by the
Administrator, but shall not be less than the Fair Market Value per share on the
date of grant of the Option. In the case of an Incentive Stock Option granted to
an Employee who, at the time the Incentive Stock Option is granted, owns stock
representing more than ten percent (10%) of the voting power of all classes of
stock of the Company or Parent or Subsidiary, the per share exercise price shall
be no less than 110% of the Fair Market Value per Share on the date of
grant.
(b)
Waiting Period and Exercise
Dates
. At the time an Option is granted, the Administrator
shall fix the period within which the Option may be exercised and shall
determine any conditions which must be satisfied before the Option may be
exercised. In doing so, the Administrator may specify that an Option may not be
exercised until the completion of a service period.
(c)
Form of
Consideration
. The Administrator shall determine the acceptable form of
consideration for exercising an Option, including the method of payment. The
Administrator shall determine the acceptable form of consideration at the time
of grant. Such consideration may consist entirely of:
(i) cash;
(ii) check;
(iii) promissory
note;
(iv) other
Shares which have a Fair Market Value on the date of surrender equal to the
aggregate exercise price of the Shares as to which said Option shall be
exercised;
(v) to
the extent permitted under Regulation T of the Federal Reserve Board, and
subject to applicable securities laws and the Company’s adoption of such program
in connection with the Plan, the delivery of a properly executed exercise notice
together with such other documentation as the Administrator and the broker, if
applicable, shall require to effect a so-called “ cashless exercise” whereby the
broker sells the Option Shares and delivers cash sales proceeds to the Company
in payment of the exercise price and any applicable taxes (in which case the
date of exercise shall be deemed to be the date on which notice of exercise is
received by the Company, and the exercise price shall be delivered to the
Company on the settlement date);
(vi) a
reduction in the amount of any Company liability to the Optionee, other that any
liability attributable to the Optionee’s participation in any Company
sponsored deferred compensation program or arrangement;
(vii) any
combination of the foregoing methods of payment; or
(viii) such
other consideration and method of payment for the issuance of Shares to the
extent approved by the Administrator and permitted by Applicable
Laws.
10. Exercise
of Option.
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– changes # 14(a)(i)(ii)(iii)
(a)
Procedure for Exercise;
Rights as a Shareholder
. Any Option granted thereunder shall
be exercisable according to the terms of the Plan and at such times and under
such conditions as determined by the Administrator and set forth in the Option
Agreement.
An Option may not be exercised for a
fraction of a Share.
An Option shall be deemed exercised
when the Company receives: (i) notice of exercise (in accordance with the
Option Agreement) from the person entitled to exercise the Option, and (ii) full
payment for the Shares with respect to which the Option is exercised. Full
payment may consist of any consideration and method of payment authorized by the
Administrator and permitted by the Option Agreement and the Plan. Until the
stock certificate evidencing such Shares is issued (as evidenced by the
appropriate entry on the books of the Company or of a duly authorized transfer
agent of the Company), no right to vote or receive dividends or any other rights
as a shareholder shall exist with respect to the Optioned Stock, notwithstanding
the exercise of the Option. The Company shall issue (or cause to be issued) such
stock certificate, either in book entry form or in certificate form, promptly
after the Option is exercised. No adjustment will be made for a dividend or
other right for which the record date is prior to the date the Shares are
issued, except as provided in Section 12 of the Plan.
Exercising an Option in any manner
shall decrease the number of Shares thereafter available, both for purposes of
the Plan and for sale under the Option, by the number of Shares as to which the
Option is exercised.
(b)
Termination of Employment or
Consulting Relationship
. Upon termination of an Optionee’s
Continuous Status as an Employee or Consultant, other than upon the Optionee’s
death or Disability, the Optionee may exercise his or her Option, but only
within such period of time as is specified in the Notice of Grant, and only to
the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise it as the date of
termination (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such
Option as set forth in the Notice of Grant). In the absence of a specified time
in the Notice of Grant, the Option shall remain exercisable for thirty 30 days
following the Optionee’s termination of Continuous Status as an Employee or
Consultant. In the case of an Incentive Stock Option, such period of time shall
not exceed thirty (30) days from the date of termination. If, at the date of
termination, the Optionee is not entitled to exercise his or her entire Option,
the Shares covered by the unexercisable portion of the Option shall revert to
the Plan. If, after termination, the Optionee does not exercise his or her
Option within the time specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the
Shares covered by such Option shall revert to the Plan.
(c)
Disability of
Optionee
. In the event that an Optionee’s Continuous Status as
an Employee or Consultant terminates as a result of the Optionee’s Disability,
the Optionee may exercise his or her Option at any time within twelve (12)
months from the date of such termination, but only to the extent that the
Optionee was entitled to exercise it at the date of such termination (but in no
event later than the expiration of the term of such Option as set forth in the
Notice of Grant). If, at the date of termination, the Optionee does not exercise
his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable portion of the
Option shall revert to the Plan. If, after termination, the Optionee does not
exercise his or her option within the time specified herein, the Option shall
terminate, and the Shares covered by such Option shall revert to the
Plan.
(d)
Death of
Optionee
. In the event of the death of an Optionee, the Option
may be exercised at any time within twelve (12) months following the date of
death (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such Option as
set forth in the Notice of Grant), by the Optionee’s estate or by a person who
acquired the right to exercise the Option by bequest or inheritance, but only to
the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise the Option at the date of
death. If, at any time of death, the Optionee was not entitled to exercise his
or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable portion of the
Option shall immediately revert to the Plan. If, after death, the Optionee’s
estate or a person who acquired the right to exercise the Option by bequest or
inheritance does not exercise the Option within the time specified herein, the
Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by such Option shall revert to
the Plan.
(e)
Suspension
. Any
Optionee who is also a participant in the Retirement at Micron (“RAM”) Section
401(k) Plan and who requests and receives a hardship distribution from the RAM
Plan, is prohibited from making, and must suspend, his or her employee elective
contributions and employee contributions including, without limitation on the
foregoing, the exercise of any Option granted from the date of receipt by that
employee of the RAM hardship distribution.
11.
Non-Transferability of
Options
. Unless determined otherwise by the Administrator, an Option may
not be sold, pledged, assigned, hypothecated, transferred, or disposed of in any
manner other than by will or by
11/21/03
– changes # 14(a)(i)(ii)(iii)
the laws
of descent or distribution and may be exercised, during the lifetime of the
Optionee, only by the Optionee. If the Administrator makes an Option
transferable, such Option shall contain such additional terms and conditions as
the Administrator deems appropriate.
12. Adjustments
Upon Changes in Capitalization, Dissolution, Corporate Transaction, or Change in
Control.
(a
Changes in
Capitalization
. Subject to any required action by the shareholders of the
Company, the authorization limits under Sections 3 and 6(c)(i) of the Plan shall
be adjusted proportionately and the number of shares of Common Stock covered by
each outstanding Option, and the number of issued shares of Common Stock which
have been authorized for issuance under the Plan but as to which no Options have
yet been granted or which have been returned to the Plan upon cancellation or
expiration of an Option, as well as the price per share of Common Stock covered
by each such outstanding Option, shall be proportionately adjusted for any
increase or decrease in the number of issued shares of Common Stock resulting
from a stock split, reverse stock split, stock dividend, combination or
reclassification of the Common Stock or any other increase or decrease in the
number of shares of Common Stock effected without receipt of consideration by
the Company; provided, however, that conversion of any convertible securities of
the Company shall not be deemed to have been “effected without receipt of
consideration.” Such adjustment shall be made by the Board, whose
determination in that respect shall be final, binding, and
conclusive. Without limiting the foregoing, in the event of a
subdivision of the outstanding Stock (stock-split), a declaration of a dividend
payable in Shares, or a combination or consolidation of the outstanding Stock
into a lesser number of Shares, the authorization limits under Section 3 and
6(c) shall automatically be adjusted proportionately, and the Shares then
subject to each Award shall automatically be adjusted proportionately without
any change in the aggregate purchase price therefor. To the extent
that any adjustments made pursuant to this Section 12 cause Incentive Stock
Options to cease to qualify as Incentive Stock Options, such Options shall be
deemed to be Nonstatutory Stock Options.
(b)
Dissolution or
Liquidation
. To the extent not previously exercised, Options
will terminate immediately prior to the consummation of any proposed dissolution
or liquidation of the Company. The Board may, in the exercise of its sole
discretion in such instances, declare that any Option shall terminate as of a
date fixed by the Board and give each Optionee the right to exercise his or her
Option as to all or any part of the Optioned Stock, including Shares as to which
the Option would not otherwise be exercisable. To the extent that
this provision causes Incentive Stock Options to exceed the dollar limitation
set forth in Section 6(a), the excess Options shall be deemed to be Nonstatutory
Stock Options.
(c)
Corporate
Transaction
.Upon the occurrence or in anticipation of any corporate event
or transaction involving the Company (including, without limitation, any merger,
reorganization, recapitalization or combination or exchange of shares or any
transaction described in Section 12(a)), the Administrator may, in its sole
discretion, provide (i) that Options will be settled in cash rather than Common
Stock, (ii) that Options will become immediately vested and exercisable and will
expire after a designated period of time to the extent not then exercised, (iii)
that Options will be assumed by another party to a transaction or otherwise be
equitably converted or substituted in connection with such transaction, (iv)
that outstanding Options may be settled by payment in cash or cash equivalents
equal to the excess of the Fair Market Value of the underlying Common Stock, as
of a specified date associated with the transaction, over the exercise price of
the Option, or (v) any combination of the foregoing. The
Administrator’s determination need not be uniform and may be different for
different Optionees whether or not such Optionees are similarly
situated.
(d)
Change in
Control
. In the event of a Change in Control, the unexercised
portion of each Option then outstanding shall become wholly vested and
immediately exercisable. To the extent that this provision causes Incentive
Stock Options to exceed the dollar limitation set forth in Section 6(a), the
excess Options shall be deemed to be Nonstatutory Stock Options.
(e)
General
. Any
discretionary adjustments made pursuant to this Section 12 shall be subject to
the provisions of Section 14. To the extent that any adjustments made
pursuant to this Section 12 cause Incentive Stock Options to cease to qualify as
Incentive Stock Options, such Options shall be deemed to be Nonstatutory Stock
Options.
13.
Date of
Grant
. The date of grant of an Option shall be, for all
purposes, the date on which the Administrator makes the determination granting
such Option, or such other later date as is determined by the
11/21/03
– changes # 14(a)(i)(ii)(iii)
Administrator.
Notice of the determination shall be provided to each Optionee within a
reasonable time after the date of such grant.
14. Amendment
and Termination of the Plan.
(a)
Amendment and
Termination
. Except as provided herein, the Board may at any
time amend, alter, suspend, or terminate the Plan without shareholder approval;
provided, however, that the Board may condition any amendment or modification on
the approval of shareholders of the Company if such approval is necessary or
deemed advisable with respect to tax, securities or other applicable laws,
policies or regulations. No termination can affect options previously
granted, nor may an amendment make any change in any option theretofore granted
which adversely affects the rights of any Optionee, nor may an amendment be made
without prior approval of the shareholders of the Company if such amendment
would:
(i)
increase
the number of shares that may be issued under the Plan;
(ii)
change
the designation of the employees (or class of employees) eligible for
participation in the Plan; or
(iii)
materially
increase the benefits which may accrue to participants under the
Plan.
(b)
Effect of Amendment or
Termination
. No amendment, alteration, suspension, or
termination of the Plan shall impair the rights of any Optionee, unless mutually
agreed otherwise between the Optionee and the Administrator, which agreement
must be in writing and signed by the Optionee and the Company.
(c)
Compliance
Amendments
. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to the contrary,
the Committee may amend the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or
other applicable agreement, to take effect retroactively or otherwise, as deemed
necessary or advisable for the purpose of conforming the Plan, Notice of Grant,
Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to any present or future law
relating to plans of this or similar nature (including, but not limited to,
Section 409A of the Code), and to the administrative regulations and rulings
promulgated thereunder. By accepting an Option under this Plan, a
Optionee agrees to any amendment made pursuant to this Section to any Option
granted under the Plan without further consideration or action.
15. Conditions
Upon Issuance of Shares.
(a)
Legal
Compliance
. Shares shall not be issued pursuant to the
exercise of an Option unless the exercise of such Option and the issuance and
delivery of such Shares shall comply with all relevant provisions of law,
including, without limitation, the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the
Exchange Act, the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, Applicable Laws,
and the requirements of any stock exchange or quotation system upon which the
Shares may then be listed or quoted, and shall be further subject to the
approval of counsel for the Company with respect to such
compliance.
(b)
Investment
Representations
. As a condition to the exercise of an Option,
the Company may require the person exercising such Option to represent and
warrant at the time of any such exercise that the Shares are being purchased
only for investment and without any present intention to sell or distribute such
Shares if, in the opinion of counsel for the Company, such a representation is
required.
16. Liability
of Company.
(a)
Inability to Obtain
Authority
. The inability of the Company to obtain authority from any
regulatory body having jurisdiction, which authority is deemed by the Company’s
counsel to be necessary to the lawful issuance and sale of any Shares hereunder,
shall relieve the Company of any liability in respect of the failure to issue or
sell such Shares as to which such requisite authority shall not have been
obtained.
(b)
Grants Exceeding Allotted
Shares
. If the Optioned Stock covered by an Option exceeds, as
of the date of grant, the number of Shares which may be issued under the Plan
without additional shareholder approval, such Option shall be void with respect
to such excess Optioned Stock, unless shareholder approval of an
11/21/03
– changes # 14(a)(i)(ii)(iii)
amendment
sufficiently increasing the number of shares subject to the Plan is timely
obtained in accordance with Section 14(b) of the Plan.
17.
Reservation of
Shares
. The Company, during the term of this Plan, will at all
times reserve and keep available such number of Shares as shall be sufficient to
satisfy the requirements of the Plan.
18.
Shareholder
Approval
. Continuance of the Plan shall be subject to approval
by the shareholders of the Company within twelve (12) months before or after the
date the Plan is adopted. Such shareholder approval shall be obtained in the
manner and to the degree required under applicable federal and Delaware
law.
19.
Restriction on
Repricing
. Without the prior approval of the shareholders of
the Company, the Administrator shall not reprice any Options issued under the
Plan through cancellation and regrant, by lowering the exercise price, or by any
other means.
20.
Special Provisions Related
To Section 409A of the Code
.
(a) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, to the extent that any amount or benefit
that would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of
Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under
the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement
by reason of the occurrence of a Change in Control, or the Optionee’s Disability
or separation from service, such amount or benefit will not be payable or
distributable to the Optionee by reason of such circumstance unless (i) the
circumstances giving rise to such Change in Control, Disability or separation
from service meet any description or definition of “change in control event”,
“disability” or “separation from service”, as the case may be, in
Section 409A of the Code and applicable regulations (without giving effect
to any elective provisions that may be available under such definition), or
(ii) the payment or distribution of such amount or benefit would be exempt
from the application of Section 409A of the Code by reason of the
short-term deferral exemption or otherwise. This provision does not
prohibit the
vesting
of
any Option upon a Change in Control, Disability or separation from service,
however defined. If this provision prevents the payment or
distribution of any amount or benefit, such payment or distribution shall be
made on the next earliest payment or distribution date or event specified in the
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement that is
permissible under Section 409A.
(b) If
any one or more Options granted under the Plan to a Optionee could qualify for
any separation pay exemption described in Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-1(b)(9),
but such Options in the aggregate exceed the dollar limit permitted for the
separation pay exemptions, the Company (acting through the Committee or the Head
of Human Resources) shall determine which Options or portions thereof will be
subject to such exemptions.
(c) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, if any amount or benefit that would
constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of
the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under this Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement by reason of a
Optionee’s separation from service during a period in which the Optionee is a
Specified Employee (as defined below), then, subject to any permissible
acceleration of payment by the Committee under Treas. Reg. Section
1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of
interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):
(i) if
the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, the Optionee’s right to
receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be
delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or the first day of the
seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from service; and
(ii) if
the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt
deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month
period immediately following the Optionee’s separation from service will be
accumulated and the Optionee’s right to receive payment or distribution of such
accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or
the first day of the seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from
service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or distributed to the
Optionee and the normal payment or distribution schedule for any remaining
payments or distributions will resume.
For
purposes of this Plan, the term “Specified Employee” has the meaning given such
term in Code Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder,
provided, however
, that, as
permitted in such final regulations, the
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– changes # 14(a)(i)(ii)(iii)
Company’s
Specified Employees and its application of the six-month delay rule of Code
Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) shall be determined in accordance with rules adopted by
the Board or any committee of the Board, which shall be applied consistently
with respect to all nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements of the
Company, including this Plan.
11/21/03
– changes # 14(a)(i)(ii)(iii)
Exhibit
10.10
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
2002
EMPLOYMENT INDUCEMENT STOCK OPTION PLAN
1.
Purposes of the
Plan
. The purposes of this Employment Inducement Stock Option
Plan are to attract and retain the best available personnel for new employment
positions with the Company or its Subsidiaries and thereby promote the success
of the Company’s business. Options granted under the Plan shall be
Nonstatutory Stock Options.
2.
Definitions
. As
used herein, the following definitions shall apply:
(a) “
Administrator
” means
the Board or any of its Committees as shall be administering the Plan, in
accordance with Section 4 of the Plan.
(b) “
Affiliate
” means
(i) any subsidiary or parent company of the Company, or (ii) an entity that
directly or through one or more intermediaries controls, is controlled by or is
under common control with, the Company, as determined by the
Committee.
(c) “
Applicable Laws
”
means the legal requirements relating to the administration of stock option
plans under Delaware corporate and securities laws and the Code.
(d) “
Board
” means the
Board of Directors of the Company.
(e) “
Change in Control
”
means the acquisition by any person or entity, directly, indirectly or
beneficially, acting alone or in concert, of more than thirty-five percent (35%)
of the Common Stock of the Company outstanding at any time.
(f) “
Code
” means the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Reference to a specific Section of
the Code or regulation thereunder shall include such Section or regulation, any
valid regulation promulgated under such Section, and any comparable provision of
any future law, legislation or regulation amending, supplementing or superseding
such Section or regulation.
(g) “
Committee
” means a
Committee appointed by the Board in accordance with Section 4 of the
Plan.
(h) “
Common Stock
” means
the Common Stock of the Company.
(i) “
Company
” means Micron
Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation.
(j) “
Consultant
” means any
person, including an advisor, engaged by the Company or any Subsidiary to render
services.
(k) “
Continuous Status as an
Employee or Consultant
” means that the employment or consulting
relationship with the Company or any Subsidiary is not interrupted or
terminated. Continuous Status as an Employee or Consultant shall not
be considered interrupted in the case of (i) military leave, sick leave, or any
personal leave of absence approved by the Company, or (ii) transfers between
locations of the Company or between the Company, any Subsidiary, or any
successor, or (iii) the transition from an Employee to a Consultant provided
that the person becomes a Consultant immediately after his or her employment is
terminated, or (iv) in the discretion of the Administrator as specified at or
prior to such occurrence, in the case of a spin-off, sale, or disposition of the
Optionee’s employer from the Company or any Parent or Subsidiary.
(l) “
Director
” means a
member of the Board.
9/22/2003
– change # 2(o) (i),(ii)
(m) “
Disability
” means
total and permanent disability as defined in Section 22(e)(3) of the Code.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, for any Options that constitute a nonqualified
deferred compensation plan within the meaning of Section 409A(d) of the Code,
“Disability” has the meaning given such term in Section 409A of the
Code.
(n) “
Employee
” means any
person, including an Officer or Director, who is a common law employee of the
Company or any Subsidiary of the Company. Neither service as a Director nor
payment of a Director’s fee by the Company shall be sufficient to constitute
“employment” by the Company.
(o) “
Exchange Act
” means
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
(p) “
Fair Market Value
”
means, as of any date, the value of Common Stock determined as
follows:
(i) If
the Common Stock is listed on any established stock exchange, including without
limitation the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”), or a national market system,
the Fair Market Value of a Share of Common Stock shall be the average closing
price for such stock (or the closing bid, if no sales were reported) as quoted
on such exchange or system (or the exchange with the greatest volume of trading
in Common Stock) for the last market trading day prior to the day of
determination, as reported by Bloomberg L.P
.
or such other source as the
Administrator deems reliable;
(ii) If
the Common Stock is quoted on the over-the-counter market or is regularly quoted
by a recognized securities dealer, but selling prices are not reported, the Fair
Market Value of a Share of Common Stock shall be the mean between the high bid
and low asked prices for the Common Stock on the last market trading day prior
to the day of determination, as reported by Bloomberg L.P
.
or such other source as the
Administrator deems reliable;
(iii) In
the absence of an established market for the Common Stock, the Fair Market Value
shall be determined by such other method as the Committee determines in good
faith to be reasonable and in compliance with Code Section 409A.
(q) “
Nonstatutory Stock
Option
” means an Option that does not qualify as an as an incentive stock
option within the meaning of Section 422 of the Code and the regulations
promulgated thereunder.
(r) “
Notice of Grant
”
means a written notice evidencing certain terms and conditions of an individual
Option grant. The Notice of Grant is subject to the terms and conditions of the
Option Agreement.
(s) “
Officer
” means a
person who is an officer of the Company within the meaning of Section 16 of the
Exchange Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
(t) “
Option
” means a stock
option granted pursuant to the Plan.
(u) “
Option Agreement
”
means a written agreement between the Company and an Optionee evidencing the
terms and conditions of an individual Option grant. The Option
Agreement is subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan.
(v) “
Optioned Stock
” means
the Common Stock subject to an Option.
(w) “
Optionee
” means an
Employee who holds an outstanding Option granted under the Plan.
(x) “
Parent
” means a
“parent corporation”, whether now or hereafter existing, as defined in Section
424(e) of the Code.
9/22/2003
– change # 2(o) (i),(ii)
(y) “
Plan
” means this 2002
Employment Inducement Stock Option Plan.
(z) “
Rule 16b-3
” means
Rule 16b-3 of the Exchange Act or any successor to Rule 16b-3, as in effect when
discretion is being exercised with respect to the Plan.
(aa) “
Share
” means a share
of the Common Stock, as adjusted in accordance with Section 12 of the
Plan.
(bb) “
Subsidiary
” means a
“subsidiary corporation”, whether now or hereafter existing, as defined in
Section 424(f) of the Code, and shall also include any other entity in which the
Company, or any Subsidiary of the Company has a significant ownership
interest.
3.
Stock Subject to the
Plan
. Subject to the provisions of Section 12 of the Plan, the
maximum aggregate number of Shares which may be optioned and sold under the Plan
is 1,000,000 Shares. The Shares may be authorized, but unissued, or reacquired
Common Stock.
If an
Option expires or becomes unexercisable without having been exercised in full,
the unpurchased Shares which were subject thereto shall become available for
future grant or sale under the Plan (unless the Plan has terminated);
provided
, however,
that Shares that have actually been issued under the Plan shall not be returned
to the Plan and shall not become available for future distribution under the
Plan.
4.
Administration of the
Plan
.
(a)
Administrator
. The
Plan shall be administered by a Committee appointed by the Board (which
Committee shall consist of two or more Directors) or, at the discretion of the
Board from time to time, the Plan may be administered by the
Board. It is intended that the Directors appointed to serve on the
Committee shall be “non-employee directors” (within the meaning of Rule
16b-3). However, the mere fact that a Committee member shall fail to
so qualify shall not invalidate any Option granted by the Committee which Option
is otherwise validly made under the Plan. The members of the
Committee shall be appointed by, and may be changed at any time and from time to
time in the discretion of, the Board. The Board, in its discretion,
may delegate to a special committee all or part of the Administrator’s authority
and duties with respect to grants and awards to individuals who at the time of
grant are not, and are not anticipated to become, persons subject to the
reporting and other provisions of Section 16 of the Exchange
Act. The Board may revoke or amend the terms of a delegation at any
time but such action shall not invalidate any prior actions of the delegate or
delegates that were consistent with the terms of the Plan.
(b)
Powers of the
Administrator
. Subject to the provisions of the Plan, and in
the case of a Committee, subject to the specific duties delegated by the Board
to such Committee, the Administrator shall have the authority, in its
discretion:
(i) to
determine the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock, in accordance with Section
2(o) of the Plan;
(ii) to
select the Employees to whom Options may be granted hereunder; provided,
however, that Options may be granted hereunder only to a person as an inducement
for him or her to accept employment with the Company or any
Subsidiary;
(iii) to
determine whether and to what extent Options are granted;
(iv) to
determine the number of shares of Common Stock to be covered by each Option
granted hereunder;
(v) to
approve forms of agreement for use under the Plan;
9/22/2003
– change # 2(o) (i),(ii)
(vi) to
determine the terms and conditions, not inconsistent with the terms of the Plan,
of any award granted hereunder. Such terms and conditions include, but are not
limited to, the exercise price, the time or times when Options may be exercised
(which may be based on performance criteria), any vesting acceleration or waiver
of forfeiture restrictions, and any restriction or limitation regarding any
Option or the shares of Common Stock relating thereto, based in each case on
such factors as the Administrator, in its sole discretion, shall
determine;
(vii) to
construe and interpret the terms of the Plan and awards granted pursuant to the
Plan;
(viii) to
prescribe, amend, and rescind rules and regulations relating to the Plan,
including rules and regulations relating to sub-plans established for the
purpose of qualifying for preferred tax treatment under foreign tax
laws;
(ix) to
modify or amend each Option (subject to Section 14 of the Plan);
(x)
to authorize any person to execute on behalf of the Company
any instrument required to effect the grant of an Option previously granted by
the Administrator; and
(xi) to
make all other determinations deemed necessary or advisable for administering
the Plan; and
(xii) to
allow Optionees to satisfy withholding tax obligations by electing to have the
Company withhold from the Shares to be issued upon exercise of an Option that
number of Shares having a Fair Market Value equal to the minimum amount (and not
any greater amount) required by law to be withheld. The Fair Market
Value of the Shares to be withheld shall be determined on the date that the
amount of tax to be withheld is to be determined. All elections by an Optionee
to have Shares withheld for this purpose shall be made in such form and under
such conditions as the Administrator may deem necessary or
advisable.
(c)
Effect of Administrator’s
Decision
. The Administrator’s decisions, determinations, and
interpretations shall be final and binding on all Optionees and any other
holders of Options.
5.
Eligibility
. Options
may be granted hereunder only to a person who is being hired as an
Employee of the Company or any Subsidiary as an inducement to such
employment. A person who has been granted an Option under this Plan
may not be granted additional Options under this Plan, but may be granted
options or other awards under other plans of the Company. Employees and
Consultants who are service providers to an Affiliate may be granted Options
under this Plan only if the Affiliate qualifies as an “eligible issuer of
service recipient stock” within the meaning of §1.409A-1(b)(5)(iii)(E) of the
final regulations under Code Section 409A.
6.
Limitations
.
(a) Neither
the Plan nor any Option shall confer upon an Optionee any right with respect to
continuing the Optionee’s employment with the Company, nor shall they interfere
in any way with the Optionee’s right or the Company’s right to terminate such
employment at any time, with or without cause.
(b) The
following limitations shall apply to grants of Options hereunder:
(i)
No Employee shall be granted under the Plan Options to purchase more
than 500,000 Shares.
(ii) The
foregoing limitations shall be adjusted proportionately in connection with any
change in the Company’s capitalization as described in Section 12.
9/22/2003
– change # 2(o) (i),(ii)
7.
Effective
Date
. The Plan shall become effective upon its adoption by the
Board.
8.
Term
of Option
. The term of each Option shall be stated in the
Notice of Grant, but shall not exceed ten (10) years.
9.
Option Exercise Price and
Consideration
.
(a)
Exercise
Price
. The per share exercise price for the Shares to be
issued pursuant to exercise of an Option shall be determined by the
Administrator, but shall not be less than the Fair Market Value per share on the
date of grant of the Option.
(b)
Waiting Period and Exercise
Dates
. At the time an Option is granted, the Administrator
shall fix the period within which the Option may be exercised and shall
determine any conditions which must be satisfied before the Option may be
exercised. In doing so, the Administrator may specify that an Option may not be
exercised until the completion of a service period.
(c)
Form of
Consideration
. The Administrator shall determine the acceptable form of
consideration for exercising an Option, including the method of
payment. The Administrator shall determine the acceptable form of
consideration. Such consideration may consist entirely of:
(i)
cash;
(ii) check;
(iii) promissory
note;
(iv) other
Shares which have a Fair Market Value on the date of surrender equal to the
aggregate exercise price of the Shares as to which said Option shall be
exercised;
(v) to
the extent permitted under Regulation T of the Federal Reserve Board, and
subject to applicable securities laws and the Company’s adoption of such program
in connection with the Plan, the delivery of a properly executed exercise notice
together with such other documentation as the Administrator and the broker, if
applicable, shall require to effect a so-called “cashless exercise” whereby the
broker sells the Option Shares and delivers cash sales proceeds to the Company
in payment of the exercise price and any applicable taxes (in which case the
date of exercise shall be deemed to be the date on which notice of exercise is
received by the Company, and the exercise price shall be delivered to the
Company on the settlement date);
(vi) a
reduction in the amount of any Company liability to the Optionee, other than any
liability attributable to the Optionee’s participation in any Company
sponsored deferred compensation program or arrangement;
(vii) any
combination of the foregoing methods of payment; or
(viii) such
other consideration and method of payment for the issuance of Shares to the
extent approved by the Administrator and permitted by Applicable
Laws.
10.
Exercise of
Option
.
(a)
Procedure for Exercise;
Rights as a Shareholder
. Any Option granted hereunder shall be
exercisable according to the terms of the Plan and at such times and under such
conditions as determined by the Administrator and set forth in the Option
Agreement.
An Option
may not be exercised for a fraction of a Share.
9/22/2003
– change # 2(o) (i),(ii)
An Option shall be deemed exercised
when the Company receives: (i) notice of exercise (in accordance with the
Option Agreement) from the person entitled to exercise the Option, and (ii) full
payment for the Shares with respect to which the Option is exercised. Full
payment may consist of any consideration and method of payment authorized by the
Administrator and permitted by the Option Agreement and the Plan. Until the
stock certificate evidencing such Shares is issued (as evidenced by the
appropriate entry on the books of the Company or of a duly authorized transfer
agent of the Company), no right to vote or receive dividends or any other rights
as a shareholder shall exist with respect to the Optioned Stock, notwithstanding
the exercise of the Option. The Company shall issue (or cause to be
issued) such stock certificate, either in book entry form or in certificate
form, promptly after the Option is exercised. No adjustment will be
made for a dividend or other right for which the record date is prior to the
date the Shares are issued, except as provided in Section 12 of the
Plan.
Exercising an Option in any manner
shall decrease the number of Shares thereafter available, both for purposes of
the Plan and for sale under the Option, by the number of Shares as to which the
Option is exercised.
(b)
Termination of Employment or
Consulting Relationship
. Upon termination of an Optionee’s
Continuous Status as an Employee or Consultant, other than upon the Optionee’s
death or Disability, the Optionee may exercise his or her Option, but only
within such period of time as is specified in the Notice of Grant, and only to
the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise it as the date of
termination (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such
Option as set forth in the Notice of Grant). In the absence of a
specified time in the Notice of Grant, the Option shall remain exercisable for
thirty 30 days following the Optionee’s termination of Continuous Status as an
Employee or Consultant. If, at the date of termination, the Optionee
is not entitled to exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the
unexercisable portion of the Option shall revert to the Plan. If,
after termination, the Optionee does not exercise his or her Option within the
time specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by
such Option shall revert to the Plan.
(c)
Disability of
Optionee
. In the event that an Optionee’s Continuous Status as
an Employee terminates as a result of the Optionee’s Disability, the Optionee
may exercise his or her Option at any time within twelve (12) months from the
date of such termination, but only to the extent that the Optionee was entitled
to exercise it at the date of such termination (but in no event later than the
expiration of the term of such Option as set forth in the Notice of
Grant). If, at the date of termination, the Optionee does not
exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable
portion of the Option shall revert to the Plan. If, after
termination, the Optionee does not exercise his or her option within the time
specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by such
Option shall revert to the Plan.
(d)
Death of
Optionee
. In the event of the death of an Optionee, the Option
may be exercised at any time within twelve (12) months following the date of
death (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such Option as
set forth in the Notice of Grant), by the Optionee’s estate or by a person who
acquired the right to exercise the Option by bequest or inheritance, but only to
the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise the Option at the date of
death. If, at any time of death, the Optionee was not entitled to
exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable
portion of the Option shall immediately revert to the Plan. If, after
death, the Optionee’s estate or a person who acquired the right to exercise the
Option by bequest or inheritance does not exercise the Option within the time
specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by such
Option shall revert to the Plan.
(e)
Suspension
. Any
Optionee who is also a participant in the Retirement at Micron (“RAM”) Section
401(k) Plan and who requests and receives a hardship distribution from the RAM
Plan, is prohibited from making, and must suspend, his or her employee elective
contributions and employee contributions including, without limitation on the
foregoing, the exercise of any Option granted from the date of receipt by that
employee of the RAM hardship distribution for the time period, if any, required
by the RAM Plan.
9/22/2003
– change # 2(o) (i),(ii)
11.
Non-Transferability of
Options
. Unless determined otherwise by the Administrator, an Option may
not be sold, pledged, assigned, hypothecated, transferred, or disposed of in any
manner other than by will or by the laws of descent or distribution and may be
exercised, during the lifetime of the Optionee, only by the
Optionee. If the Administrator makes an Option transferable, such
Option shall contain such additional terms and conditions as the Administrator
deems appropriate.
12.
Adjustments Upon Changes in
Capitalization, Dissolution, Corporate Transaction, or Change in
Control
.
(a)
Changes in
Capitalization
. Subject to any required action by the
shareholders of the Company, the number of shares of Common Stock covered by
each outstanding Option, and the number of issued shares of Common Stock which
have been authorized for issuance under the Plan but as to which no Options have
yet been granted or which have been returned to the Plan upon cancellation or
expiration of an Option, as well as the price per share of Common Stock covered
by each such outstanding Option, shall be proportionately adjusted for any
increase or decrease in the number of issued shares of Common Stock resulting
from a stock split, reverse stock split, stock dividend, combination or
reclassification of the Common Stock or any other increase or decrease in the
number of shares of Common Stock effected without receipt of consideration by
the Company; provided, however, that conversion of any convertible securities of
the Company shall not be deemed to have been “effected without receipt of
consideration.” Such adjustment shall be made by the Board, whose
determination in that respect shall be final, binding, and
conclusive. Without limiting the foregoing, in the event of a
subdivision of the outstanding Stock (stock-split), a declaration of a dividend
payable in Shares, or a combination or consolidation of the outstanding Stock
into a lesser number of Shares, the authorization limits under Section 3 and
6(b) shall automatically be adjusted proportionately, and the Shares then
subject to each Award shall automatically be adjusted proportionately without
any change in the aggregate purchase price therefor. To the extent
that any adjustments made pursuant to this Section 12 cause Incentive Stock
Options to cease to qualify as Incentive Stock Options, such Options shall be
deemed to be Nonstatutory Stock Options.
(b)
Dissolution or
Liquidation
. To the extent not previously exercised, Options
will terminate immediately prior to the consummation of any proposed dissolution
or liquidation of the Company. The Board may, in the exercise of its
sole discretion in such instances, declare that any Option shall terminate as of
a date fixed by the Board and give each Optionee the right to exercise his or
her Option as to all or any part of the Optioned Stock, including Shares as to
which the Option would not otherwise be exercisable.
(c)
Corporate
Transaction
. Upon the occurrence or in anticipation of any corporate
event or transaction involving the Company (including, without limitation, any
merger, reorganization, recapitalization or combination or exchange of shares or
any transaction described in Section 12(a)), the Administrator may, in its sole
discretion, provide (i) that Options will be settled in cash rather than Common
Stock, (ii) that Options will become immediately vested and exercisable and will
expire after a designated period of time to the extent not then exercised, (iii)
that Options will be assumed by another party to a transaction or otherwise be
equitably converted or substituted in connection with such transaction, (iv)
that outstanding Options may be settled by payment in cash or cash equivalents
equal to the excess of the Fair Market Value of the underlying Common Stock, as
of a specified date associated with the transaction, over the exercise price of
the Option, or (v) any combination of the foregoing. The
Administrator’s determination need not be uniform and may be different for
different Optionees whether or not such Optionees are similarly
situated.
(d)
Change in
Control
. In the event of a Change in Control, the unexercised
portion of each Option then outstanding shall become wholly vested and
immediately exercisable.
(e)
General
. Any
discretionary adjustments made pursuant to this Section 12 shall be subject to
the provisions of Section 14.
9/22/2003
– change # 2(o) (i),(ii)
13.
Date of
Grant
. The date of grant of an Option shall be, for all
purposes, the date on which the Administrator makes the determination granting
such Option, or such other later date as is determined by the
Administrator. Notice of the determination shall be provided to each
Optionee within a reasonable time after the date of such grant.
14.
Amendment and Termination of
the Plan and Outstanding Options
.
(a)
Amendment and
Termination
. The Board may at any time amend, alter, suspend,
or terminate the Plan without shareholder approval; provided, however, that the
Board may condition any amendment or modification on the approval of
shareholders of the Company if such approval is necessary or deemed advisable
with respect to tax, securities or other applicable laws, policies or
regulations.
(b)
Effect of Amendment or
Termination
. No amendment, alteration, suspension, or
termination of the Plan or any outstanding Option shall impair the rights of any
Optionee, unless mutually agreed otherwise between the Optionee and the
Administrator, which agreement must be in writing and signed by the Optionee and
the Company.
(c)
Shareholder Approval
Required for Certain Actions
. The original term of any Option
may not be extended without the prior approval of the shareholders of the
Company. Except as otherwise provided in Section 12, the exercise
price of any Option may not be reduced, directly or indirectly, without the
prior approval of the shareholders of the Company.
(c)
Compliance
Amendments
. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to the contrary,
the Committee may amend the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or
other applicable agreement, to take effect retroactively or otherwise, as deemed
necessary or advisable for the purpose of conforming the Plan, Notice of Grant,
Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to any present or future law
relating to plans of this or similar nature (including, but not limited to,
Section 409A of the Code), and to the administrative regulations and rulings
promulgated thereunder. By accepting an Option under this Plan, a
Optionee agrees to any amendment made pursuant to this Section to any Option
granted under the Plan without further consideration or action.
15.
Conditions Upon Issuance of
Shares
.
(a)
Legal
Compliance
. Shares shall not be issued pursuant to the
exercise of an Option unless the exercise of such Option and the issuance and
delivery of such Shares shall comply with all relevant provisions of law,
including, without limitation, the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the
Exchange Act, the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, Applicable Laws,
and the requirements of any stock exchange or quotation system upon which the
Shares may then be listed or quoted, and shall be further subject to the
approval of counsel for the Company with respect to such
compliance.
(b)
Investment
Representations
. As a condition to the exercise of an Option,
the Company may require the person exercising such Option to represent and
warrant at the time of any such exercise that the Shares are being purchased
only for investment and without any present intention to sell or distribute such
Shares if, in the opinion of counsel for the Company, such a representation is
required.
16.
Liability
of
Company
.
(a)
Inability to Obtain
Authority
. The inability of the Company to obtain authority from any
regulatory body having jurisdiction, which authority is deemed by the Company’s
counsel to be necessary to the lawful issuance and sale of any Shares hereunder,
shall relieve the Company of any
9/22/2003
– change # 2(o) (i),(ii)
liability
in respect of the failure to issue or sell such Shares as to which such
requisite authority shall not have been obtained.
(b)
Grants Exceeding Allotted
Shares
. If the Optioned Stock covered by an Option exceeds, as
of the date of grant, the number of Shares which may be issued under the Plan,
such Option shall be void with respect to such excess Optioned Stock, unless
approval of an amendment sufficiently increasing the number of shares subject to
the Plan is timely obtained.
17.
Reservation of
Shares
. The Company, during the term of this Plan, will at all
times reserve and keep available such number of Shares as shall be sufficient to
satisfy the requirements of the Plan.
18.
Restriction on
Repricing
. Without the prior approval of the shareholders of
the Company, the Administrator shall not reprice any Options issued under the
Plan through cancellation and regrant, by lowering the exercise price, or by any
other means.
19.
Special Provisions Related
To Section 409A of the Code
.
(a) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, to the extent that any amount or benefit
that would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of
Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under
the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement
by reason of the occurrence of a Change in Control, or the Optionee’s Disability
or separation from service, such amount or benefit will not be payable or
distributable to the Optionee by reason of such circumstance unless (i) the
circumstances giving rise to such Change in Control, Disability or separation
from service meet any description or definition of “change in control event”,
“disability” or “separation from service”, as the case may be, in
Section 409A of the Code and applicable regulations (without giving effect
to any elective provisions that may be available under such definition), or
(ii) the payment or distribution of such amount or benefit would be exempt
from the application of Section 409A of the Code by reason of the
short-term deferral exemption or otherwise. This provision does not
prohibit the
vesting
of
any Option upon a Change in Control, Disability or separation from service,
however defined. If this provision prevents the payment or
distribution of any amount or benefit, such payment or distribution shall be
made on the next earliest payment or distribution date or event specified in the
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement that is
permissible under Section 409A.
(b) If
any one or more Options granted under the Plan to a Optionee could qualify for
any separation pay exemption described in Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-1(b)(9),
but such Options in the aggregate exceed the dollar limit permitted for the
separation pay exemptions, the Company (acting through the Committee or the Head
of Human Resources) shall determine which Options or portions thereof will be
subject to such exemptions.
(c) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, if any amount or benefit that would
constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of
the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under this Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement by reason of a
Optionee’s separation from service during a period in which the Optionee is a
Specified Employee (as defined below), then, subject to any permissible
acceleration of payment by the Committee under Treas. Reg. Section
1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of
interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):
(i) if
the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, the Optionee’s right to
receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be
delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or the first day of the
seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from service; and
9/22/2003
– change # 2(o) (i),(ii)
(ii) if
the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt
deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month
period immediately following the Optionee’s separation from service will be
accumulated and the Optionee’s right to receive payment or distribution of such
accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or
the first day of the seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from
service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or distributed to the
Optionee and the normal payment or distribution schedule for any remaining
payments or distributions will resume.
For
purposes of this Plan, the term “Specified Employee” has the meaning given such
term in Code Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder,
provided, however
, that, as
permitted in such final regulations, the Company’s Specified Employees and its
application of the six-month delay rule of Code Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) shall
be determined in accordance with rules adopted by the Board or any committee of
the Board, which shall be applied consistently with respect to all nonqualified
deferred compensation arrangements of the Company, including this
Plan.
9/22/2003
– change # 2(o) (i),(ii)
EXHIBIT
10.11
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
2004
EQUITY INCENTIVE PLAN
ARTICLE
1
PURPOSE
1.1.
GENERAL
. The
purpose of the Micron Technology, Inc. 2004 Equity Incentive Plan (the “Plan”)
is to promote the success, and enhance the value, of Micron Technology, Inc.
(the “Company”), by linking the personal interests of employees, officers,
directors and consultants of the Company or any Affiliate (as defined below) to
those of Company stockholders and by providing such persons with an incentive
for outstanding performance. The Plan is further intended to provide
flexibility to the Company in its ability to motivate, attract, and retain the
services of employees, officers, directors and consultants upon whose judgment,
interest, and special effort the successful conduct of the Company’s operation
is largely dependent. Accordingly, the Plan permits the grant of
incentive awards from time to time to selected employees, officers, directors
and consultants of the Company and its Affiliates.
ARTICLE
2
DEFINITIONS
2.1.
DEFINITIONS
. When
a word or phrase appears in this Plan with the initial letter capitalized, and
the word or phrase does not commence a sentence, the word or phrase shall
generally be given the meaning ascribed to it in this Section or in Section 1.1
unless a clearly different meaning is required by the context. The
following words and phrases shall have the following meanings:
(a)
“Affiliate”
means (i) any Subsidiary or Parent, or (ii) an entity that directly or through
one or more intermediaries controls, is controlled by or is under common control
with, the Company, as determined by the Committee.
(b)
“Award”
means any Option, Stock Appreciation Right, Restricted Stock Award, Restricted
Stock Unit Award, Deferred Stock Unit Award, Performance Share, Dividend
Equivalent Award, or Other Stock-Based Award granted to a Participant under the
Plan.
(c)
“Award
Certificate” means a written document, in such form as the Committee prescribes
from time to time, setting forth the terms and conditions of an
Award. Award Certificates may be in the form of individual award
agreements or certificates or a program document describing the terms and
provisions of an Awards or series of Awards under the Plan.
(d)
“Board”
means the Board of Directors of the Company.
(e)
“Change
in Control” means and includes the occurrence of any one of the following
events:
(i) individuals
who, on the Effective Date, constitute the Board of Directors of the Company
(the “Incumbent Directors”) cease for any reason to constitute at least a
majority of such Board, provided that any person becoming a director after the
Effective Date and whose election or nomination for election was approved by a
vote of at least a majority of the Incumbent Directors then on the Board shall
be an Incumbent Director;
provided
,
however
, that no
individual initially elected or nominated as a director of the Company as a
result of an actual or threatened election contest with respect to the election
or removal of directors (“Election Contest”) or other actual or threatened
solicitation of proxies or consents by or on behalf of any Person other than the
Board (“Proxy Contest”), including by reason of any agreement intended to avoid
or settle any Election Contest or Proxy Contest, shall be deemed an Incumbent
Director; or
(ii) any
person is or becomes a “beneficial owner” (as defined in Rule 13d-3 under the
1934 Act), directly or indirectly, of either (A) 35% or more of the
then-outstanding shares of common stock of the Company (“Company Common Stock”)
or (B) securities of the Company representing 35% or more of the combined voting
power of the Company’s then outstanding
securities
eligible to vote for the election of directors (the “Company Voting
Securities”);
provided
,
however
, that for
purposes of this subsection (ii), the following acquisitions shall not
constitute a Change in Control: (w) an acquisition directly from the Company,
(x) an acquisition by the Company or a Subsidiary of the Company, (y) an
acquisition by any employee benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored or
maintained by the Company or any Subsidiary of the Company, or (z) an
acquisition pursuant to a Non-Qualifying Transaction (as defined in subsection
(iii) below); or
(iii) the
consummation of a reorganization, merger, consolidation, statutory share
exchange or similar form of corporate transaction involving the Company or a
Subsidiary (a “Reorganization”), or the sale or other disposition of all or
substantially all of the Company’s assets (a “Sale”) or the acquisition of
assets or stock of another corporation (an “Acquisition”), unless immediately
following such Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition: (A) all or substantially all
of the individuals and entities who were the beneficial owners, respectively, of
the outstanding Company Common Stock and outstanding Company Voting Securities
immediately prior to such Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition beneficially own,
directly or indirectly, more than 50% of, respectively, the then outstanding
shares of common stock and the combined voting power of the then outstanding
voting securities entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, as
the case may be, of the corporation resulting from such Reorganization, Sale or
Acquisition (including, without limitation, a corporation which as a result of
such transaction owns the Company or all or substantially all of the Company’s
assets or stock either directly or through one or more subsidiaries, the
“Surviving Corporation”) in substantially the same proportions as their
ownership, immediately prior to such Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition, of the
outstanding Company Common Stock and the outstanding Company Voting Securities,
as the case may be, and (B) no person (other than (x) the Company or any
Subsidiary of the Company, (y) the Surviving Corporation or its ultimate parent
corporation, or (z) any employee benefit plan or related trust) sponsored or
maintained by any of the foregoing is the beneficial owner, directly or
indirectly, of 35% or more of the total common stock or 35% or more of the total
voting power of the outstanding voting securities eligible to elect directors of
the Surviving Corporation, and (C) at least a majority of the members of the
board of directors of the Surviving Corporation were Incumbent Directors at the
time of the Board’s approval of the execution of the initial agreement providing
for such Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition (any Reorganization, Sale or
Acquisition which satisfies all of the criteria specified in (A), (B) and (C)
above shall be deemed to be a “Non-Qualifying Transaction”); or
(iv) approval
by the stockholders of the Company of a complete liquidation or dissolution of
the Company.
(f)
“Code”
means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time, and
includes a reference to the underlying final regulations. Reference
to a specific Section of the Code or regulation thereunder shall include such
Section or regulation, any valid regulation promulgated under such Section, and
any comparable provision of any future law, legislation or regulation amending,
supplementing or superseding such Section or regulation.
(g)
“Committee”
means the committee of the Board described in Article 4.
(h)
“Company”
means Micron Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation, or any successor
corporation.
(i)
“Continuous
Status as a Participant” means the absence of any interruption or termination of
service as an employee, officer, consultant or director of the Company or any
Affiliate, as applicable; provided, however, that for purposes of an Incentive
Stock Option, or a Stock Appreciation Right issued in tandem with an
Incentive Stock Option, “Continuous Status as a Participant” means the absence
of any interruption or termination of service as an employee of the Company or
any Parent or Subsidiary, as applicable, pursuant to applicable tax
regulations. Continuous Status as a Participant shall not be
considered interrupted in the case of any leave of absence authorized in writing
by the Company prior to its commencement; provided, however, that for purposes
of Incentive Stock Options, no such leave may exceed 90 days, unless
reemployment upon expiration of such leave is guaranteed by statute or
contract. If
reemployment
upon expiration of a leave of absence approved by the Company is not so
guaranteed, on the 91st day of such leave any Incentive Stock Option held by the
Participant shall cease to be treated as an Incentive Stock Option and shall be
treated for tax purposes as a Nonstatutory Stock Option.
(j)
“Covered
Employee” means a covered employee as defined in Code Section
162(m)(3).
(k)
“Disability”
or “Disabled” has the same meaning as provided in the long-term disability plan
or policy maintained by the Company or if applicable, most recently maintained,
by the Company or if applicable, an Affiliate, for the Participant, whether or
not such Participant actually receives disability benefits under such plan or
policy. If no long-term disability plan or policy was ever maintained
on behalf of Participant or if the determination of Disability relates to an
Incentive Stock Option, or a Stock Appreciation Right issued in tandem with an
Incentive Stock Option, Disability means Permanent and Total Disability as
defined in Section 22(e)(3) of the Code. Notwithstanding the
foregoing, for any Awards that constitute a nonqualified deferred compensation
plan within the meaning of Section 409A(d) of the Code, Disability has the
meaning given such term in Section 409A of the Code. In the event of
a dispute, the determination whether a Participant is Disabled will be made by
the Committee and may be supported by the advice of a physician competent in the
area to which such Disability relates.
(l)
“Deferred
Stock Unit” means a right granted to a Participant under Article
11.
(m)
“Dividend
Equivalent” means a right granted to a Participant under Article
12.
(n)
“Effective
Date” has the meaning assigned such term in Section 3.1.
(o)
“Eligible
Participant” means an employee, officer, consultant or director of the Company
or any Affiliate.
(p)
“Exchange”
means the New York Stock Exchange or any other national securities exchange or
national market system on which the Stock may from time to time be listed or
traded.
(q)
“Fair
Market Value” of the Stock, on any date, means: (i) if the Stock is listed or
traded on any Exchange, the average closing price for such Stock (or the closing
bid, if no sales were reported) as quoted on such Exchange (or the Exchange with
the greatest volume of trading in the Stock) for the last market trading day
prior to the day of determination, as reported by
Bloomberg L.P.
or such other
source as the Committee deems reliable; (ii) if the Stock is quoted on the
over-the-counter market or is regularly quoted by a recognized securities
dealer, but selling prices are not reported, the Fair Market Value of the Stock
shall be the mean between the high bid and low asked prices for the Stock on the
last market trading day prior to the day of determination, as reported by
Bloomberg L.P.
or such other
source as the Committee deems reliable, or (iii) in the absence of an
established market for the Stock, the Fair Market Value shall be determined by
such other method as the Committee determines in good faith to be reasonable and
in compliance with Code Section 409A.
(r)
“Full
Value Award”
means
an Award other than in the form of an Option or SAR, and which is settled by the
issuance of Stock.
(s)
“Grant
Date” of an Award means the first date on which all necessary corporate action
has been taken to approve the grant of the Award as provided in the Plan, or
such later date as is determined and specified as part of that authorization
process. Notice of the grant shall be provided to the grantee within
a reasonable time after the Grant Date.
(t)
“Incentive
Stock Option” means an Option that is intended to be an incentive stock option
and meets the requirements of Section 422 of the Code or any successor provision
thereto.
(u)
“Non-Employee
Director” means a director of the Company who is not a common law
employee
of the Company or an Affiliate.
(v)
“Nonstatutory
Stock Option” means an Option that is not an Incentive Stock
Option.
(w)
“Option”
means a right granted to a Participant under Article 7 of the Plan to purchase
Stock at a specified price during specified time periods. An Option
may be either an Incentive Stock Option or a Nonstatutory Stock
Option.
(x)
“Other
Stock-Based Award” means a right, granted to a Participant under Article 13 that
relates to or is valued by reference to Stock or other Awards relating to
Stock.
(y)
“Parent”
means a corporation, limited liability company, partnership or other entity
which owns or beneficially owns a majority of the outstanding voting stock or
voting power of the Company. Notwithstanding the above, with respect to an
Incentive Stock Option, Parent shall have the meaning set forth in Section
424(e) of the Code.
(z)
“Participant”
means a person who, as an employee, officer, director or consultant of the
Company or any Affiliate, has been granted an Award under the Plan; provided
that in the case of the death of a Participant, the term “Participant” refers to
a beneficiary designated pursuant to Section 14.5 or the legal guardian or other
legal representative acting in a fiduciary capacity on behalf of the Participant
under applicable state law and court supervision.
(aa)
“Performance
Share” means any right granted to a Participant under Article 9 to a unit to be
valued by reference to a designated number of Shares to be paid upon achievement
of such performance goals as the Committee establishes with regard to such
Performance Share.
(bb)
“Person”
means any individual, entity or group, within the meaning of Section 3(a)(9) of
the 1934 Act and as used in Section 13(d)(3) or 14(d)(2) of the 1934
Act.
(cc)
“Plan”
means the Micron Technology, Inc. 2004 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended from
time to time.
(dd)
“Public
Offering” shall occur on closing date of a public offering of any class or
series of the Company’s equity securities pursuant to a registration statement
filed by the Company under the 1933 Act.
(ee)
“Qualified
Performance-Based Award” means an Award that is either (i) intended to qualify
for the Section 162(m) Exemption and is made subject to performance goals based
on Qualified Business Criteria as set forth in Section 14.10(b), or (ii) an
Option or SAR.
(ff)
“Qualified
Business Criteria” means one or more of the Business Criteria listed in Section
14.10(b) upon which performance goals for certain Qualified Performance-Based
Awards may be established by the Committee.
(gg)
“Restricted
Stock Award” means Stock granted to a Participant under Article 10 that is
subject to certain restrictions and to risk of forfeiture.
(hh)
“Restricted
Stock Unit Award” means the right granted to a Participant under Article 10 to
receive shares of Stock (or the equivalent value in cash or other property if
the Committee so provides) in the future, which right is subject to certain
restrictions and to risk of forfeiture.
(ii)
“Section
162(m) Exemption” means the exemption from the limitation on deductibility
imposed by Section 162(m) of the Code that is set forth in Section 162(m)(4)(C)
of the Code or any successor provision thereto.
(jj)
“Shares”
means shares of the Company’s Stock. If there has been an adjustment
or substitution pursuant to Section 15.1, the term “Shares” shall also include
any shares of stock or other securities that are substituted for Shares or into
which Shares are adjusted pursuant to Section 15.1.
(kk)
“Stock”
means the $.10 par value common stock of the Company and such other securities
of the Company as may be substituted for Stock pursuant to Article
15.
(ll)
“Stock
Appreciation Right” or “SAR” means a right granted to a Participant under
Article 8 to receive a payment equal to the difference between the Fair Market
Value of a Share as of the date of exercise of the SAR over the base price of
the SAR, all as determined pursuant to Article 8.
(mm)
“Subsidiary”
means any corporation, limited liability company, partnership or other entity of
which a majority of the outstanding voting stock or voting power is beneficially
owned directly or indirectly by the Company. Notwithstanding the above, with
respect to an Incentive Stock Option, Subsidiary shall have the meaning set
forth in Section 424(f) of the Code.
(nn)
“1933
Act” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended from time to
time.
(oo)
“1934
Act” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended from time to
time.
ARTICLE
3
EFFECTIVE
TERM OF PLAN
3.1.
EFFECTIVE
DATE
. The Plan shall be effective as of the date it is
approved by both the Board and the stockholders of the Company (the “Effective
Date”).
3.2.
TERMINATION OF
PLAN
. The Plan shall terminate on the tenth anniversary of the
Effective Date unless earlier terminated as provided herein. The
termination of the Plan on such date shall not affect the validity of any Award
outstanding on the date of termination.
ARTICLE
4
ADMINISTRATION
4.1.
COMMITTEE
. The
Plan shall be administered by a Committee appointed by the Board (which
Committee shall consist of at least two directors) or, at the discretion of the
Board from time to time, the Plan may be administered by the
Board. It is intended that at least two of the directors appointed to
serve on the Committee shall be “non-employee directors” (within the meaning of
Rule 16b-3 promulgated under the 1934 Act) and “outside directors” (within the
meaning of Code Section 162(m)) and that any such members of the Committee who
do not so qualify shall abstain from participating in any decision to make or
administer Awards that are made to Eligible Participants who at the time of
consideration for such Award (i) are persons subject to the short-swing profit
rules of Section 16 of the 1934 Act, or (ii) are reasonably anticipated to
become Covered Employees during the term of the Award. However, the
mere fact that a Committee member shall fail to qualify under either of the
foregoing requirements or shall fail to abstain from such action shall not
invalidate any Award made by the Committee which Award is otherwise validly made
under the Plan. The members of the Committee shall be appointed by,
and may be changed at any time and from time to time in the discretion of, the
Board. The Board may reserve to itself any or all of the authority
and responsibility of the Committee under the Plan or may act as administrator
of the Plan for any and all purposes. To the extent the Board has
reserved any authority and responsibility or during any time that the Board is
acting as administrator of the Plan, it shall have all the powers of the
Committee hereunder, and any reference herein to the Committee (other than in
this Section 4.1) shall include the Board. To the extent any action
of the Board under the Plan conflicts with actions taken by the Committee, the
actions of the Board shall control.
4.2.
ACTION AND INTERPRETATIONS
BY THE COMMITTEE
. For purposes of administering the Plan, the
Committee may from time to time adopt rules, regulations, guidelines and
procedures for carrying out the provisions and purposes of the Plan and make
such other determinations, not inconsistent with the Plan, as the
Committee
may deem appropriate. The Committee’s interpretation of the Plan, any
Awards granted under the Plan, any Award Certificate and all decisions and
determinations by the Committee with respect to the Plan are final, binding, and
conclusive on all parties. Each member of the Committee is entitled
to, in good faith, rely or act upon any report or other information furnished to
that member by any officer or other employee of the Company or any Affiliate,
the Company’s or an Affiliate’s independent certified public accountants,
Company counsel or any executive compensation consultant or other professional
retained by the Company to assist in the administration of the
Plan.
4.3.
AUTHORITY OF
COMMITTEE
. Except as provided below, the Committee has the
exclusive power, authority and discretion to:
(b)
Designate
Participants;
(c) Determine
the type or types of Awards to be granted to each Participant;
(d) Determine
the number of Awards to be granted and the number of Shares or dollar amount to
which an Award will relate;
(e) Determine
the terms and conditions of any Award granted under the Plan, including but not
limited to, the exercise price, base price, or purchase price, any restrictions
or limitations on the Award, any schedule for lapse of forfeiture restrictions
or restrictions on the exercisability of an Award, and accelerations or waivers
thereof, based in each case on such considerations as the Committee in its sole
discretion determines;
(f) Accelerate
the vesting, exercisability or lapse of restrictions of any outstanding Award,
in accordance with Article 14, based in each case on such considerations as the
Committee in its sole discretion determines;
(g) Determine
whether, to what extent, and under what circumstances an Award may be settled
in, or the exercise price of an Award may be paid in, cash, Stock, other Awards,
or other property, or an Award may be canceled, forfeited, or
surrendered;
(h) Prescribe
the form of each Award Certificate, which need not be identical for each
Participant;
(i) Decide
all other matters that must be determined in connection with an
Award;
(j) Establish,
adopt or revise any rules, regulations, guidelines or procedures as it may deem
necessary or advisable to administer the Plan;
(k) Make
all other decisions and determinations that may be required under the Plan or as
the Committee deems necessary or advisable to administer the Plan;
(l) Amend
the Plan or any Award Certificate as provided herein; and
(m) Adopt
such modifications, procedures, and subplans as may be necessary or desirable to
comply with provisions of the laws of non-U.S. jurisdictions in which the
Company or any Affiliate may operate, in order to assure the viability of the
benefits of Awards granted to participants located in such other jurisdictions
and to meet the objectives of the Plan.
Notwithstanding
the foregoing, grants of Awards to Non-Employee Directors hereunder shall be
made only in accordance with the terms, conditions and parameters of a plan,
program or policy for the compensation of Non-Employee Directors as in effect
from time to time, and the Committee may not make discretionary grants hereunder
to Non-Employee Directors.
Notwithstanding
the above, the Board or the Committee may, by resolution, expressly delegate to
a special committee, consisting of one or more directors who are also officers
of the Company, the authority, within specified parameters, to (i) designate
officers, employees and/or consultants of the Company or any of its Affiliates
to be recipients of Awards under the Plan, and (ii) to determine the number of
such Awards to be received by any such Participants; provided, however, that
such delegation of duties and responsibilities to an officer of the Company may
not be made with respect to the grant of Awards to eligible participants (a) who
are subject to Section 16(a) of the 1934 Act at the Grant Date, or (b) who as of
the Grant Date are reasonably anticipated to be become Covered Employees during
the term of the Award. The acts of such delegates shall be treated
hereunder as acts of the Board and such delegates shall report regularly to the
Board and the Compensation Committee regarding the delegated duties and
responsibilities and any Awards so granted.
4.4.
AWARD
CERTIFICATES
. Each Award shall be evidenced by an Award
Certificate. Each Award Certificate shall include such provisions,
not inconsistent with the Plan, as may be specified by the
Committee.
ARTICLE
5
SHARES
SUBJECT TO THE PLAN
5.1.
NUMBER OF
SHARES
. Subject to adjustment as provided in Sections 5.2 and
15.1, the aggregate number of Shares reserved and available for issuance
pursuant to Awards granted under the Plan shall be 26,000,000; provided,
however, that each Share issued under the Plan pursuant to a Full Value Award
shall reduce the number of available Shares by two (2) shares. The
maximum number of Shares that may be issued upon exercise of Incentive Stock
Options granted under the Plan shall be 2,000,000.
5.2.
SHARE
COUNTING
.
(a) To
the extent that an Award is canceled, terminates, expires, is forfeited or
lapses for any reason, any unissued Shares subject to the Award will again be
available for issuance pursuant to Awards granted under the Plan.
(b) Shares
subject to Awards settled in cash will again be available for issuance pursuant
to Awards granted under the Plan.
(c) If
the exercise price of an Option is satisfied by delivering Shares to the Company
(by either actual delivery or attestation), only the number of Shares issued in
excess of the delivery or attestation (less any shares delivered by the optionee
to satisfy an applicable tax withholding obligation) shall be considered for
purposes of determining the number of Shares remaining available for issuance
pursuant to Awards granted under the Plan.
(d) To
the extent that the full number of Shares subject to an Option is not issued
upon exercise of the Option for any reason, only the number of Shares issued and
delivered upon exercise of the Option shall be considered for purposes of
determining the number of Shares remaining available for issuance pursuant to
Awards granted under the Plan. Nothing in this subsection shall imply
that any particular type of cashless exercise of an Option is permitted under
the Plan, that decision being reserved to the Committee or other provisions of
the Plan.
5.3.
STOCK
DISTRIBUTED
. Any Stock distributed pursuant to an Award may
consist, in whole or in part, of authorized and unissued Stock, treasury Stock
or Stock purchased on the open market.
5.4.
LIMITATION ON
AWARDS
. Notwithstanding any provision in the Plan to the
contrary (but subject to adjustment as provided in Section 15.1), the maximum
number of Shares with respect to one or more Options and/or SARs that may be
granted during any one calendar year under the Plan to any one Participant shall
be 2,000,000. The maximum aggregate grant with respect to Awards of
Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, Deferred Stock Units, Performance
Shares or other Stock-Based Awards (other than Options or SARs) granted in any
one calendar year to any one Participant shall be 2,000,000.
ARTICLE
6
ELIGIBILITY
6.1.
GENERAL
. Awards
may be granted only to Eligible Participants; except that Incentive Stock
Options may be granted to only to Eligible Participants who are employees of the
Company or a Parent or Subsidiary as defined in Section 424(e) and (f) of the
Code. Eligible Participants who are service providers to an Affiliate
may be granted Options or SARs under this Plan only if the Affiliate qualifies
as an “eligible issuer of service recipient stock” within the meaning of
§1.409A-1(b)(5)(iii)(E) of the final regulations under Code Section
409A.
ARTICLE
7
STOCK
OPTIONS
7.1.
GENERAL
. The
Committee is authorized to grant Options to Participants on the following terms
and conditions:
(a)
EXERCISE
PRICE
. The exercise price per Share under an Option shall be
determined by the Committee; provided that the exercise price for any Option
shall not be less than the Fair Market Value as of the Grant Date.
(b)
TIME AND CONDITIONS OF
EXERCISE
. The Committee shall determine the time or times at
which an Option may be exercised in whole or in part, subject to Section
7.1(d). The Committee shall also determine the performance or other
conditions, if any, that must be satisfied before all or part of an Option may
be exercised or vested. The Committee may waive any exercise or
vesting provisions at any time in whole or in part based upon factors as the
Committee may determine in its sole discretion so that the Option becomes
exercisable or vested at an earlier date. The Committee may permit an
arrangement whereby receipt of Stock upon exercise of an Option is delayed until
a specified future date.
(c)
PAYMENT
. The
Committee shall determine the methods by which the exercise price of an Option
may be paid, the form of payment, including, without limitation, cash, Shares,
or other property (including “cashless exercise” arrangements), and the methods
by which Shares shall be delivered or deemed to be delivered to Participants;
provided, however, that if Shares are used to pay the exercise price of an
Option, such Shares must have been held by the Participant for at least such
period of time, if any, as necessary to avoid the recognition of an expense
under generally accepted accounting principles as a result of the exercise of
the Option.
(d)
EXERCISE
TERM
. In no event may any Option be exercisable for more than
ten years from the Grant Date.
(e)
SUSPENSION
.
Any Participant
who is also a participant in the Retirement at Micron ("RAM")
Section 401(k) Plan and who requests and receives a hardship distribution
from the RAM Plan, is prohibited from making, and must suspend, his or her
employee elective contributions and employee contributions including, without
limitation on the foregoing, the exercise of any Option granted from the date of
receipt by that employee of the RAM hardship distribution.
7.2.
INCENTIVE STOCK
OPTIONS
. The terms of any Incentive Stock Options granted
under the Plan must comply with the following additional rules:
(a)
EXERCISE
PRICE
. The exercise price of an Incentive Stock Option shall
not be less than the Fair Market Value as of the Grant Date.
(b)
LAPSE OF
OPTION
. Subject to any earlier termination provision contained
in the Award Certificate, an Incentive Stock Option shall lapse upon the
earliest of the following circumstances; provided, however, that the Committee
may, prior to the lapse of the Incentive Stock Option under the circumstances
described in subsections (3), (4) or (5) below, provide in writing that the
Option will extend
until a
later date, but if an Option is so extended and is exercised after the dates
specified in subsections (3) and (4) below, it will automatically become a
Nonstatutory Stock Option:
(1) The
expiration date set forth in the Award Certificate.
(2) The
tenth anniversary of the Grant Date.
(3) Three
months after termination of the Participant’s Continuous Status as a Participant
for any reason other than the Participant’s Disability or death.
(4) One
year after the Participant’s Continuous Status as a Participant by reason of the
Participant’s Disability.
(5) One
year after the termination of the Participant’s death if the Participant dies
while employed, or during the three-month period described in paragraph (3) or
during the one-year period described in paragraph (4) and before the Option
otherwise lapses.
Unless
the exercisability of the Incentive Stock Option is accelerated as provided in
Article 14, if a Participant exercises an Option after termination of
employment, the Option may be exercised only with respect to the Shares that
were otherwise vested on the Participant’s termination of
employment. Upon the Participant’s death, any exercisable Incentive
Stock Options may be exercised by the Participant’s beneficiary, determined in
accordance with Section 14.5.
(c)
INDIVIDUAL DOLLAR
LIMITATION
. The aggregate Fair Market Value (determined as of
the Grant Date) of all Shares with respect to which Incentive Stock Options are
first exercisable by a Participant in any calendar year may not exceed
$100,000.00.
(d)
TEN PERCENT
OWNERS
. No Incentive Stock Option shall be granted to any
individual who, at the Grant Date, owns stock possessing more than ten percent
of the total combined voting power of all classes of stock of the Company or any
Parent or Subsidiary unless the exercise price per share of such Option is at
least 110% of the Fair Market Value per Share at the Grant Date and the Option
expires no later than five years after the Grant Date.
(e)
EXPIRATION OF AUTHORITY TO
GRANT INCENTIVE STOCK OPTIONS
. No Incentive Stock Option may
be granted pursuant to the Plan after the day immediately prior to the tenth
anniversary of the date the Plan was adopted by the Board, or the termination of
the Plan, if earlier.
(f)
RIGHT TO
EXERCISE
. During a Participant’s lifetime, an Incentive Stock
Option may be exercised only by the Participant or, in the case of the
Participant’s Disability, by the Participant’s guardian or legal
representative.
(g)
ELIGIBLE
GRANTEES
. The Committee may not grant an Incentive Stock
Option to a person who is not at the Grant Date an employee of the Company or a
Parent or Subsidiary.
ARTICLE
8
STOCK
APPRECIATION RIGHTS
8.1.
GRANT OF
STOCK APPRECIATION
RIGHTS
. The Committee is authorized to grant Stock
Appreciation Rights to Participants on the following terms and
conditions:
(a)
RIGHT TO
PAYMENT
. Upon the exercise of a Stock Appreciation Right, the
Participant to whom it is granted has the right to receive the excess, if any,
of:
(1) The
Fair Market Value of one Share on the date of exercise; over
(2) The
base price of the Stock Appreciation Right as determined by the Committee, which
shall not be less than the Fair Market Value of one Share on the Grant
Date.
(b)
OTHER
TERMS
. All awards of Stock Appreciation Rights shall be
evidenced by an Award Certificate. The terms, methods of exercise,
methods of settlement, form of consideration payable in settlement, and any
other terms and conditions of any Stock Appreciation Right shall be determined
by the Committee at the time of the grant of the Award and shall be reflected in
the Award Certificate.
ARTICLE
9
PERFORMANCE
SHARES
9.1.
GRANT OF PERFORMANCE
SHARES
. The Committee is authorized to grant Performance
Shares to Participants on such terms and conditions as may be selected by the
Committee. The Committee shall have the complete discretion to
determine the number of Performance Shares granted to each Participant, subject
to Section 5.4, and to designate the provisions of such Performance Shares as
provided in Section 4.3. All Performance Shares shall be evidenced by
an Award Certificate or a written program established by the Committee, pursuant
to which Performance Shares are awarded under the Plan under uniform terms,
conditions and restrictions set forth in such written program.
9.2.
PERFORMANCE
GOALS.
The Committee may establish performance goals for
Performance Shares which may be based on any criteria selected by the
Committee. Such performance goals may be described in terms of
Company-wide objectives or in terms of objectives that relate to the performance
of the Participant, an Affiliate or a division, region, department or function
within the Company or an Affiliate. If the Committee determines that
a change in the business, operations, corporate structure or capital structure
of the Company or the manner in which the Company or an Affiliate conducts its
business, or other events or circumstances render performance goals to be
unsuitable, the Committee may modify such performance goals in whole or in part,
as the Committee deems appropriate. If a Participant is promoted,
demoted or transferred to a different business unit or function during a
performance period, the Committee may determine that the performance goals or
performance period are no longer appropriate and may (i) adjust, change or
eliminate the performance goals or the applicable performance period as it deems
appropriate to make such goals and period comparable to the initial goals and
period, or (ii) make a cash payment to the participant in amount determined by
the Committee. The foregoing two sentences shall not apply with
respect to an Award of Performance Shares that is intended to be a Qualified
Performance-Based Award.
9.3.
RIGHT TO
PAYMENT
. The grant of a Performance Share to a Participant
will entitle the Participant to receive at a specified later time a specified
number of Shares, or the equivalent value in cash or other property, if the
performance goals established by the Committee are achieved and the other terms
and conditions thereof are satisfied. The Committee shall set
performance goals and other terms or conditions to payment of the Performance
Shares in its discretion which, depending on the extent to which they are met,
will determine the number of the Performance Shares that will be earned by the
Participant.
9.4.
OTHER
TERMS
. Performance Shares may be payable in cash, Stock, or
other property, and have such other terms and conditions as determined by the
Committee and reflected in the Award Certificate.
ARTICLE
10
RESTRICTED
STOCK AND RESTRICTED STOCK UNIT AWARDS
10.1.
GRANT OF RESTRICTED STOCK
AND RESTRICTED STOCK UNITS
. Subject to the terms and
conditions of this Article 10, the Committee is authorized to make Awards of
Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units to Participants in such amounts and
subject to such terms and conditions as may be selected by the
Committee. An Award of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units
shall be evidenced by an Award Certificate setting forth the terms, conditions,
and restrictions applicable to the Award.
10.2.
ISSUANCE AND
RESTRICTIONS
. Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units shall
be subject to such restrictions on transferability and other restrictions as the
Committee may impose (including, without
limitation,
limitations on the right to vote Restricted Stock or the right to receive
dividends on the Restricted Stock); provided, however, at a minimum, all
Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units shall be subject to the restrictions
set forth in Section 14.4 for a period of no less than (a) one year from the
date of award with respect to Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units subject
to restrictions that lapse based upon satisfaction of performance goals, and (b)
three years from the date of award with respect to Restricted Stock or
Restricted Stock Units subject to time-based restrictions that lapse based upon
one’s Continuous Status as a Participant. For avoidance of doubt,
nothing in the foregoing shall preclude any applicable restriction, including
those set forth in Section 14.4 hereof, from lapsing ratably, including, but not
limited to, roughly annual increments over three years, with respect to the
Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units referred to in Section
10.2(b). Moreover, nothing in the foregoing shall preclude or be
interpreted to preclude Awards to Non-employee Directors from containing a
period of restriction shorter than that set forth above. Finally,
nothing in this Section 10.2 shall be deemed or interpreted to preclude the
waiver, lapse or the acceleration of lapse, of any restrictions with respect to
Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units in accordance with or as permitted by
Sections 14.7 through Section 14.9, respectively, Article 15 or any other
provision of the Plan. Subject to the remaining terms and conditions
of the Plan, these restrictions may lapse separately or in combination at such
times, under such circumstances, in such installments, upon the satisfaction of
performance goals or otherwise, as the Committee determines at the time of the
grant of the Award or thereafter. Except as otherwise provided in an
Award Certificate or any special Plan document governing an Award, the
Participant shall have all of the rights of a stockholder with respect to the
Restricted Stock, and the Participant shall have none of the rights of a
stockholder with respect to Restricted Stock Units until such time as Shares of
Stock are paid in settlement of the Restricted Stock Units.
10.3.
FORFEITURE
. Except
as otherwise determined by the Committee at the time of the grant of the Award
or thereafter, upon termination of Continuous Status as a Participant during the
applicable restriction period or upon failure to satisfy a performance goal
during the applicable restriction period, Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock
Units that are at that time subject to restrictions shall be forfeited;
provided, however, that the Committee may provide in any Award Certificate,
subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan, that restrictions or forfeiture
conditions relating to Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units will be waived
in whole or in part in the event of terminations resulting from specified
causes, including, but not limited to, death, Disability, or for the
convenience or in the best interests of the Company.
10.4.
DELIVERY OF RESTRICTED
STOCK
. Shares of Restricted Stock shall be delivered to the
Participant at the time of grant either by book-entry registration or by
delivering to the Participant, or a custodian or escrow agent (including,
without limitation, the Company or one or more of its employees) designated by
the Committee, a stock certificate or certificates registered in the name of the
Participant. If physical certificates representing shares of
Restricted Stock are registered in the name of the Participant, such
certificates must bear an appropriate legend referring to the terms, conditions,
and restrictions applicable to such Restricted Stock.
ARTICLE
11
DEFERRED
STOCK UNITS
11.1.
GRANT OF DEFERRED STOCK
UNITS
. The Committee is authorized to grant Deferred Stock
Units to Participants subject to such terms and conditions as may be selected by
the Committee. Deferred Stock Units shall entitle the Participant to
receive Shares of Stock (or the equivalent value in cash or other property if so
determined by the Committee) at a future time as determined by the Committee, or
as determined by the Participant within guidelines established by the Committee
in the case of voluntary deferral elections. An Award of Deferred
Stock Units shall be evidenced by an Award Certificate setting forth the terms
and conditions applicable to the Award.
ARTICLE
12
DIVIDEND
EQUIVALENTS
12.1.
GRANT OF DIVIDEND
EQUIVALENTS
. The Committee is authorized to grant Dividend
Equivalents to Participants subject to such terms and conditions as may be
selected by the Committee. Dividend Equivalents shall entitle the
Participant to receive payments equal to dividends with respect to all or a
portion of the number of Shares subject to an Award, as determined by the
Committee. The Committee may provide that Dividend Equivalents be
paid or distributed when accrued or be deemed to have been reinvested in
additional
Shares,
or otherwise reinvested. Unless otherwise provided in the applicable Award
Certificate, Dividend Equivalents will be paid or distributed no later than the
15th day of the 3rd month following the later of (i) the calendar year in
which the corresponding dividends were paid to shareholders, or (ii) the
first calendar year in which the Participant's right to such Dividends
Equivalents is no longer subject to a substantial risk of
forfeiture.
ARTICLE
13
STOCK
OR OTHER STOCK-BASED AWARDS
13.1.
GRANT OF STOCK OR OTHER
STOCK-BASED AWARDS
. The Committee is authorized, subject to
limitations under applicable law, to grant to Participants such other Awards
that are payable in, valued in whole or in part by reference to, or otherwise
based on or related to Shares, as deemed by the Committee to be consistent with
the purposes of the Plan, including without limitation Shares awarded purely as
a “bonus” and not subject to any restrictions or conditions, convertible or
exchangeable debt securities, other rights convertible or exchangeable into
Shares, and Awards valued by reference to book value of Shares or the value of
securities of or the performance of specified Parents or
Subsidiaries. The Committee shall determine the terms and conditions
of such Awards.
ARTICLE
14
PROVISIONS
APPLICABLE TO AWARDS
14.1.
STAND-ALONE AND TANDEM
AWARDS
. Awards granted under the Plan may, in the discretion
of the Committee, be granted either alone or in addition to, in tandem with, any
other Award granted under the Plan. Subject to Section 16.2, awards
granted in addition to or in tandem with other Awards may be granted either at
the same time as or at a different time from the grant of such other
Awards.
14.2.
TERM OF
AWARD
. The term of each Award shall be for the period as
determined by the Committee, provided that in no event shall the term of any
Incentive Stock Option or a Stock Appreciation Right granted in tandem with the
Incentive Stock Option exceed a period of ten years from its Grant Date (or, if
Section 7.2(d) applies, five years from its Grant Date).
14.3.
FORM OF PAYMENT FOR
AWARDS
. Subject to the terms of the Plan and any applicable
law or Award Certificate, payments or transfers to be made by the Company or an
Affiliate on the grant or exercise of an Award may be made in such form as the
Committee determines at or after the Grant Date, including without limitation,
cash, Stock, other Awards, or other property, or any combination, and may be
made in a single payment or transfer, in installments, or (except with respect
to Options or SARs) on a deferred basis, in each case determined in accordance
with rules adopted by, and at the discretion of, the Committee.
14.4.
LIMITS ON
TRANSFER
. No right or interest of a Participant in any
unexercised or restricted Award may be pledged, encumbered, or hypothecated to
or in favor of any party other than the Company or an Affiliate, or shall be
subject to any lien, obligation, or liability of such Participant to any other
party other than the Company or an Affiliate. No unexercised or
restricted Award shall be assignable or transferable by a Participant other than
by will or the laws of descent and distribution or, except in the case of an
Incentive Stock Option, pursuant to a domestic relations order that would
satisfy Section 414(p)(1)(A) of the Code if such Section applied to an Award
under the Plan; provided, however, that the Committee may (but need not) permit
other transfers where the Committee concludes that such transferability (i) does
not result in accelerated taxation, (ii) does not cause any Option intended to
be an Incentive Stock Option to fail to be described in Code Section 422(b), and
(iii) is otherwise appropriate and desirable, taking into account any factors
deemed relevant, including without limitation, state or federal tax or
securities laws applicable to transferable Awards.
14.5.
BENEFICIARIES
. Notwithstanding
Section 14.4, a Participant may, in the manner determined by the Committee,
designate a beneficiary to exercise the rights of the Participant and to receive
any distribution with respect to any Award upon the Participant’s
death. A beneficiary, legal guardian, legal representative, or other
person claiming any rights under the Plan is subject to all terms and conditions
of the Plan and any Award Certificate applicable to the Participant, except to
the extent the Plan and Award Certificate otherwise provide, and to any
additional restrictions deemed necessary or appropriate by the
Committee. If no beneficiary has been
designated
or survives the Participant, payment shall be made to the Participant’s
estate. Subject to the foregoing, a beneficiary designation may be
changed or revoked by a Participant at any time provided the change or
revocation is filed with the Committee.
14.6.
STOCK
CERTIFICATES
. All Stock issuable under the Plan is subject to
any stop-transfer orders and other restrictions as the Committee deems necessary
or advisable to comply with federal or state securities laws, rules and
regulations and the rules of any national securities exchange or automated
quotation system on which the Stock is listed, quoted, or traded. The
Committee may place legends on any Stock certificate or issue instructions to
the transfer agent to reference restrictions applicable to the
Stock.
14.7.
ACCELERATION UPON A CHANGE
IN CONTROL
. Except as otherwise provided in the Award
Certificate or any special Plan document governing an Award, upon the occurrence
of a Change in Control, all outstanding Options, SARs, and other Awards in the
nature of rights that may be exercised shall become fully exercisable, and all
time-based vesting restrictions on outstanding Awards shall
lapse. Except as otherwise provided in the Award Certificate or any
special Plan document governing an Award, upon the occurrence of a Change in
Control, the target payout opportunities attainable under all outstanding
performance-based Awards shall be deemed to have been fully earned as of the
effective date of the Change in Control based upon an assumed achievement of all
relevant performance goals at the “target” level and there shall be prorata
payout to Participants within thirty (30) days following the effective date of
the Change in Control based upon the length of time within the performance
period that has elapsed prior to the Change in Control.
14.8
ACCELERATION UPON DEATH OR
DISABILITY
. Except as otherwise provided in the Award
Certificate or any special Plan document governing an Award, upon the
Participant’s death or Disability during his or her Continuous Status as a
Participant, (i) all of such Participant’s outstanding Options, SARs, and other
Awards in the nature of rights that may be exercised shall become fully
exercisable, (ii) all time-based vesting restrictions on the Participant’s
outstanding Awards shall lapse, and (iii) the target payout opportunities
attainable under all of such Participant’s outstanding performance-based Awards
shall be deemed to have been fully earned as of the date of termination based
upon an assumed achievement of all relevant performance goals at the “target”
level and there shall be a prorata payout to the Participant or his or her
estate within thirty (30) days following the date of termination based upon the
length of time within the performance period that has elapsed prior to the date
of termination. Any Awards shall thereafter continue or lapse in
accordance with the other provisions of the Plan and the Awards
Certificate. To the extent that this provision causes Incentive Stock
Options to exceed the dollar limitation set forth in Section 7.2(c), the excess
Options shall be deemed to be Nonstatutory Stock Options.
14.9.
ACCELERATION FOR ANY OTHER
REASON
. Regardless of whether an event has occurred as
described in Section 14.7 or 14.8 above, and subject to Section 14.11 as to
Qualified Performance-Based Awards, the Committee may in its sole discretion at
any time determine that all or a portion of a Participant’s Options, SARs, and
other Awards in the nature of rights that may be exercised shall become fully or
partially exercisable, that all or a part of the time-based vesting restrictions
on all or a portion of the outstanding Awards shall lapse, and/or that any
performance-based criteria with respect to any Awards shall be deemed to be
wholly or partially satisfied, in each case, as of such date as the Committee
may, in its sole discretion, declare; provided, however, the Committee shall not
exercise such discretion with respect to Full Value Awards comprised of Shares
of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units which, in the aggregate, exceed
five percent (5%) of the aggregate number of Shares reserved and available for
issuance pursuant to Awards granted under the Plan; provided, further, that when
calculating whether the five percent (5%) maximum has been reached, the
Committee shall not count or consider any Shares of Restricted Stock or
Restricted Stock Units granted to Non-Employee Directors or regarding which the
Committee accelerated vesting rights, waived restrictions or determined
performance-based criteria had been satisfied resulting from an event described
in Section 14.7, 24.8. Article 15, a Participant’s termination of employment or
separation from service resulting from death, Disability or for the convenience
or in the bests interests of the Company. The Committee may
discriminate among Participants and among Awards granted to a Participant in
exercising its discretion pursuant to this Section 14.9.
14.10.
EFFECT OF
ACCELERATION
. If an Award is accelerated under Section 14.7,
Section 14.8 or Section 14.9, the Committee may, in its sole discretion, provide
(i) that the Award will expire after a designated period of time after such
acceleration to the extent not then exercised, (ii) that the Award will be
settled in cash rather than Stock, (iii) that the Award will be assumed by
another party to a transaction giving rise to the
acceleration
or otherwise be equitably converted or substituted in connection with such
transaction, (iv) that the Award may be settled by payment in cash or cash
equivalents equal to the excess of the Fair Market Value of the underlying
Stock, as of a specified date associated with the transaction, over the exercise
price of the Award, or (v) any combination of the foregoing. The
Committee’s determination need not be uniform and may be different for different
Participants whether or not such Participants are similarly
situated. To the extent that such acceleration causes Incentive Stock
Options to exceed the dollar limitation set forth in Section 7.2(c), the excess
Options shall be deemed to be Nonstatutory Stock Options.
14.11.
QUALIFIED PERFORMANCE-BASED
AWARDS
.
(a) The
provisions of the Plan are intended to ensure that all Options and Stock
Appreciation Rights granted hereunder to any Covered Employee shall qualify for
the Section 162(m) Exemption; provided that the exercise or base price of such
Award is not less than the Fair Market Value of the Shares on the Grant
Date.
(b) When
granting any other Award, the Committee may designate such Award as a Qualified
Performance-Based Award, based upon a determination that the recipient is or may
be a Covered Employee with respect to such Award, and the Committee wishes such
Award to qualify for the Section 162(m) Exemption. If an Award is so
designated, the Committee shall establish performance goals for such Award
within the time period prescribed by Section 162(m) of the Code based on one or
more of the following Qualified Business Criteria, which may be expressed in
terms of Company-wide objectives or in terms of objectives that relate to the
performance of an Affiliate or a unit, division, region, department or function
within the Company or an Affiliate:
•
Gross
and/or net revenue (including whether in the aggregate or attributable to
specific products)
•
Cost of Goods Sold and Gross Margin
•
Costs and
expenses, including Research & Development and Selling, General &
Administrative
•
Income (gross, operating, net, etc.)
•
Earnings,
including before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (whether in the
aggregate or on a per share basis
•
Cash flows and share price
•
Return on investment, capital, equity
•
Manufacturing
efficiency (including yield enhancement and cycle time reductions), quality
improvements and customer satisfaction
•
Product
life cycle management (including product and technology design, development,
transfer, manufacturing introduction, and sales price optimization and
management)
•
Economic profit or loss
•
Market share
•
Employee
retention, compensation, training and development, including succession
planning
•
Objective
goals consistent with the Participant’s specific officer duties and
responsibilities, designed to further the financial, operational and other
business interests of the Company, including goals and objectives with respect
to regulatory compliance matters.
Performance
goals with respect to the foregoing Qualified Business Criteria may be specified
in absolute terms (including completion of pre-established projects, such as the
introduction of specified products), in percentages, or in terms of growth from
period to period or growth rates over time as well as measured relative to an
established or specially-created performance index of Company competitors, peers
or other members of high tech industries. Any member of an index that
disappears during a measurement period shall be disregarded for the entire
measurement period. Performance Goals need not be based upon an
increase or positive result under a business criterion and could include, for
example, the maintenance of the status quo or the limitation of economic losses
(measured, in each case, by reference to a specific business
criterion).
(c) Each
Qualified Performance-Based Award (other than an Option or SAR) shall be earned,
vested and payable (as applicable) only upon the achievement of performance
goals established by the Committee based upon one or more of the Qualified
Business Criteria, together with the satisfaction of any other conditions,
including the condition as to continued employment as set forth in subsection
(g) below, as the Committee may determine to be appropriate; provided, however,
that the Committee may provide, in its sole and absolute discretion, either in
connection with the grant thereof or by amendment thereafter, that achievement
of such performance goals will be waived upon the death or Disability of the
Participant, or upon a Change in Control. Performance periods established by the
Committee for any such Qualified Performance-Based Award may be as short as
ninety (90) days and may be any longer period.
(d) The
Committee may provide in any Qualified Performance-Based Award that any
evaluation of performance may include or exclude any of the following events
that occurs during a performance period: (a) asset write-downs or impairment
charges; (b) litigation or claim judgments or settlements; (c) the effect of
changes in tax laws, accounting principles or other laws or provisions affecting
reported results; (d) accruals for reorganization and restructuring programs;
(e) extraordinary nonrecurring items as described in Accounting Principles Board
Opinion No. 30 and/or in management’s discussion and analysis of financial
condition and results of operations appearing in the Company’s annual report to
stockholders for the applicable year; (f) acquisitions or divestitures; and (g)
foreign exchange gains and losses. To the extent such inclusions or exclusions
affect Awards to Covered Employees, they shall be prescribed in a form and at a
time that meets the requirements of Code Section 162(m) for
deductibility.
(e) Any
payment of a Qualified Performance-Based Award granted with performance goals
pursuant to subsection (c) above shall be conditioned on the written
certification of the Committee in each case that the performance goals and any
other material conditions were satisfied. Written certification may take the
form of a Committee resolution passed by a majority of the Committee at a
properly convened meeting or through unanimous action by the Committee via
action by written consent. The certification requirement also may be
satisfied by a separate writing executed by the Chairman of the Committee,
acting in his capacity as such, following the foregoing Committee action or by
the Chairman executing approved minutes of the Committee in which such
determinations were made. Except as specifically provided in
subsection (c), no Qualified Performance-Based Award held by a Covered Employee
or an employee who in the reasonable judgment of the Committee may be a Covered
Employee on the date of payment, may be amended, nor may the Committee exercise
any discretionary authority it may otherwise have under the Plan with respect to
a Qualified Performance-Based Award under the Plan, in any manner to waive the
achievement of the applicable performance goal based on Qualified Business
Criteria or to increase the amount payable pursuant thereto or the value
thereof, or otherwise in a manner that would cause the Qualified
Performance-Based Award to cease to qualify for the Section 162(m)
Exemption.
(f) Section
5.4 sets forth the maximum number of Shares or dollar value that may be granted
in any one-year period to a Participant in designated forms of Qualified
Performance-Based Awards.
(g) With
respect to a Participant who is an officer of the Company, any payment of a
Qualified Performance-Based Award granted with performance goals pursuant to
subsection (c) above shall be conditioned on the officer having remained
continuously employed by the Company or an Affiliate for the entire performance
or measurement period, including, as well, through the date of determination and
certification of the payment of any such Award pursuant to subsection (e) above
(the “Certification Date”). For purposes of the Plan, with respect to
any given performance or measurement period, an officer of the Company who (i)
terminates employment (regardless of cause) or who otherwise ceases to be an
officer, prior to the Certification Date and (ii) who, pursuant to a separate
contractual arrangement with the Company is entitled to receive payments from
the Company thereunder extending to or beyond such Certification Date as a
result of such termination or cessation in officer status, shall be deemed to
have been employed by the Company as an officer through the Certification Date
for purposes of payment eligibility.
14.12.
TERMINATION OF
EMPLOYMENT
. Whether military, government or other service or
other leave of absence shall constitute a termination of employment shall be
determined in each case by the Committee at its discretion, and any
determination by the Committee shall be final and conclusive. A
Participant’s Continuous
Status as
a Participant shall not be deemed to terminate (i) in a circumstance in which a
Participant transfers from the Company to an Affiliate, transfers from an
Affiliate to the Company, or transfers from one Affiliate to another Affiliate,
or (ii) in the discretion of the Committee as specified at or prior to such
occurrence, in the case of a spin-off, sale or disposition of the Participant’s
employer from the Company or any Affiliate. To the extent that this
provision causes Incentive Stock Options to extend beyond three months from the
date a Participant is deemed to be an employee of the Company, a Parent or
Subsidiary for purposes of Sections 424(e) and 424(f) of the Code, the Options
held by such Participant shall be deemed to be Nonstatutory Stock
Options.
14.13.
DEFERRAL
. Subject
to applicable law, the Committee may permit or require a Participant to defer
such Participant’s receipt of the payment of cash or the delivery of Shares that
would otherwise be due to such Participant by virtue of the exercise of an
Option or SAR, the lapse or waiver of restrictions with respect to Restricted
Stock or Restricted Stock Units, or the satisfaction of any requirements or
goals with respect to Performance Shares, and Other Stock-Based Awards. If any
such deferral election is required or permitted, the Board shall, in its sole
discretion, establish rules and procedures for such payment deferrals in
compliance with Section 409A of the Code and other applicable law.
14.14.
FORFEITURE
EVENTS
. The Committee may specify in an Award Certificate that
the Participant’s rights, payments and benefits with respect to an Award shall
be subject to reduction, cancellation, forfeiture or recoupment upon the
occurrence of certain specified events, in addition to any otherwise applicable
vesting or performance conditions of an Award. Such events shall include, but
shall not be limited to, termination of employment for cause, violation of
material Company or Affiliate policies, breach of noncompetition,
confidentiality or other restrictive covenants that may apply to the
Participant, or other conduct by the Participant that is detrimental to the
business or reputation of the Company or any Affiliate.
14.15.
SUBSTITUTE
AWARDS
. The Committee may grant Awards under the Plan in
substitution for stock and stock-based awards held by employees of another
entity who become employees of the Company or an Affiliate as a result of a
merger or consolidation of the former employing entity with the Company or an
Affiliate or the acquisition by the Company or an Affiliate of property or stock
of the former employing corporation. The Committee may direct that
the substitute awards be granted on such terms and conditions as the Committee
considers appropriate in the circumstances.
ARTICLE
15
CHANGES
IN CAPITAL STRUCTURE
15.1.
MANDATORY
ADJUSTMENTS
. Subject to any required action by the
shareholders of the Company, the number of shares of Common Stock covered by
each outstanding Award, and the number of issued shares of Common Stock which
have been authorized for issuance under the Plan but as to which no Awards have
yet been granted or which have been returned to the Plan upon cancellation or
expiration of an Award, as well as the price per share of Common Stock covered
by each such outstanding Award, shall be proportionately adjusted for any
increase or decrease in the number of issued shares of Common Stock resulting
from a stock split, reverse stock split, stock dividend, combination or
reclassification of the Common Stock or any other increase or decrease in the
number of shares of Common Stock effected without receipt of consideration by
the Company; provided, however, that conversion of any convertible securities of
the Company shall not be deemed to have been “effected without receipt of
consideration.” Such adjustment shall be made by the Board, whose
determination in that respect shall be final, binding, and
conclusive. Without limiting the foregoing, in the event of a
subdivision of the outstanding Stock (stock-split), a declaration of a dividend
payable in Shares, or a combination or consolidation of the outstanding Stock
into a lesser number of Shares, the authorization limits under Section 5.1 and
5.4 shall automatically be adjusted proportionately, and the Shares then subject
to each Award shall automatically be adjusted proportionately without any change
in the aggregate purchase price therefor. To the extent that any
adjustments made pursuant to this Article 15 cause Incentive Stock Options to
cease to qualify as Incentive Stock Options, such Options shall be deemed to be
Nonstatutory Stock Options.
15.2
DISCRETIONARY
ADJUSTMENTS
. Upon the occurrence or in anticipation of any
corporate event or transaction involving the Company (including, without
limitation, any merger, reorganization, recapitalization or combination or
exchange of shares or any transaction described in Section 15.1), the Committee
may, in its sole discretion, provide (i) that Awards will be settled in cash
rather than Stock, (ii) that Awards will
become
immediately vested and exercisable and will expire after a designated period of
time to the extent not then exercised, (iii) that Awards will be assumed by
another party to a transaction or otherwise be equitably converted or
substituted in connection with such transaction, (iv) that outstanding Awards
may be settled by payment in cash or cash equivalents equal to the excess of the
Fair Market Value of the underlying Stock, as of a specified date associated
with the transaction, over the exercise price of the Award, (v) that applicable
performance targets and performance periods for Awards will be modified,
consistent with Code Section 162(m) where applicable, or (vi) any combination of
the foregoing. The Committee’s determination need not be uniform and
may be different for different Participants whether or not such Participants are
similarly situated.
15.3
GENERAL
. Any
discretionary adjustments made pursuant to this Article 15 shall be subject to
the provisions of Article 16. To the extent that any adjustments made
pursuant to this Article 15 cause Incentive Stock Options to cease to qualify as
Incentive Stock Options, such Options shall be deemed to be Nonstatutory Stock
Options.
ARTICLE
16
AMENDMENT,
MODIFICATION AND TERMINATION
16.1.
AMENDMENT, MODIFICATION AND
TERMINATION
. The Board or the Committee may, at any time and
from time to time, amend, modify or terminate the Plan without stockholder
approval; provided, however, that if an amendment to the Plan would, in the
reasonable opinion of the Board or the Committee, either (i) materially increase
the number of Shares available under the Plan, (ii) expand the types of awards
under the Plan, (iii) materially expand the class of participants eligible to
participate in the Plan, (iv) materially extend the term of the Plan, or (v)
otherwise constitute a material change requiring stockholder approval under
applicable laws, policies or regulations or the applicable listing or other
requirements of an Exchange, then such amendment shall be subject to stockholder
approval; and provided, further, that the Board or Committee may condition any
other amendment or modification on the approval of stockholders of the Company
for any reason, including by reason of such approval being necessary or deemed
advisable to (i) permit Awards made hereunder to be exempt from liability under
Section 16(b) of the 1934 Act, (ii) to comply with the listing or other
requirements of an Exchange, or (iii) to satisfy any other tax, securities or
other applicable laws, policies or regulations.
16.2.
AWARDS PREVIOUSLY
GRANTED
. At any time and from time to time, the Committee may
amend, modify or terminate any outstanding Award without approval of the
Participant; provided, however:
(a) Subject
to the terms of the applicable Award Certificate, such amendment, modification
or termination shall not, without the Participant’s consent, reduce or diminish
the value of such Award determined as if the Award had been exercised, vested,
cashed in or otherwise settled on the date of such amendment or termination
(with the per-share value of an Option or Stock Appreciation Right for this
purpose being calculated as the excess, if any, of the Fair Market Value as of
the date of such amendment or termination over the exercise or base price of
such Award);
(b) The
original term of an Option may not be extended without the prior approval of the
stockholders of the Company;
(c) Except
as otherwise provided in Article 15, the exercise price of an Option may not be
reduced, directly or indirectly, without the prior approval of the stockholders
of the Company; and
(d) No
termination, amendment, or modification of the Plan shall adversely affect any
Award previously granted under the Plan, without the written consent of the
Participant affected thereby. An outstanding Award shall not be
deemed to be “adversely affected” by a Plan amendment if such amendment would
not reduce or diminish the value of such Award determined as if the Award had
been exercised, vested, cashed in or otherwise settled on the date of such
amendment (with the per-share value of an Option or Stock Appreciation Right for
this purpose being calculated as the excess, if any, of the Fair Market Value as
of the date of such amendment over the exercise or base price of such
Award).
16.3.
COMPLIANCE
AMENDMENTS
. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan or in any
Award Certificate to the contrary, the Committee may amend the Plan or an Award
Certificate, to take effect retroactively or otherwise, as deemed necessary or
advisable for the purpose of conforming the Plan or Award Certificate to any
present or future law relating to plans of this or similar nature (including,
but not limited to, Section 409A of the Code), and to the administrative
regulations and rulings promulgated thereunder. By accepting an Award
under this Plan, a Participant agrees to any amendment made pursuant to this
Section 16.3 to any Award granted under the Plan without further consideration
or action.
ARTICLE
17
GENERAL
PROVISIONS
17.1.
NO RIGHTS TO AWARDS;
NON-UNIFORM DETERMINATIONS
. No Participant or any Eligible
Participant shall have any claim to be granted any Award under the
Plan. Neither the Company, its Affiliates nor the Committee is
obligated to treat Participants or Eligible Participants uniformly, and
determinations made under the Plan may be made by the Committee selectively
among Eligible Participants who receive, or are eligible to receive, Awards
(whether or not such Eligible Participants are similarly situated).
17.2.
NO STOCKHOLDER
RIGHTS
. No Award gives a Participant any of the rights of a
stockholder of the Company unless and until Shares are in fact issued to such
person in connection with such Award.
17.3.
SPECIAL PROVISIONS RELATED
TO SECTION 409A OF THE CODE
.
(a) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Award Certificate to the contrary, to the extent
that any amount or benefit that would constitute non-exempt “deferred
compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be
payable or distributable under the Plan or any Award Certificate by reason of
the occurrence of a Change in Control, or the Participant’s Disability or
separation from service, such amount or benefit will not be payable or
distributable to the Participant by reason of such circumstance unless
(i) the circumstances giving rise to such Change in Control, Disability or
separation from service meet any description or definition of “change in control
event”, “disability” or “separation from service”, as the case may be, in
Section 409A of the Code and applicable regulations (without giving effect
to any elective provisions that may be available under such definition), or
(ii) the payment or distribution of such amount or benefit would be exempt
from the application of Section 409A of the Code by reason of the
short-term deferral exemption or otherwise. This provision does not
prohibit the vesting of any Award upon a Change in Control, Disability or
separation from service, however defined. If this provision prevents
the payment or distribution of any amount or benefit, such payment or
distribution shall be made on the next earliest payment or distribution date or
event specified in the Award Certificate that is permissible under Section
409A.
(b) If
any one or more Awards granted under the Plan to a Participant could qualify for
any separation pay exemption described in Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-1(b)(9),
but such Awards in the aggregate exceed the dollar limit permitted for the
separation pay exemptions, the Company (acting through the Committee or the Head
of Human Resources) shall determine which Awards or portions thereof will be
subject to such exemptions.
(c) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Award Certificate to the contrary, if any amount
or benefit that would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes
of Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under
this Plan or any Award Certificate by reason of a Participant’s separation from
service during a period in which the Participant is a Specified Employee (as
defined below), then, subject to any permissible acceleration of payment by the
Committee under Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations
order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of
employment taxes):
(i) if
the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, the Participant’s right to
receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be
delayed until the earlier of the Participant’s death or the first day of the
seventh month following the Participant’s separation from service;
and
(ii) if
the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt
deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month
period immediately following the Participant’s separation from service will be
accumulated and the Participant’s right to receive payment or distribution of
such accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of the Participant’s
death or the first day of the seventh month following the Participant’s
separation from service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or
distributed to the Participant and the normal payment or distribution schedule
for any remaining payments or distributions will resume.
For
purposes of this Plan, the term “Specified Employee” has the meaning given such
term in Code Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder, provided,
however, that, as permitted in such final regulations, the Company’s Specified
Employees and its application of the six-month delay rule of Code Section
409A(a)(2)(B)(i) shall be determined in accordance with rules adopted by the
Board or any committee of the Board, which shall be applied consistently with
respect to all nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements of the Company,
including this Plan.
17.4.
WITHHOLDING
. The
Company or any Affiliate shall have the authority and the right to deduct or
withhold, or require a Participant to remit to the Company, an amount sufficient
to satisfy federal, state, and local taxes (including the Participant’s FICA
obligation) required by law to be withheld with respect to any exercise, lapse
of restriction or other taxable event arising as a result of the
Plan. If Shares are surrendered to the Company to satisfy withholding
obligations in excess of the minimum withholding obligation, such Shares must
have been held by the Participant as fully vested shares for such period of
time, if any, as necessary to avoid the recognition of an expense under
generally accepted accounting principles. The Company shall have the
authority to require a Participant to remit cash to the Company in lieu of the
surrender of Shares for tax withholding obligations if the surrender of Shares
in satisfaction of such withholding obligations would result in the Company’s
recognition of expense under generally accepted accounting
principles. With respect to withholding required upon any taxable
event under the Plan, the Committee may, at the time the Award is granted or
thereafter, require or permit that any such withholding requirement be
satisfied, in whole or in part, by withholding from the Award Shares having a
Fair Market Value on the date of withholding equal to the minimum amount (and
not any greater amount) required to be withheld for tax purposes, all in
accordance with such procedures as the Committee establishes.
17.5.
NO RIGHT TO CONTINUED
SERVICE
. Nothing in the Plan, any Award Certificate or any
other document or statement made with respect to the Plan, shall interfere with
or limit in any way the right of the Company or any Affiliate to terminate any
Participant’s employment or status as an officer, director or consultant at any
time, nor confer upon any Participant any right to continue as an employee,
officer, director or consultant of the Company or any Affiliate, whether for the
duration of a Participant’s Award or otherwise.
17.6.
UNFUNDED STATUS OF
AWARDS
. The Plan is intended to be an “unfunded” plan for
incentive and deferred compensation. With respect to any payments not
yet made to a Participant pursuant to an Award, nothing contained in the Plan or
any Award Certificate shall give the Participant any rights that are greater
than those of a general creditor of the Company or any
Affiliate. This Plan is not intended to be subject to
ERISA.
17.7.
RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER
BENEFITS
. No payment under the Plan shall be taken into
account in determining any benefits under any pension, retirement, savings,
profit sharing, group insurance, welfare or benefit plan of the Company or any
Affiliate unless provided otherwise in such other plan.
17.8.
EXPENSES
. The
expenses of administering the Plan shall be borne by the Company and its
Affiliates.
17.9.
TITLES AND
HEADINGS
. The titles and headings of the Sections in the Plan
are for convenience of reference only, and in the event of any conflict, the
text of the Plan, rather than such titles or headings, shall
control.
17.10.
GENDER AND
NUMBER
. Except where otherwise indicated by the context, any
masculine term used herein also shall include the feminine; the plural shall
include the singular and the singular shall include the plural.
17.11.
FRACTIONAL
SHARES
. No fractional Shares shall be issued and the Committee
shall determine, in its discretion, whether cash shall be given in lieu of
fractional Shares or whether such fractional Shares shall be eliminated by
rounding up or down.
17.12.
GOVERNMENT AND OTHER
REGULATIONS
.
(a) Notwithstanding
any other provision of the Plan, no Participant who acquires Shares pursuant to
the Plan may, during any period of time that such Participant is an affiliate of
the Company (within the meaning of the rules and regulations of the Securities
and Exchange Commission under the 1933 Act), sell such Shares, unless such offer
and sale is made (i) pursuant to an effective registration statement under the
1933 Act, which is current and includes the Shares to be sold, or (ii) pursuant
to an appropriate exemption from the registration requirement of the 1933 Act,
such as that set forth in Rule 144 promulgated under the 1933 Act.
(b) Notwithstanding
any other provision of the Plan, if at any time the Committee shall determine
that the registration, listing or qualification of the Shares covered by an
Award upon any Exchange or under any foreign, federal, state or local law or
practice, or the consent or approval of any governmental regulatory body, is
necessary or desirable as a condition of, or in connection with, the granting of
such Award or the purchase or receipt of Shares thereunder, no Shares may be
purchased, delivered or received pursuant to such Award unless and until such
registration, listing, qualification, consent or approval shall have been
effected or obtained free of any condition not acceptable to the
Committee. Any Participant receiving or purchasing Shares pursuant to
an Award shall make such representations and agreements and furnish such
information as the Committee may request to assure compliance with the foregoing
or any other applicable legal requirements. The Company shall not be
required to issue or deliver any certificate or certificates for Shares under
the Plan prior to the Committee’s determination that all related requirements
have been fulfilled. The Company shall in no event be obligated to
register any securities pursuant to the 1933 Act or applicable state or foreign
law or to take any other action in order to cause the issuance and delivery of
such certificates to comply with any such law, regulation or
requirement.
17.13.
GOVERNING
LAW.
To the extent not governed by federal law, the Plan and
all Award Certificates shall be construed in accordance with and governed by the
laws of the State of Delaware.
17.14.
ADDITIONAL
PROVISIONS
. Each Award Certificate may contain such other
terms and conditions as the Committee may determine; provided that such other
terms and conditions are not inconsistent with the provisions of the
Plan.
17.15.
NO LIMITATIONS ON RIGHTS OF
COMPANY
. The grant of any Award shall not in any way affect
the right or power of the Company to make adjustments, reclassification or
changes in its capital or business structure or to merge, consolidate, dissolve,
liquidate, sell or transfer all or any part of its business or
assets. The Plan shall not restrict the authority of the Company, for
proper corporate purposes, to draft or assume awards, other than under the Plan,
to or with respect to any person. If the Committee so directs, the
Company may issue or transfer Shares to an Affiliate, for such lawful
consideration as the Committee may specify, upon the condition or understanding
that the Affiliate will transfer such Shares to a Participant in accordance with
the terms of an Award granted to such Participant and specified by the Committee
pursuant to the provisions of the Plan.
17.16.
INDEMNIFICATION
. Each
person who is or shall have been a member of the Committee, or of the Board, or
an officer of the Company to whom authority was delegated in accordance with
Article 4 shall be indemnified and held harmless by the Company against and
from any loss, cost, liability, or expense that may be imposed upon or
reasonably incurred by him or her in connection with or resulting from any
claim, action, suit, or proceeding to which he or she may be a party or in which
he or she may be involved by reason of any action taken or failure to act under
the Plan and against and from any and all amounts paid by him or her in
settlement thereof, with the Company’s approval, or paid by him or her in
satisfaction of any judgment in any such action, suit, or proceeding against him
or her, provided he or she shall give the Company an opportunity, at its own
expense, to handle and defend the same before he or she undertakes to handle and
defend it on his or her own behalf, unless such loss, cost, liability, or
expense is a result of his or her own willful misconduct or except as expressly
provided by statute.
The
foregoing right of indemnification shall not be exclusive of any other rights of
indemnification to which such persons may be entitled under the Company’s
Certificate of Incorporation or Bylaws, as a matter of law, or otherwise, or any
power that the Company may have to indemnify them or hold them
harmless.
21
Exhibit
10.13
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
1998
NONSTATUTORY STOCK OPTION PLAN
1. Purposes
of the Plan. The purposes of this Plan are:
·
|
to
attract and retain the best available personnel for positions of
substantial responsibility,
|
·
|
to
provide additional incentive to Employees and Consultants,
and
|
·
|
to
promote the success of the Company’s
business.
|
Nonstatutory
stock options may be granted under the Plan.
2.
Definitions
. As
used herein, the following definitions shall apply:
(a) “
Administrator
” means
the Board or any of its Committees as shall be administering the Plan, in
accordance with Section 4 of the Plan.
(b) “
Affiliate
” means (i)
any subsidiary or parent company of the Company, or (ii) an entity that directly
or through one or more intermediaries controls, is controlled by or is under
common control with, the Company, as determined by the Committee.
(c) “
Applicable Laws
”
means the legal requirements relating to the administration of stock option
plans and the issuance of stock and stock options under federal and state
securities laws, Delaware corporate law, the Code, and the applicable laws of
any foreign country or jurisdiction where options will be or are being granted
under the Plan.
(d) “
Board
” means the
Board of Directors of the Company.
(e) "
Change in Control
"
means the acquisition by any person or entity, directly, indirectly or
beneficially, acting alone or in concert, of more than thirty-five percent (35%)
of the Common Stock of the Company outstanding at any time.
(f) “
Code
” means the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Reference to a specific Section of
the Code or regulation thereunder shall include such Section or regulation, any
valid regulation promulgated under such Section, and any comparable provision of
any future law, legislation or regulation amending, supplementing or superseding
such Section or regulation.
(g) “
Committee
” means a
Committee appointed by the Board in accordance with Section 4 of the
Plan.
(h) “
Common Stock
” means
the Common Stock of the Company.
(i) “
Company
” means Micron
Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation.
(j) “
Consultant
” means any
person, including an advisor, engaged by the Company or a parent, subsidiary or
Affiliate to render services. The term “Consultant” shall not include
any person who is also an Officer or Director of the Company.
(k) “
Continuous Status as an
Employee or Consultant
” means that the employment or consulting
relationship with the Company, any parent, subsidiary, or Affiliate, is not
interrupted or terminated. Continuous Status as an Employee or
Consultant shall not be considered interrupted in the case of (i) any leave of
absence approved by the Company, (ii) transfers between locations of the Company
or between the Company, its Parent, any Subsidiary, or any successor or
(iii) change in status from either an Employee to a Consultant or a
Consultant to an Employee. A leave of absence approved by the Company
shall include sick leave, military leave, or any other personal leave approved
by an authorized representative of the Company.
(l) “
Director
” means a
member of the Board.
(m) “
Disability
” means
total and permanent disability as defined in Section 22(e)(3) of the
Code. Notwithstanding the foregoing, for any Options that constitute
a nonqualified deferred compensation plan within the meaning of Section 409A(d)
of the Code, “Disability” has the meaning given such term in Section 409A of the
Code.
(n) “
Employee
” means any
person, except Officers and Directors, employed by the Company or any parent,
subsidiary or Affiliate of the Company.
(o) “
Fair Market Value
” of
the Stock, on any date, means: (i) if the Stock is listed or traded on any
Exchange, the average closing price for such Stock (or the closing bid, if no
sales were reported) as quoted on such Exchange (or, if more than one Exchange,
the Exchange with the greatest volume of trading in the Stock) for such date, or
if no sales or bids were reported for such date, on the last market trading day
prior to the day of determination, as reported by
Market Sweep
, a service from
Interactive Data Services, Inc., or or such other source as the Committee deems
reliable; (ii) if the Stock is quoted on the over-the-counter market or is
regularly quoted by a recognized securities dealer, but selling prices are not
reported, the Fair Market Value of the Stock shall be the mean between the high
bid and low asked prices for the Stock on such date, or if no sales or bids were
reported for such date, on the last market trading day prior to the day of
determination, as reported by
Market Sweep
, a service from
Interactive Data Services, Inc., or such other source as the Committee deems
reliable, or (iii) in the absence of an established market for the Stock, the
Fair Market Value shall be determined by such other method as the Committee
determines in good faith to be reasonable and in compliance with Code Section
409A.
(p) “
Notice of Grant
”
means a written notice evidencing certain terms and conditions of an individual
Option grant. The Notice of Grant is subject to the terms and
conditions of the Option Agreement.
(q) “
Officer
” means a
person who is an officer of the Company within the meaning of Section 16 of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations
promulgated thereunder.
(r) “
Option
” means a
nonstatutory stock option granted pursuant to the Plan. Such option
is not intended to qualify as an incentive stock option within the meaning of
Section 422 of the Code and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
(s) “
Option Agreement
”
means a written agreement between the Company and an Optionee evidencing the
terms and conditions of an individual Option grant. The Option
Agreement is subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan.
(t) “
Option Exchange
Program
” means a program whereby outstanding options are surrendered in
exchange for options with a lower exercise price.
(u) “
Optioned Stock
” means
the Common Stock subject to an Option.
(v) “
Optionee
” means an
Employee or Consultant who holds an outstanding Option.
(w) "
Plan
" means this
Nonstatutory Stock Option Plan.
(x) “
Share
” means a share
of the Common Stock, as adjusted in accordance with Section 12 of the
Plan.
3.
Stock Subject to the
Plan
. Subject to the provisions of Section 12 of the Plan, the
maximum aggregate number of Shares which may be optioned and sold under the Plan
is 1,750,000. The Shares may be authorized, but unissued, or
reacquired Common Stock.
If an
Option expires or becomes unexercisable without having been exercised in full,
or is surrendered pursuant to an Option Exchange Program, the unpurchased Shares
which were subject thereto shall become available for future grant or sale under
the Plan (unless the Plan has terminated).
4.
Administration of the
Plan
.
(a)
Procedure
. The
Plan shall be administered by (A) the Board or (B) a committee designated by the
Board, which committee shall be constituted to satisfy Applicable
Laws. Once appointed, such Board may increase the size of the
Committee and appoint additional members, remove members (with or without cause)
and substitute new members, fill vacancies (however caused), and remove all
members of the Committee and thereafter directly administer the Plan, all to the
extent permitted by Applicable Laws.
(b)
Powers of the
Administrator
. Subject to the provisions of the Plan, and in
the case of a Committee, subject to the specific duties delegated by the Board
to such Committee, the Administrator shall have the authority, in its
discretion:
(i) to
determine the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock;
(ii) to
select the Consultants and Employees to whom Options may be
granted
hereunder;
(iii) to
determine whether and to what extent Options are granted hereunder;
(iv) to
determine the number of shares of Common Stock to be covered by each Option
granted hereunder;
(v) to
approve forms of agreement for use under the Plan;
(vi) to
determine the terms and conditions, not inconsistent with the terms of the Plan,
of any award granted hereunder. Such terms and conditions include,
but are not limited to, the exercise price, the time or times when Options may
be exercised (which may be based on performance criteria), any vesting
acceleration or waiver of forfeiture restrictions, and any restriction or
limitation regarding any Option or the shares of Common Stock relating thereto,
based in each case on such factors as the Administrator, in its sole discretion,
shall determine;
(vii) to
reduce the exercise price of any Option to the then current Fair Market Value if
the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock covered by such Option shall have
declined since the date the Option was granted;
(viii) to
construe and interpret the terms of the Plan and awards granted pursuant to the
Plan;
(ix) to
prescribe, amend, and rescind rules and regulations relating to the Plan,
including rules and regulations relating to sub-plans established for the
purpose of qualifying for preferred tax treatment under foreign tax
laws;
(x) to
modify or amend each Option (subject to Section 14(b) of the Plan), including
the discretionary authority to extend the post-termination exercisability period
of Options longer than is otherwise provided for in the Plan;
(xi) to
authorize any person to execute on behalf of the Company any instrument required
to effect the grant of an Option previously granted by the
Administrator;
(xii) to
institute and Option Exchange Program;
(xiii) to
allow Optionees to satisfy withholding tax obligations by electing to have the
Company withhold from the Shares to be issued upon exercise of an Option that
number of Shares having a Fair Market Value equal to the amount required to be
withheld; and
(xiv) to
make all other determinations deemed necessary or advisable for administering
the Plan.
(c)
Effect of Administrator’s
Decision
. The Administrator’s decisions, determinations, and
interpretations shall be final and binding on all Optionees and any other
holders of Options.
5.
Eligibility
. Options
may be granted to Employees and Consultants. Employees and
Consultants who are service providers to an Affiliate may be granted Options
under this Plan only if the Affiliate qualifies as an “eligible issuer of
service recipient stock” within the meaning of §1.409A-1(b)(5)(iii)(E) of the
final regulations under Code Section 409A.
6.
Limitations
. Neither
the Plan nor any Option shall confer upon an Optionee any right with respect to
continuing the Optionee’s employment or consulting relationship with the
Company, nor shall they interfere in any way with the Optionee’s right or the
Company’s right to terminate such employment or consulting relationship at any
time, with or without cause.
7.
Term of
Plan
. The Plan shall become effective upon its adoption by the
Board. It shall continue in effect until terminated under Section 14
of the Plan.
8.
Term of
Option
. The term of each Option shall be stated in the Notice
of Grant.
9.
Option Exercise Price and
Consideration
.
(a)
Exercise
Price
. The per share exercise price for the Shares to be
issued pursuant to exercise of an Option shall be determined by the
Administrator, but shall not be less than the Fair Market Value per share on the
date of grant of the Option.
(b)
Waiting Period and Exercise
Dates
. At the time an Option is granted, the Administrator
shall fix the period within which the Option may be exercised and shall
determine any conditions which must be satisfied before the Option may be
exercised. In doing so, the Administrator may specify that an Option
may not be exercised until either the completion of a service period or the
achievement of performance criteria with respect to the Company or the
Optionee.
(c)
Form of
Consideration
. The Administrator shall determine the
acceptable form of consideration for exercising an Option, including the method
of payment. Such consideration may consist entirely of:
(i) cash;
(ii) check;
(iii) promissory
note;
(iv) other
Shares which have a Fair Market Value on the date of surrender equal to the
aggregate exercise price of the Shares as to which said Option shall be
exercised;
(v) delivery
of a properly executed exercise notice together with such other documentation as
the Administrator and the broker, if applicable, shall require to effect an
exercise of the Option and delivery to the Company of the sale or loan proceeds
required to pay the exercise price;
(vi) a
reduction in the amount of any Company liability to the Optionee, other than any
liability attributable to the Optionee’s participation in any Company-sponsored
deferred compensation program or arrangement;
(vii) any
combination of the foregoing methods of payment; or
(viii) such
other consideration and method of payment for the issuance of Shares to the
extent permitted by Applicable Laws.
10.
Exercise of
Option
.
(a)
Procedure for Exercise;
Rights as a Shareholder
. Any Option granted thereunder shall
be exercisable according to the terms of the Plan and at such times and under
such conditions as determined by the Administrator and set forth in the Option
Agreement.
An Option
may not be exercised for a fraction of a Share.
An Option
shall be deemed exercised when the Company receives: (i) written
notice of exercise (in accordance with the Option Agreement) from the person
entitled to exercise the Option, and (ii) full payment for the Shares with
respect to which the Option is exercised. Full payment may consist of
any consideration and method of payment authorized by the Administrator and
permitted by the Option Agreement and the Plan. Shares issued upon
exercise of an Option shall be issued in the name of the Optionee or, if
requested by the Optionee, in the name of the Optionee and his or her
spouse. Until the Shares are issued (as evidenced by the appropriate
entry on the books of the Company or of a duly authorized transfer agent of the
Company), no right to vote or receive dividends or any other rights as a
shareholder shall exist with respect to the Optioned Stock, notwithstanding the
exercise of the Option. The Company shall issue (or cause to be
issued) such Shares, promptly after the Option is exercised. No
adjustment will be made for a dividend or other right for which the record date
is prior to the date the Shares are issued, except as provided in Section 12 of
the Plan.
Exercising
an Option in any manner shall decrease the number of Shares thereafter
available, both for purposes of the Plan and for sale under the Option, by the
number of Shares as to which the Option is exercised.
(b)
Termination of Employment or
Consulting Relationship
. Upon termination of an Optionee’s
Continuous Status as an Employee or Consultant, other than upon the Optionee’s
death or Disability, the Optionee may exercise his or her Option, but only
within such period of time as is specified in the Notice of Grant, and only to
the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise it as the date of
termination (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such
Option as set forth in the Notice of Grant). In the absence of a
specified time in the Notice of Grant, the Option shall remain exercisable for
30 days following the Optionee’s termination of Continuous Status as an Employee
or Consultant. If,
at the
date of termination, the Optionee is not entitled to exercise his or her entire
Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable portion of the Option shall
revert to the Plan. If, after termination, the Optionee does not
exercise his or her Option within the time specified herein, the Option shall
terminate, and the Shares covered by such Option shall revert to the
Plan.
(c)
Disability of
Optionee
. In the event that an Optionee’s Continuous Status as
an Employee or Consultant terminates as a result of the Optionee’s Disability,
the Optionee may exercise his or her Option at any time within twelve (12)
months from the date of such termination, but only to the extent that the
Optionee was entitled to exercise it at the date of such termination (but in no
event later than the expiration of the term of such Option as set forth in the
Notice of Grant). If, at the date of termination, the Optionee does
not exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable
portion of the Option shall revert to the Plan. If, after
termination, the Optionee does not exercise his or her option within the time
specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by such
Option shall revert to the Plan.
(d)
Death of
Optionee
. In the event of the death of an Optionee, the Option
may be exercised at any time within twelve (12) months following the date of
death (but in no event later than the expiration of the term of such Option as
set forth in the Notice of Grant), by the Optionee’s estate or by a person who
acquired the right to exercise the Option by bequest or inheritance, but only to
the extent that the Optionee was entitled to exercise the Option at the date of
death. If, at any time of death, the Optionee was not entitled to
exercise his or her entire Option, the Shares covered by the unexercisable
portion of the Option shall immediately revert to the Plan. If, after
death, the Optionee’s estate or a person who acquired the right to exercise the
Option by bequest or inheritance does not exercise the Option within the time
specified herein, the Option shall terminate, and the Shares covered by such
Option shall revert to the Plan.
(e)
Suspension
. Any
Optionee who is also a participant in the Retirement at Micron ("RAM") Section
401(k) Plan and who requests and receives a hardship distribution from the RAM
Plan, is prohibited from making, and must suspend, his or her employee elective
contributions and employee contributions including, without limitation on the
foregoing, the exercise of any Option granted from the date of receipt by that
employee of the RAM hardship distribution.
11.
Non-Transferability of
Options
. Unless otherwise specified by the Administrator in
the Option Agreement, an Option may not be sold, pledged, assigned,
hypothecated, transferred, or disposed of in any manner other than by will or by
laws of descent or distribution and may be exercised, during the lifetime of the
Optionee, only by the Optionee.
12.
Adjustments Upon Changes in
Capitalization, Dissolution, Merger, or Asset Sale
.
(a)
Changes in
Capitalization
. Subject to any required action by the
shareholders of the Company, the number of shares of Common Stock covered by
each outstanding Option, and the number of issued shares of Common Stock which
have been authorized for issuance under the Plan but as to which no Options have
yet been granted or which have been returned to the Plan upon cancellation or
expiration of an Option, as well as the price per share of Common Stock covered
by each such outstanding Option, shall be proportionately adjusted for any
increase or decrease in the number of issued
shares of
Common Stock resulting from a stock split, reverse stock split, stock dividend,
combination or reclassification of the Common Stock or any other increase or
decrease in the number of shares of Common Stock effected without receipt of
consideration by the Company; provided, however, that conversion of any
convertible securities of the Company shall not be deemed to have been effected
without receipt of consideration. Such adjustment shall be made by
the Board, whose determination in that respect shall be final, binding, and
conclusive. Without limiting the foregoing, in the event of a
subdivision of the outstanding Stock (stock-split), a declaration of a dividend
payable in Shares, or a combination or consolidation of the outstanding Stock
into a lesser number of Shares, the authorization limit under Section 3 shall
automatically be adjusted proportionately, and the Shares then subject to each
Award shall automatically be adjusted proportionately without any change in the
aggregate purchase price therefor. To the extent that any adjustments
made pursuant to this Section 12 cause Incentive Stock Options to cease to
qualify as Incentive Stock Options, such Options shall be deemed to be
Nonstatutory Stock Options.
(b)
Dissolution or
Liquidation
. In the event of the proposed dissolution or
liquidation of the Company, to the extent that an Option has not been previously
exercised, it will terminate immediately prior to the consummation of such
proposed action. The Board may, in the exercise of its sole
discretion in such instances, declare that any Option shall terminate as of a
date fixed by the Board and give each Optionee the right to exercise his or her
Option as to all or any part of the Optioned stock, including Shares as to which
the Option would not otherwise be exercisable.
(c)
Merger or Asset
Sale
.
Upon the
occurrence or in anticipation of any corporate event or transaction involving
the Company (including, without limitation, any merger, reorganization,
recapitalization or combination or exchange of shares or any transaction
described in Section 12(a)), the Administrator may, in its sole discretion,
provide (i) that Options will be settled in cash rather than Common Stock, (ii)
that Options will become immediately vested and exercisable and will expire
after a designated period of time to the extent not then exercised, (iii) that
Options will be assumed by another party to a transaction or otherwise be
equitably converted or substituted in connection with such transaction, (iv)
that outstanding Options may be settled by payment in cash or cash equivalents
equal to the excess of the Fair Market Value of the underlying Common Stock, as
of a specified date associated with the transaction, over the exercise price of
the Option, or (v) any combination of the foregoing. The
Administrator’s determination need not be uniform and may be different for
different Optionees whether or not such Optionees are similarly
situated.
(d)
Change in
Control
. In the event of a Change in Control, the
unexercised portion of the Option shall become immediately
exercisable.
(e)
General
. Any
discretionary adjustments made pursuant to this Section 12 shall be subject to
the provisions of Section 14.
13.
Date of
Grant
. The date of grant of an Option shall be, for all
purposes, the date on which the Administrator makes the determination granting
such Option, or such other later date as is determined by the
Administrator. Notice of the determination shall be provided to each
Optionee within a reasonable time after the date of such grant.
14.
Amendment and Termination of
the Plan
.
(a)
Amendment and
Termination
. Except as provided herein, the Board may at any
time amend, alter, suspend, or terminate the Plan without shareholder approval;
provided, however, that the Board may condition any amendment or modification on
the approval of shareholders of the Company if such approval is necessary or
deemed advisable with respect to tax, securities or other applicable laws,
policies or regulations. No termination can affect options previously
granted, nor may an amendment make any change in any option theretofore granted
which adversely affects the rights of any Optionee, nor may an amendment be made
without prior approval of the shareholders of the Company if such amendment
would:
(i)
increase
the number of shares that may be issued under the Plan;
(ii)
change
the designation of the employees (or class of employees) eligible for
participation in the Plan; or
(iii)
materially
increase the benefits which may accrue to participants under the
Plan..
(b)
Effect of Amendment or
Termination
. No amendment, alteration, suspension, or
termination of the Plan shall impair the rights of any Optionee, unless mutually
agreed otherwise between the Optionee and the Administrator, which agreement
must be in writing and signed by the Optionee and the Company.
(c)
Compliance
Amendments
. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to the contrary,
the Committee may amend the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or
other applicable agreement, to take effect retroactively or otherwise, as deemed
necessary or advisable for the purpose of conforming the Plan, Notice of Grant,
Option Agreement or other applicable agreement to any present or future law
relating to plans of this or similar nature (including, but not limited to,
Section 409A of the Code), and to the administrative regulations and rulings
promulgated thereunder. By accepting an Option under this Plan, a
Optionee agrees to any amendment made pursuant to this Section to any Option
granted under the Plan without further consideration or action.
15.
Conditions Upon Issuance of
Shares
.
(a)
Legal
Compliance
. Shares shall not be issued pursuant to the
exercise of an Option unless the exercise of such Option and the issuance and
delivery of such Shares shall comply with all Applicable Laws and the
requirements of any stock exchange or quotation system upon which the Shares may
then be listed or quoted, and shall be further subject to the approval of
counsel for the Company with respect to such compliance.
(b)
Investment
Representations
. As a condition to the exercise of an Option,
the Company may require the person exercising such Option to represent and
warrant at the time of any such exercise that the Shares are being purchased
only for investment and without any present intention to sell or distribute such
Shares if, in the opinion of counsel for the Company, such a representation is
required.
16.
Liability of
Company
. The inability of the Company to obtain authority from
any regulatory body having jurisdiction, which authority is deemed by the
Company’s counsel to be necessary to the lawful issuance and sale of any Shares
hereunder, shall relieve the Company of any liability in respect of the failure
to issue or sell such Shares as to which such requisite authority shall not have
been obtained.
17.
Reservation of
Shares
. The Company, during the term of this Plan, will at all
times reserve and keep available such number of Shares as shall be sufficient to
satisfy the requirements of the Plan.
18.
Restriction on
Repricing
. Without the prior approval of the shareholders of
the Company, the Administrator shall not reprice any Options issued under the
Plan through cancellation and regrant, by lowering the exercise price, or by any
other means.
19.
Special Provisions Related
To Section 409A of the Code
.
(a) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, to the extent that any amount or benefit
that would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of
Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under
the Plan or any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement
by reason of the occurrence of a Change in Control, or the Optionee’s Disability
or separation from service, such amount or benefit will not be payable or
distributable to the Optionee by reason of such circumstance unless (i) the
circumstances giving rise to such Change in Control, Disability or separation
from service meet any description or definition of “change in control event”,
“disability” or “separation from service”, as the case may be, in
Section 409A of the Code and applicable regulations (without giving effect
to any elective provisions that may be available under such definition), or
(ii) the payment or distribution of such amount or benefit would be exempt
from the application of Section 409A of the Code by reason of the
short-term deferral exemption or otherwise. This provision does not
prohibit the
vesting
of
any Option upon a Change in Control, Disability or separation from service,
however defined. If this provision prevents the payment or
distribution of any amount or benefit, such payment or distribution shall be
made on the next earliest payment or distribution date or event specified in the
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement that is
permissible under Section 409A.
(b) If
any one or more Options granted under the Plan to a Optionee could qualify for
any separation pay exemption described in Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-1(b)(9),
but such Options in the aggregate exceed the dollar limit permitted for the
separation pay exemptions, the Company (acting through the Committee or the Head
of Human Resources) shall determine which Options or portions thereof will be
subject to such exemptions.
(c) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, if any amount or benefit that would
constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of
the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under this Plan or in any
Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other applicable agreement by reason of a
Optionee’s separation from service during a period in which the Optionee is a
Specified Employee (as defined below), then, subject to any permissible
acceleration of payment by the Committee under Treas. Reg. Section
1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of
interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):
(i) if
the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, the Optionee’s right to
receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be
delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or the first day of the
seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from service; and
(ii) if
the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt
deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month
period immediately following the Optionee’s separation from service will be
accumulated and the Optionee’s right to receive payment or distribution of such
accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or
the first day of the seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from
service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or distributed to the
Optionee and the normal payment or distribution schedule for any remaining
payments or distributions will resume.
For
purposes of this Plan, the term “Specified Employee” has the meaning given such
term in Code Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder,
provided, however
, that, as
permitted in such final regulations, the Company’s Specified Employees and its
application of the six-month delay rule of Code Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) shall
be determined in accordance with rules adopted by the Board or any committee of
the Board, which shall be applied consistently with respect to all nonqualified
deferred compensation arrangements of the Company, including this
Plan.
Exhibit
10.15
LEXAR
MEDIA, INC.
2000
EQUITY INCENTIVE PLAN
As
Adopted January 21, 2000
As
Amended April 20, 2004
As
Amended February 10, 2006
As
Amended December 11, 2008
1.
PURPOSE
.
The purpose of this Plan is to provide incentives to attract, retain and
motivate eligible persons whose present and potential contributions are
important to the success of the Company, its Parent and Subsidiaries, by
offering them an opportunity to participate in the Company's future performance
through awards of Options, Restricted Stock and Stock Bonuses. Capitalized terms
not defined in the text are defined in Section 23.
2.
SHARES
SUBJECT TO THE PLAN
.
2.1
Number of Shares
Available
. Subject to Sections 2.2 and 18, the total number of Shares
reserved and available for grant and issuance pursuant to this Plan will be
8,000,000 Shares plus Shares that are subject to: (a) issuance upon exercise of
an Option but cease to be subject to such Option for any reason other than
exercise of such Option; (b) an Award granted hereunder but are forfeited or are
repurchased by the Company at the original issue price; and (c) an Award that
otherwise terminates without Shares being issued. In addition, any authorized
shares not issued or subject to outstanding grants under the Company's 1996
Stock Option/Stock Issuance Plan
(the "
Prior
Plan
") on the Effective Date (as defined below) and any shares issued
under the Prior Plan that are forfeited or repurchased by the Company or that
are issuable upon exercise of options granted pursuant to the Prior Plan that
expire or become unexercisable for any reason without having been exercised in
full, will no longer be available for grant and issuance under the Prior Plan,
but will be available for grant and issuance under this Plan. In addition, on
each January 1, the aggregate number of Shares reserved and available for grant
and issuance pursuant to this Plan will be increased automatically by a number
of Shares equal to 5% of the total outstanding shares of the Company as of the
immediately preceding December 31, provided that no more than 50,000,000 shares
shall be issued as ISOs (as defined in Section 5 below). At all times the
Company shall reserve and keep available a sufficient number of Shares as shall
be required to satisfy the requirements of all outstanding Options granted under
this Plan and all other outstanding but unvested Awards granted under this
Plan.
2.2
Adjustment of Shares
.
In the event that the number of outstanding shares is changed by a stock
dividend, recapitalization, stock split, reverse stock split, subdivision,
combination, reclassification or similar change in the capital structure of the
Company without consideration, then (a) the number of Shares reserved for
issuance under this Plan, (b) the number of Shares that may be granted pursuant
to Sections 3 and 9 below, (c) the Exercise Prices of and number of Shares
subject to outstanding Options, and (d) the number of Shares subject to other
outstanding Awards will be proportionately adjusted, subject to any required
action by the Board or the stockholders of the Company and compliance with
applicable securities laws;
provided
,
however
, that
fractions of a Share will not be issued but will either be replaced by a cash
payment equal to the Fair Market Value of such fraction of a Share or will be
rounded up to the nearest whole Share, as determined by the
Committee.
3.
ELIGIBILITY
.
ISOs (as defined in Section 5 below) may be granted only to employees (including
officers and directors who are also employees) of the Company or of a Parent or
Subsidiary of the Company. All other Awards may be granted to employees,
officers, directors, consultants, independent contractors and advisors of the
Company or any Parent or Subsidiary of the Company;
provided
such
consultants, contractors and advisors render bona fide services not in
connection with the offer and sale of securities in a capital-raising
transaction. No person will be eligible to receive more than 2,000,000 Shares in
any calendar year under this Plan pursuant to the grant of Awards hereunder,
other than new employees of the Company or of a Parent or Subsidiary of the
Company (including new employees who are also officers and directors of the
Company or any Parent or Subsidiary of the Company), who are eligible to receive
up to a maximum of 3,000,000 Shares in the calendar year in which they commence
their employment. A person may be granted more than one Award under this
Plan.
4.
ADMINISTRATION
.
4.1
Committee Authority
.
This Plan will be administered by the Committee or by the Board acting as the
Committee. Except for automatic grants to Outside Directors pursuant to Section
9 hereof, and subject to the general purposes, terms and conditions of this
Plan, and to the direction of the Board, the Committee will have full power to
implement and carry out this Plan. Except for automatic grants to Outside
Directors pursuant to Section 9 hereof, the Committee will have the authority
to:
(a)
construe
and interpret this Plan, any Award Agreement and any other agreement or document
executed pursuant to this Plan;
(b)
prescribe,
amend and rescind rules and regulations relating to this Plan or any
Award;
(c)
select persons to receive
Awards;
(d)
determine
the form and terms of Awards;
(e)
determine the number of
Shares or other consideration subject to Awards;
(f)
determine
whether Awards will be granted singly, in combination with, in tandem with, in
replacement of, or as alternatives to, other Awards under this Plan or any other
incentive or compensation plan of the Company or any Parent or Subsidiary of the
Company;
(g)
grant
waivers of Plan or Award conditions;
(h)
determine
the vesting, exercisability and payment of Awards;
(i)
correct
any defect, supply any omission or reconcile any inconsistency in this Plan, any
Award or any Award Agreement;
(j)
determine whether an
Award has been earned; and
(k)
make all other
determinations necessary or advisable for the administration of this
Plan.
4.2
Committee Discretion
.
Except for automatic grants to Outside Directors pursuant to Section 9 hereof,
any determination made by the Committee with respect to any Award will be made
in its sole discretion at the time of grant of the Award or, unless in
contravention of any express term of this Plan or Award, at any later time, and
such determination will be final and binding on the Company and on all persons
having an interest in any Award under this Plan. The Committee may delegate to
one or more officers of the Company the authority to grant an Award under this
Plan to Participants who are not Insiders of the Company.
5.
OPTIONS
.
The Committee may grant Options to eligible persons and will determine whether
such Options will be Incentive Stock Options within the meaning of the Code
("
ISO
") or
Nonqualified Stock Options ("
NQSOs
"),
the number of Shares subject to the Option, the Exercise Price of the Option,
the period during which the Option may be exercised, and all other terms and
conditions of the Option, subject to the following:
5.1
Form of Option Grant
.
Each Option granted under this Plan will be evidenced by an Award Agreement
which will expressly identify the Option as an ISO or an NQSO ("
Stock Option
Agreement
"), and, except as otherwise required by the terms of Section 9
hereof, will be in such form and contain such provisions (which need not be the
same for each Participant) as the Committee may from time to time approve, and
which will comply with and be subject to the terms and conditions of this
Plan.
5.2
Date of Grant
. The
date of grant of an Option will be the date on which the Committee makes the
determination to grant such Option, unless otherwise specified by the Committee.
The Stock Option Agreement and a copy of this Plan will be delivered to the
Participant within a reasonable time after the granting of the
Option.
5.3
Exercise Period
.
Options may be exercisable within the times or upon the events determined by the
Committee as set forth in the Stock Option Agreement governing such Option;
provided
,
however
, that no
Option will be exercisable after the expiration of ten (10) years from the date
the Option is granted; and
provided further
that
no ISO granted to a person who directly or by attribution owns more than ten
percent (10%) of the total combined voting power of all classes of stock of the
Company or of any Parent or Subsidiary of the Company ("
Ten Percent
Stockholder
") will be exercisable after the expiration of five (5) years
from the date the ISO is granted. The Committee also may provide for Options to
become exercisable at one time or from time to time, periodically or otherwise,
in such number of Shares or percentage of Shares as the Committee
determines.
5.4
Exercise Price
. The
Exercise Price of an Option will be determined by the Committee when the Option
is granted and may be not less than 100% of the Fair Market Value of the Shares
on the date of grant; provided that: (i) the Exercise Price of an ISO will be
not less than 100% of the Fair Market Value of the Shares on the date of grant;
and (ii) the Exercise Price of any ISO granted to a Ten Percent Stockholder will
not be less than 110% of the Fair Market Value of the Shares on the date of
grant. Payment for the Shares purchased may be made in accordance with Section 8
of this Plan.
5.5
Method of Exercise
.
Options may be exercised only by delivery to the Company of a written stock
option exercise agreement (the "
Exercise
Agreement
") in a form approved by the Committee (which need not be the
same for each Participant), stating the number of Shares being purchased, the
restrictions imposed on the Shares purchased under such Exercise Agreement, if
any, and such representations and agreements regarding Participant's investment
intent and access to information and other matters, if any, as may be required
or desirable by the Company to comply with applicable securities laws, together
with payment in full of the Exercise Price for the number of Shares being
purchased.
5.6
Termination
.
Notwithstanding the exercise periods set forth in the Stock Option Agreement,
exercise of an Option will always be subject to the following:
(a)
If the
Participant is Terminated for any reason except death or Disability, then the
Participant may exercise such Participant's Options only to the extent that such
Options would have been exercisable upon the Termination Date no later than
three (3) months after the Termination Date (or such shorter or longer time
period not exceeding five (5) years as may be determined by the Committee, with
any exercise beyond three (3) months after the Termination Date deemed to be an
NQSO), but in any event, no later than the expiration date of the
Options.
(b)
If the
Participant is Terminated because of Participant's death or Disability (or the
Participant dies within three (3) months after a Termination other than for
Cause or because of Participant's Disability), then Participant's Options may be
exercised only to the extent that such Options would have been exercisable by
Participant on the Termination Date and must be exercised by Participant (or
Participant's legal representative or authorized assignee) no later than twelve
(12) months after the Termination Date (or such shorter or longer time period
not exceeding five (5) years as may be determined by the Committee, with any
such exercise beyond (a) three (3) months after the Termination Date when the
Termination is for any reason other than the Participant's death or Disability,
or (b) twelve (12) months after the Termination Date when the Termination is for
Participant's death or Disability, deemed to be an NQSO), but in any event no
later than the expiration date of the Options.
(c)
Notwithstanding the
provisions in paragraph 5.6(a) above, if a Participant is terminated for Cause,
neither the Participant, the Participant's estate nor such other person who may
then hold the Option shall be entitled to exercise any Option with respect to
any Shares whatsoever, after termination of service, whether or not after
termination of service the Participant may receive payment from the Company or
Subsidiary for vacation pay, for services rendered prior to termination, for
services rendered for the day on which termination occurs, for salary in lieu of
notice, or for any other benefits. In making such determination, the Board shall
give the Participant an opportunity to present to the Board evidence on his
behalf. For the purpose of this paragraph, termination of service shall be
deemed to occur on the date when the Company dispatches notice or advice to the
Participant that his service is terminated.
5.7
Limitations on
Exercise
. The Committee may specify a reasonable minimum number of Shares
that may be purchased on any exercise of an Option, provided that such minimum
number will not prevent Participant from exercising the Option for the full
number of Shares for which it is then exercisable.
5.8
Limitations on ISO
.
The aggregate Fair Market Value (determined as of the date of grant) of Shares
with respect to which ISO are exercisable for the first time by a Participant
during any calendar year (under this Plan or under any other incentive stock
option plan of the Company, Parent or Subsidiary of the Company) will not exceed
$100,000. If the Fair Market Value of Shares on the date of grant with respect
to which ISO are exercisable for the first time by a Participant during any
calendar year exceeds $100,000, then the Options for the first $100,000 worth of
Shares to become exercisable in such calendar year will be ISO and the Options
for the amount in excess of $100,000 that become exercisable in that calendar
year will be NQSOs. In the event that the Code or the regulations promulgated
thereunder are amended after the Effective Date of this Plan to provide for a
different limit on the Fair Market Value of Shares permitted to be subject to
ISO, such different limit will be automatically incorporated herein and will
apply to any Options granted after the effective date of such
amendment.
5.9
Modification, Extension or
Renewal
. The Committee may modify, extend or renew outstanding Options
and authorize the grant of new Options in substitution therefor, provided that
any such action may not, without the written consent of a Participant, impair
any of such Participant's rights under any Option previously granted. Any
outstanding ISO that is modified, extended, renewed or otherwise altered will be
treated in accordance with Section 424(h) of the Code. The Committee may reduce
the Exercise Price of outstanding Options without the consent of Participants
affected by a written notice to them;
provided
,
however
, that the
Exercise Price may not be reduced below the minimum Exercise Price that would be
permitted under Section 5.4 of this Plan for Options granted on the date the
action is taken to reduce the Exercise Price.
5.10
No
Disqualification
. Notwithstanding any other provision in this Plan, no
term of this Plan relating to ISO will be interpreted, amended or altered, nor
will any discretion or authority granted under this Plan be exercised, so as to
disqualify this Plan under Section 422 of the Code or, without the consent of
the Participant affected, to disqualify any ISO under Section 422 of the
Code.
6.
RESTRICTED
STOCK
. A Restricted Stock Award is an offer by the Company to sell to an
eligible person Shares that are subject to restrictions. The Committee will
determine to whom an offer will be made, the number of Shares the person may
purchase, the price to be paid (the "
Purchase
Price
"), the restrictions to which the Shares will be subject, and all
other terms and conditions of the Restricted Stock Award, subject to the
following:
6.1
Form of Restricted Stock
Award
. All purchases under a Restricted Stock Award made pursuant to this
Plan will be evidenced by an Award Agreement ("
Restricted Stock
Purchase Agreement
") that will be in such form (which need not be the
same for each Participant) as the Committee will from time to time approve, and
will comply with and be subject to the terms and conditions of this Plan. The
offer of Restricted Stock will be accepted by the Participant's execution and
delivery of the Restricted Stock Purchase Agreement and full payment for the
Shares to the Company within thirty (30) days from the date the Restricted Stock
Purchase Agreement is delivered to the person. If such person does not execute
and deliver the Restricted Stock Purchase Agreement along with full payment for
the Shares to the Company within thirty (30) days, then the offer will
terminate, unless otherwise determined by the Committee.
6.2
Purchase Price
. The
Purchase Price of Shares sold pursuant to a Restricted Stock Award will be
determined by the Committee on the date the Restricted Stock Award is granted,
except in the case of a sale to a Ten Percent Stockholder, in which case the
Purchase Price will be 100% of the Fair Market Value. Payment of the Purchase
Price may be made in accordance with Section 8 of this Plan.
6.3
Terms of Restricted Stock
Awards
. Restricted Stock Awards shall be subject to such restrictions as
the Committee may impose. These restrictions may be based upon completion of a
specified number of years of service with the Company or upon completion of the
performance goals as set out in advance in the Participant's individual
Restricted Stock Purchase Agreement. Restricted Stock Awards may vary from
Participant to Participant and between groups of Participants. Prior to the
grant of a Restricted Stock Award, the Committee shall: (a) determine the
nature, length and starting date of any Performance Period for the Restricted
Stock Award; (b) select from among the Performance Factors to be used to measure
performance goals, if any; and (c) determine the number of Shares that may be
awarded to the Participant. Prior to the payment of any Restricted Stock Award,
the Committee shall determine the extent to which such Restricted Stock Award
has been earned. Performance Periods may overlap and Participants may
participate simultaneously with respect to Restricted Stock Awards that are
subject to different Performance Periods and having different performance goals
and other criteria.
6.4
Termination During
Performance Period
. If a Participant is Terminated during a Performance
Period for any reason, then such Participant will be entitled to payment
(whether in Shares, cash or otherwise) with respect to the Restricted Stock
Award only to the extent earned as of the date of Termination in accordance with
the Restricted Stock Purchase Agreement, unless the Committee will determine
otherwise.
7.
STOCK
BONUSES
.
7.1
Awards of Stock
Bonuses
. A Stock Bonus is an award of Shares (which may consist of
Restricted Stock) for services rendered to the Company or any Parent or
Subsidiary of the Company. A Stock Bonus may be awarded for past services
already rendered to the Company, or any Parent or Subsidiary of the Company
pursuant to an Award Agreement (the "
Stock Bonus
Agreement
") that will be in such form (which need not be the same for
each Participant) as the Committee will from time to time approve, and will
comply with and be subject to the terms and conditions of this Plan. A Stock
Bonus may be awarded upon satisfaction of such performance goals as are set out
in advance in the Participant's individual Award Agreement (the "
Performance Stock
Bonus Agreement
") that will be in such form (which need not be the same
for each Participant) as the Committee will from time to time approve, and will
comply with and be subject to the terms and conditions of this Plan. Stock
Bonuses may vary from Participant to Participant and between groups of
Participants, and may be based upon the achievement of the Company, Parent or
Subsidiary and/or individual performance factors or upon such other criteria as
the Committee may determine.
7.2
Terms of Stock
Bonuses
. The Committee will determine the number of Shares to be awarded
to the Participant. If the Stock Bonus is being earned upon the satisfaction of
performance goals pursuant to a Performance Stock Bonus Agreement, then the
Committee will: (a) determine the nature, length and starting date of any
Performance Period for each Stock Bonus; (b) select from among the Performance
Factors to be used to measure the performance, if any; and (c) determine the
number of Shares that may be awarded to the Participant. Prior to the payment of
any Stock Bonus, the Committee shall determine the extent to which such Stock
Bonuses have been earned. Performance Periods may overlap and Participants may
participate simultaneously with respect to Stock Bonuses that are subject to
different Performance Periods and different performance goals and other
criteria. The number of Shares may be fixed or may vary in accordance with such
performance goals and criteria as may be determined by the Committee. The
Committee may adjust the performance goals applicable to the Stock Bonuses to
take into account changes in law and accounting or tax rules and to make such
adjustments as the Committee deems necessary or appropriate to reflect the
impact of extraordinary or unusual items, events or circumstances to avoid
windfalls or hardships.
7.3
Form of Payment
. The
earned portion of a Stock Bonus may be paid currently or on a deferred basis
with such interest or dividend equivalent, if any, as the Committee may
determine. Payment may be made in the form of cash or whole Shares or a
combination thereof, either in a lump sum payment or in installments, all as the
Committee will determine.
8.
PAYMENT
FOR SHARE PURCHASES
.
8.1
Payment
.
Payment for Shares purchased pursuant to this Plan may be made in cash (by
check) or, where expressly approved for the Participant by the Committee and
where permitted by law:
(a)
by
cancellation of indebtedness of the Company to the Participant;
(b)
by
surrender of shares that either: (1) have been owned by Participant for more
than six (6) months and have been paid for within the meaning of SEC Rule 144
(and, if such shares were purchased from the Company by use of a promissory
note, such note has been fully paid with respect to such shares); or (2) were
obtained by Participant in the public market;
(c)
by tender
of a full recourse promissory note having such terms as may be approved by the
Committee and bearing interest at a rate sufficient to avoid imputation of
income under Sections 483 and 1274 of the Code;
provided
,
however
, that
Participants who are not employees or directors of the Company will not be
entitled to purchase Shares with a promissory note unless the note is adequately
secured by collateral other than the Shares;
(d)
by waiver
of compensation due or accrued to the Participant for services
rendered;
(e)
with
respect only to purchases upon exercise of an Option, and provided that a public
market for the Company's stock exists:
(1)
through a
"same day sale" commitment from the Participant and a broker-dealer that is a
member of the National Association of Securities Dealers (an "
NASD
Dealer
") whereby the Participant irrevocably elects to exercise the
Option and to sell a portion of the Shares so purchased to pay for the Exercise
Price, and whereby the NASD Dealer irrevocably commits upon receipt of such
Shares to forward the Exercise Price directly to the Company; or
(2)
through a
"margin" commitment from the Participant and a NASD Dealer whereby the
Participant irrevocably elects to exercise the Option and to pledge the Shares
so purchased to the NASD Dealer in a margin account as security for a loan from
the NASD Dealer in the amount of the Exercise Price, and whereby the NASD Dealer
irrevocably commits upon receipt of such Shares to forward the Exercise Price
directly to the Company; or
(f)
by any
combination of the foregoing.
8.2
Loan
Guarantees
. The Committee may help the Participant pay for Shares
purchased under this Plan by authorizing a guarantee by the Company of a
third-party loan to the Participant.
9.
AUTOMATIC GRANTS TO OUTSIDE
DIRECTORS.
9.1
Types of Options and
Shares.
Options granted under this Plan and subject to this Section 9
shall be NQSOs.
9.2
Eligibility
.
Options subject to this Section 9 shall be granted only to Outside
Directors.
9.3
Initial Grant
. Each
Outside Director who first becomes a member of the Board on or after the
Effective Date will automatically be granted an Option for 50,000 Shares (an
"
Initial
Grant
") on the date such Outside Director first becomes a member of the
Board. Each Outside Director who became a member of the Board prior to the
Effective Date will automatically be granted an Option for 25,000 Shares
immediately following the Effective Date.
9.4
Succeeding
Grant
. Immediately following each Annual Meeting of stockholders, each
Outside Director will automatically be granted an Option for 20,000 Shares (a
"
Succeeding
Grant
"), provided the Outside Director is a member of the Board on such
date and has served continuously as a member of the Board for a period of at
least one year since the date of such Outside Director's Initial Grant.
Notwithstanding anything in this Section 9.4 to the contrary, the Board may make
discretionary supplemental grants to an Outside Director who has served for less
than one year from the date of such Outside Director’s Initial Grant,
provided
that no
Outside Director may receive more than 70,000 Shares in any calendar year
pursuant to this Section 9.
9.5
Vesting
. The date an
Outside Director receives an Initial Grant or a Succeeding Grant is referred to
in this Plan as the "
Start
Date
" for such Option.
(a)
Initial
Grants
. Each Initial Grant will vest (i) as to twenty-five
percent (25%) of the Shares on the earlier of (A) the one (1) year anniversary
of the Start Date or (B) the next succeeding Annual Meeting where such Outside
Director is not serving as an Outside Director following such Annual Meeting but
such person is an Outside Director on the day immediately preceding such Annual
Meeting and (ii) as to 2.08333% of the Shares on each subsequent monthly
anniversary thereafter, so long as the Outside Director continuously remains a
director or consultant of the Company.
(b)
Succeeding
Grants
. Each Succeeding Grant will vest (i) as to twenty-five
percent (25%) of the Shares on the earlier of (A) the one (1) year anniversary
of the Start Date or (B) the next succeeding Annual Meeting where such Outside
Director is not serving as an Outside Director following such Annual Meeting but
such person is an Outside Director on the day immediately preceding such Annual
Meeting and (ii) as to 2.08333% of the Shares on each subsequent monthly
anniversary thereafter, so long as the Outside Director continuously remains a
director or consultant of the Company.
Notwithstanding
any provision to the contrary, in the event of a Corporate Transaction described
in Section 18.1, the vesting of all options granted to Outside Directors
pursuant to this Section 9 will accelerate and such options will become
exercisable in full prior to the consummation of such event at such times and on
such conditions as the Committee determines, and must be exercised, if at all,
within three months of the consummation of said event. Any options not exercised
within such three-month period shall expire.
9.6
Exercise Price
. The
exercise price of an Option pursuant to an Initial Grant and Succeeding Grant
shall be the Fair Market Value of the Shares, at the time that the Option is
granted.
10.
WITHHOLDING
TAXES
.
10.1
Withholding
Generally
. Whenever Shares are to be issued in satisfaction of Awards
granted under this Plan, the Company may require the Participant to remit to the
Company an amount sufficient to satisfy federal, state and local withholding tax
requirements prior to the delivery of any certificate or certificates for such
Shares. Whenever, under this Plan, payments in satisfaction of Awards are to be
made in cash, such payment will be net of an amount sufficient to satisfy
federal, state, and local withholding tax requirements.
10.2
Stock Withholding
.
When, under applicable tax laws, a Participant incurs tax liability in
connection with the exercise or vesting of any Award that is subject to tax
withholding and the Participant is obligated to pay the Company the amount
required to be withheld, the Committee may in its sole discretion allow the
Participant to satisfy the minimum withholding tax obligation by electing to
have the Company withhold from the Shares to be issued that number of Shares
having a Fair Market Value equal to the minimum amount required to be withheld,
determined on the date that the amount of tax to be withheld is to be
determined. All elections by a Participant to have Shares withheld for this
purpose will be made in accordance with the requirements established by the
Committee and be in writing in a form acceptable to the Committee.
11.
TRANSFERABILITY
.
11.1
Except as otherwise provided in this Section 11, Awards granted under this Plan,
and any interest therein, will not be transferable or assignable by Participant,
and may not be made subject to execution, attachment or similar process,
otherwise than by will or by the laws of descent and distribution or as
determined by the Committee and set forth in the Award Agreement with respect to
Awards that are not ISOs.
11.2
All Awards other than
NQSO's.
All Awards other than NQSO's shall be exercisable: (i) during the
Participant's lifetime, only by (A) the Participant, or (B) the Participant's
guardian or legal representative; and (ii) after Participant's death, by the
legal representative of the Participant's heirs or legatees.
11.3
NQSOs
. Unless
otherwise restricted by the Committee, an NQSO shall be exercisable: (i) during
the Participant's lifetime only by (A) the Participant, (B) the Participant's
guardian or legal representative, (C) a Family Member of the Participant who has
acquired the NQSO by "permitted transfer;" and (ii) after Participant's death,
by the legal representative of the Participant's heirs or legatees. "Permitted
transfer" means, as authorized by this Plan and the Committee in an NQSO, any
transfer effected by the Participant during the Participant's lifetime of an
interest in such NQSO but only such transfers which are by gift or domestic
relations order. A permitted transfer does not include any transfer for value
and neither of the following are transfers for value: (a) a transfer of under a
domestic relations order in settlement of marital property rights or (b) a
transfer to an entity in which more than fifty percent of the voting interests
are owned by Family Members or the Participant in exchange for an interest in
that entity.
12.
PRIVILEGES
OF STOCK OWNERSHIP; RESTRICTIONS ON SHARES.
.
12.1
Voting and Dividends
.
No Participant will have any of the rights of a stockholder with respect to any
Shares until the Shares are issued to the Participant. After Shares are issued
to the Participant, the Participant will be a stockholder and have all the
rights of a stockholder with respect to such Shares, including the right to vote
and receive all dividends or other distributions made or paid with respect to
such Shares;
provided
, that if
such Shares are Restricted Stock, then any new, additional or different
securities the Participant may become entitled to receive with respect to such
Shares by virtue of a stock dividend, stock split or any other change in the
corporate or capital structure of the Company will be subject to the same
restrictions as the Restricted Stock;
provided
,
further
, that the
Participant will have no right to retain such stock dividends or stock
distributions with respect to Shares that are repurchased at the Participant's
Purchase Price or Exercise Price pursuant to Section 12.
12.2
Financial Statements
.
The Company will provide financial statements to each Participant prior to such
Participant's purchase of Shares under this Plan, and to each Participant
annually during the period such Participant has Awards outstanding;
provided
,
however
, the Company
will not be required to provide such financial statements to Participants whose
services in connection with the Company assure them access to equivalent
information.
12.3
Restrictions on
Shares.
At the discretion of the Committee, the Company may reserve to
itself and/or its assignee(s) in the Award Agreement a right to repurchase a
portion of or all Unvested Shares held by a Participant following such
Participant's Termination at any time within ninety (90) days after the later of
Participant's Termination Date and the date Participant purchases Shares under
this Plan, for cash and/or cancellation of purchase money indebtedness, at the
Participant's Exercise Price or Purchase Price, as the case may be.
13.
CERTIFICATES
.
All certificates for Shares or other securities delivered under this Plan will
be subject to such stock transfer orders, legends and other restrictions as the
Committee may deem necessary or advisable, including restrictions under any
applicable federal, state or foreign securities law, or any rules, regulations
and other requirements of the SEC or any stock exchange or automated quotation
system upon which the Shares may be listed or quoted.
14.
ESCROW;
PLEDGE OF SHARES
. To enforce any restrictions on a Participant's Shares,
the Committee may require the Participant to deposit all certificates
representing Shares, together with stock powers or other instruments of transfer
approved by the Committee, appropriately endorsed in blank, with the Company or
an agent designated by the Company to hold in escrow until such restrictions
have lapsed or terminated, and the Committee may cause a legend or legends
referencing such restrictions to be placed on the certificates. Any Participant
who is permitted to execute a promissory note as partial or full consideration
for the purchase of Shares under this Plan will be required to pledge and
deposit with the Company all or part of the Shares so purchased as collateral to
secure the payment of Participant's obligation to the Company under the
promissory note;
provided
,
however
, that the
Committee may require or accept other or additional forms of collateral to
secure the payment of such obligation and, in any event, the Company will have
full recourse against the Participant under the promissory note notwithstanding
any pledge of the Participant's Shares or other collateral. In connection with
any pledge of the Shares, Participant will be required to execute and deliver a
written pledge agreement in such form as the Committee will from time to time
approve. The Shares purchased with the promissory note may be released from the
pledge on a pro rata basis as the promissory note is paid.
15.
EXCHANGE
AND BUYOUT OF AWARDS
. The Committee may, at any time or from time to
time, authorize the Company, with the consent of the respective Participants, to
issue new Awards in exchange for the surrender and cancellation of any or all
outstanding Awards. The Committee may at any time buy from a Participant an
Award previously granted with payment in cash, Shares (including Restricted
Stock) or other consideration, based on such terms and conditions as the
Committee and the Participant may agree.
16.
SECURITIES
LAW AND OTHER REGULATORY COMPLIANCE
. An Award will not be effective
unless such Award is in compliance with all applicable federal and state
securities laws, rules and regulations of any governmental body, and the
requirements of any stock exchange or automated quotation system upon which the
Shares may then be listed or quoted, as they are in effect on the date of grant
of the Award and also on the date of exercise or other issuance. Notwithstanding
any other provision in this Plan, the Company will have no obligation to issue
or deliver certificates for Shares under this Plan prior to: (a) obtaining any
approvals from governmental agencies that the Company determines are necessary
or advisable; and/or (b) completion of any registration or other qualification
of such Shares under any state or federal law or ruling of any governmental body
that the Company determines to be necessary or advisable. The Company will be
under no obligation to register the Shares with the SEC or to effect compliance
with the registration, qualification or listing requirements of any state
securities laws, stock exchange or automated quotation system, and the Company
will have no liability for any inability or failure to do so.
17.
NO
OBLIGATION TO EMPLOY
. Nothing in this Plan or any Award granted under
this Plan will confer or be deemed to confer on any Participant any right to
continue in the employ of, or to continue any other relationship with, the
Company or any Parent or Subsidiary of the Company or limit in any way the right
of the Company or any Parent or Subsidiary of the Company to terminate
Participant's employment or other relationship at any time, with or without
cause.
18.
CORPORATE
TRANSACTIONS
.
18.1
Assumption or Replacement of
Awards by Successor
. Except for automatic grants to Outside Directors
pursuant to Section 9 hereof, in the event of (a) a dissolution or liquidation
of the Company, (b) a merger or consolidation in which the Company is not the
surviving corporation (other than a merger or consolidation with a wholly-owned
subsidiary, a reincorporation of the Company in a different jurisdiction, or
other transaction in which there is no substantial change in the stockholders of
the Company or their relative stock holdings and the Awards granted under this
Plan are assumed, converted or replaced by the successor corporation, which
assumption will be binding on all Participants), (c) a merger in which the
Company is the surviving corporation but after which the stockholders of the
Company immediately prior to such merger (other than any stockholder that
merges, or which owns or controls another corporation that merges, with the
Company in such merger) cease to own their shares or other equity interest in
the Company, (d) the sale of substantially all of the assets of the Company, or
(e) the acquisition, sale, or transfer of more than 50% of the outstanding
shares of the Company by tender offer or similar transaction (each, a "
Corporate
Transaction
"), (i) the vesting of all outstanding Awards will accelerate
as to an additional 25% of the Shares that are unvested on the date of the
Corporate Transaction and, (ii) thereafter, unless otherwise set forth below,
all unvested shares subject to outstanding Awards will continue to vest in equal
monthly installments over the remaining original vesting term as set forth in
the Award Agreement. Upon a Corporate Transaction, all outstanding Awards shall
be assumed by the successor or acquiring corporation (if any), which assumption
will be binding on all Participants. In the alternative, the successor or
acquiring corporation may substitute equivalent Awards or provide substantially
similar consideration to Participants as was provided to shareholders (after
taking into account the existing provisions of the Awards).
The successor
corporation may also issue, in place of outstanding unvested Shares of the
Company held by the Participants, substantially similar shares or other property
subject to repurchase restrictions no less favorable to the Participant. In the
event such successor corporation (if any) refuses to assume or substitute
Awards, as provided above, pursuant to a Corporate Transaction described in this
Subsection 18.1, such Awards will expire on such Corporate Transaction at such
time and on such conditions as the Committee will determine. Notwithstanding
anything in this Plan to the contrary, the Committee may, in its sole
discretion, provide that the vesting of any or all Awards granted pursuant to
this Plan will accelerate upon a Corporate Transaction described in this Section
18. If the Committee exercises such discretion with respect to Options, such
Options will become exercisable in full prior to the consummation of such event
at such time and on such conditions as the Committee determines, and if such
Options are not exercised prior to the consummation of the Corporate
Transaction, they shall terminate at such time as determined by the
Committee.
18.2
Other Treatment of
Awards
. Subject to any greater rights granted to Participants under the
foregoing provisions of this Section 18, in the event of the occurrence of any
Corporate Transaction described in Section 18.1, any outstanding Awards will be
treated as provided in the applicable agreement or plan of merger,
consolidation, dissolution, liquidation, or sale of assets.
18.3
Assumption of Awards by the
Company
. The Company, from time to time, also may substitute or assume
outstanding awards granted by another company, whether in connection with an
acquisition of such other company or otherwise, by either; (a) granting an Award
under this Plan in substitution of such other company's award; or (b) assuming
such award as if it had been granted under this Plan if the terms of such
assumed award could be applied to an Award granted under this Plan. Such
substitution or assumption will be permissible if the holder of the substituted
or assumed award would have been eligible to be granted an Award under this Plan
if the other company had applied the rules of this Plan to such grant. In the
event the Company assumes an award granted by another company, the terms and
conditions of such award will remain unchanged (
except
that the
exercise price and the number and nature of Shares issuable upon exercise of any
such option will be adjusted appropriately pursuant to Section 424(a) of the
Code). In the event the Company elects to grant a new Option rather than
assuming an existing option, such new Option may be granted with a similarly
adjusted Exercise Price.
19.
ADOPTION
AND STOCKHOLDER APPROVAL
. This Plan will become effective on the date on
which the registration statement filed by the Company with the SEC under the
Securities Act registering the initial public offering of the Company's Common
Stock is declared effective by the SEC (the "
Effective
Date
"). This Plan shall be approved by the stockholders of the Company
(excluding Shares issued pursuant to this Plan), consistent with applicable
laws, within twelve (12) months before or after the date this Plan is adopted by
the Board. Upon the Effective Date, the Committee may grant Awards pursuant to
this Plan;
provided
,
however
, that: (a) no
Option may be exercised prior to initial stockholder approval of this Plan; (b)
no Option granted pursuant to an increase in the number of Shares subject to
this Plan approved by the Board will be exercised prior to the time such
increase has been approved by the stockholders of the Company; (c) in the event
that initial stockholder approval is not obtained within the time period
provided herein, all Awards granted hereunder shall be cancelled, any Shares
issued pursuant to any Awards shall be cancelled and any purchase of Shares
issued hereunder shall be rescinded; and (d) in the event that stockholder
approval of such increase is not obtained within the time period provided
herein, all Awards granted pursuant to such increase will be cancelled, any
Shares issued pursuant to any Award granted pursuant to such increase will be
cancelled, and any purchase of Shares pursuant to such increase will be
rescinded.
20.
TERM OF
PLAN/GOVERNING LAW
. Unless earlier terminated as provided herein, this
Plan will terminate ten (10) years from the date this Plan is adopted by the
Board or, if earlier, the date of stockholder approval. This Plan and all
agreements thereunder shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the
laws of the State of California.
21.
AMENDMENT
OR TERMINATION OF PLAN
. The Board may at any time terminate or amend this
Plan in any respect, including without limitation amendment of any form of Award
Agreement or instrument to be executed pursuant to this Plan;
provided
,
however
, that the
Board will not, without the approval of the stockholders of the Company, amend
this Plan in any manner that requires such stockholder approval.
Notwithstanding anything in the Plan
or in any applicable agreement to the contrary, the Committee may amend the Plan
or any applicable agreement, to take effect retroactively or otherwise, as
deemed necessary or advisable for the purpose of conforming the Plan or other
applicable agreement to any present or future law relating to plans of this or
similar nature (including, but not limited to, Section 409A of the Code), and to
the administrative regulations and rulings promulgated thereunder. By
accepting an Award under this Plan, a Participant agrees to any amendment made
pursuant to this Section to any Award granted under the Plan without further
consideration or action.
22.
NONEXCLUSIVITY
OF THE PLAN
. Neither the adoption of this Plan by the Board, the
submission of this Plan to the stockholders of the Company for approval, nor any
provision of this Plan will be construed as creating any limitations on the
power of the Board to adopt such additional compensation arrangements as it may
deem desirable, including, without limitation, the granting of stock options and
bonuses otherwise than under this Plan, and such arrangements may be either
generally applicable or applicable only in specific cases.
23. 409A
COMPLIANCE
A. Notwithstanding anything
herein to the contrary, any discretionary authority available pursuant to this
Plan shall only be exercised in a manner believed in good faith to comply with
Section 409A of the Code and to maintain the exemption from Section 409A for the
options and stock issued hereunder.
B. Notwithstanding anything
herein to the contrary, nothing herein shall provide for any feature for the
deferral of compensation other than the deferral of recognition of income until
the exercise or disposition of an option.
C. Special Provisions
Related To Section 409A of the Code.
1. Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any applicable agreement to the contrary, to the
extent that any amount or benefit that would constitute non-exempt “deferred
compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be
payable or distributable under the Plan or applicable agreement by reason of the
occurrence of a Change in Control, or the Participant’s Disability or separation
from service, such amount or benefit will not be payable or distributable to the
Participant by reason of such circumstance unless (i) the circumstances
giving rise to such Change in Control, Disability or separation from service
meet any description or definition of “change in control event”, “disability” or
“separation from service”, as the case may be, in Section 409A of the Code
and applicable regulations (without giving effect to any elective provisions
that may be available under such definition), or (ii) the payment or
distribution of such amount or benefit would be exempt from the application of
Section 409A of the Code by reason of the short-term deferral exemption or
otherwise. This provision does not prohibit the vesting of any option
upon a Change in Control, Disability or separation from service, however
defined. If this provision prevents the payment or distribution of
any amount or benefit, such payment or distribution shall be made on the next
earliest payment or distribution date or event specified in the applicable
agreement that is permissible under Section 409A.
2. If
any one or more options granted under the Plan to a Participant could qualify
for any separation pay exemption described in Treas. Reg. Section
1.409A-1(b)(9), but such options in the aggregate exceed the dollar limit
permitted for the separation pay exemptions, the Company (acting through the
Committee or the Head of Human Resources) shall determine which options or
portions thereof will be subject to such exemptions.
3. Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any applicable agreement to the contrary, if any
amount or benefit that would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for
purposes of Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable
under this Plan or in any notice applicable agreement by reason of a
Participant’s separation from service during a period in which the Participant
is a Specified Employee (as defined below), then, subject to any permissible
acceleration of payment by the Committee under Treas. Reg. Section
1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of
interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):
(i) if
the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, the Participant’s right to
receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be
delayed until the earlier of the Participant’s death or the first day of the
seventh month following the Participant’s separation from service;
and
(ii) if
the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt
deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month
period immediately following the Participant’s separation from service will be
accumulated and the Participant’s right to receive payment or distribution of
such accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of the Participant’s
death or the first day of the seventh month following the Participant’s
separation from service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or
distributed to the Participant and the normal payment or distribution schedule
for any remaining payments or distributions will resume.
For
purposes of this Plan, the term “Specified Employee” has the meaning given such
term in Code Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder, provided,
however, that, as permitted in such final regulations, the Company’s Specified
Employees and its application of the six-month delay rule of Code Section
409A(a)(2)(B)(i) shall be determined in accordance with rules adopted by the
Board or any committee of the Board, which shall be applied consistently with
respect to all nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements of the Company,
including this Plan.
23.
DEFINITIONS
.
As used in this Plan, the
following terms will have the following meanings:
"
Award
"
means any award under this Plan, including any Option, Restricted Stock or Stock
Bonus.
"
Award
Agreement
" means, with respect to each Award, the signed written
agreement between the Company and the Participant setting forth the terms and
conditions of the Award.
"
Board
"
means the Board of Directors of the Company.
"
Cause
"
means the commission of an act of theft, embezzlement, fraud, dishonesty or a
breach of fiduciary duty to the Company or a Parent or Subsidiary of the
Company.
"
Code
"
means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Reference to a
specific Section of the Code or regulation thereunder shall include such Section
or regulation, any valid regulation promulgated under such Section, and any
comparable provision of any future law, legislation or regulation amending,
supplementing or superseding such Section or regulation.
"
Committee
"
means the Compensation Committee of the Board.
"
Company
"
means Lexar Media, Inc. or any successor corporation.
"
Disability
"means
a disability, whether temporary or permanent, partial or total, as determined by
the Committee. Notwithstanding the foregoing, for any Options that constitute a
nonqualified deferred compensation plan within the meaning of Section 409A(d) of
the Code, “Disability” has the meaning given such term in Section 409A of the
Code.
"
Exchange
Act
" means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
"
Exercise
Price
" means the price at which a holder of an Option may purchase the
Shares issuable upon exercise of the Option.
"
Fair Market
Value
" means, as of any date, the value of a share of the Company's
Common Stock determined as follows:
(a)
if such
Common Stock is then quoted on the Nasdaq National Market, its closing price on
the Nasdaq National Market on the date of determination as reported in
The Wall Street
Journal
;
(b)
if such
Common Stock is publicly traded and is then listed on a national securities
exchange, its closing price on the date of determination on the principal
national securities exchange on which the Common Stock is listed or admitted to
trading as reported in
The Wall Street
Journal
;
(c)
if such
Common Stock is publicly traded but is not quoted on the Nasdaq National Market
nor listed or admitted to trading on a national securities exchange, the average
of the closing bid and asked prices on the date of determination as reported in
The Wall Street
Journal
;
(d)
in the
case of an Award made on the Effective Date, the price per share at which shares
of the Company's Common Stock are initially offered for sale to the public by
the Company's underwriters in the initial public offering of the Company's
Common Stock pursuant to a registration statement filed with the SEC under the
Securities Act; or
(e)
if none
of the foregoing is applicable, by the Committee in good faith.
"
Family
Member
" includes any of the following:
(a)
child,
stepchild, grandchild, parent, stepparent, grandparent, spouse, former spouse,
sibling, niece, nephew, mother-in-law, father-in-law, son-in-law,
daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law of the Participant, including
any such person with such relationship to the Participant by
adoption;
(b)
any
person (other than a tenant or employee) sharing the Participant's
household;
(c)
a
trust in which the persons in (a) and (b) have more than fifty percent of the
beneficial interest;
(d)
a
foundation in which the persons in (a) and (b) or the Participant control the
management of assets; or
(e)
any
other entity in which the persons in (a) and (b) or the Participant own more
than fifty percent of the voting interest.
"
Insider
"
means an officer or director of the Company or any other person whose
transactions in the Company's Common Stock are subject to Section 16 of the
Exchange Act.
"
Option
"
means an award of an option to purchase Shares pursuant to Section
5.
"
Outside
Director
" means a member of the Board who is not an employee of the
Company or any Parent, Subsidiary or Affiliate of the Company.
"
Parent
"
means any corporation (other than the Company) in an unbroken chain of
corporations ending with the Company if each of such corporations other than the
Company owns stock possessing 50% or more of the total combined voting power of
all classes of stock in one of the other corporations in such
chain.
"
Participant
"
means a person who receives an Award under this Plan.
"
Performance
Factors
" means the factors selected by the Committee from among the
following measures to determine whether the performance goals established by the
Committee and applicable to Awards have been satisfied:
(a)
Net revenue and/or net revenue growth;
(b)
Earnings
before income taxes and amortization and/or earnings before income taxes and
amortization growth;
(c)
Operating income and/or operating income growth;
(d)
Net income and/or net income growth;
(e)
Earnings per share and/or earnings per share growth;
(f)
Total stockholder return and/or total stockholder return growth;
(g)
Return on equity;
(h)
Operating cash flow return on income;
(i)
Adjusted operating cash flow return on income;
(j)
Economic value added; and
(k)
Individual confidential business objectives.
"
Performance
Period
" means the period of service determined by the Committee, not to
exceed five years, during which years of service or performance is to be
measured for Restricted Stock Awards or Stock Bonuses.
"
Plan
"
means this Lexar Media, Inc. 2000 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended from time to
time.
"
Restricted Stock
Award
" means an award of Shares pursuant to Section 6.
"
SEC
" means
the Securities and Exchange Commission.
"
Securities
Act
" means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
"
Shares
"
means shares of the Company's Common Stock reserved for issuance under this
Plan, as adjusted pursuant to Sections 2 and 18, and any successor
security.
"
Stock
Bonus
" means an award of Shares, or cash in lieu of Shares, pursuant to
Section 7.
"
Subsidiary
"
means any corporation (other than the Company) in an unbroken chain of
corporations beginning with the Company if each of the corporations other than
the last corporation in the unbroken chain owns stock possessing 50% or more of
the total combined voting power of all classes of stock in one of the other
corporations in such chain.
"
Termination
"
or "
Terminated
"
means, for purposes of this Plan with respect to a Participant, that the
Participant has for any reason ceased to provide services as an employee,
officer, director, consultant, independent contractor, or advisor to the Company
or a Parent or Subsidiary of the Company. An employee will not be deemed to have
ceased to provide services in the case of (i) sick leave, (ii) military leave,
or (iii) any other leave of absence approved by the Committee, provided, that
such leave is for a period of not more than 90 days, unless reemployment upon
the expiration of such leave is guaranteed by contract or statute or unless
provided otherwise pursuant to formal policy adopted from time to time by the
Company and issued and promulgated to employees in writing. In the case of any
employee on an approved leave of absence, the Committee may make such provisions
respecting suspension of vesting of the Award while on leave from the employ of
the Company or a Subsidiary as it may deem appropriate, except that in no event
may an Option be exercised after the expiration of the term set forth in the
Option agreement. The Committee will have sole discretion to determine whether a
Participant has ceased to provide services and the effective date on which the
Participant ceased to provide services (the "
Termination
Date
").
"
Unvested
Shares
" means "Unvested Shares" as defined in the Award
Agreement.
"
Vested
Shares
" means "Vested Shares" as defined in the Award
Agreement.
EXHIBIT
10.48
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
2007
EQUITY INCENTIVE PLAN
ARTICLE
1
PURPOSE
1.1.
GENERAL.
The
purpose of the Micron Technology, Inc. 2007 Equity Incentive Plan (the
"Plan") is to promote the success, and enhance the value, of Micron
Technology, Inc. (the "Company"), by linking the personal interests of
employees, non-employee directors and consultants of the Company or any
Affiliate (as defined below) to those of Company stockholders and by providing
such persons with an incentive for outstanding performance. The Plan is further
intended to provide flexibility to the Company in its ability to motivate,
attract, and retain the services of employees, non-employee directors and
consultants upon whose judgment, interest, and special effort the successful
conduct of the Company's operation is largely dependent. Accordingly, the Plan
permits the grant of incentive awards from time to time to selected employees,
non-employee directors and consultants of the Company and its Affiliates;
provided, however, that no officer, including without limitation the chief
executive officer of the Company, is eligible to be a Participant in the
Plan.
ARTICLE
2
DEFINITIONS
2.1.
DEFINITIONS.
When
a word or phrase appears in this Plan with the initial letter capitalized, and
the word or phrase does not commence a sentence, the word or phrase shall
generally be given the meaning ascribed to it in this Section or in
Section 1.1 unless a clearly different meaning is required by the context.
The following words and phrases shall have the following meanings:
(a) "Affiliate"
means (i) any Subsidiary or Parent, or (ii) an entity that directly or
through one or more intermediaries controls, is controlled by or is under common
control with, the Company, as determined by the Committee.
(b) "Award"
means any Option, Stock Appreciation Right, Restricted Stock Award, Restricted
Stock Unit Award, Deferred Stock Unit Award, Performance Share, Dividend
Equivalent Award, Other Stock-Based Award, or any other right or interest
relating to Stock or cash, granted to a Participant under the Plan.
(c) "Award
Certificate" means a written document, in such form as the Committee prescribes
from time to time, setting forth the terms and conditions of an Award. Award
Certificates may be in the form of individual award agreements or certificates
or a program document describing the terms and provisions of an Awards or series
of Awards under the Plan. The Committee may provide for the use of electronic,
internet or other non-paper Award Certificates, and the use of electronic,
internet or other non-paper means for the acceptance thereof and actions
thereunder by a Participant.
(d) "Board"
means the Board of Directors of the Company.
(e) "Change
in Control" means and includes the occurrence of any one of the following
events:
(i) individuals
who, on the Effective Date, constitute the Board of Directors of the Company
(the "Incumbent Directors") cease for any reason to constitute at least a
majority of such Board, provided that any person becoming a director after the
Effective Date and whose election or nomination for election was approved by a
vote of at least a majority of the Incumbent Directors then on the Board shall
be an Incumbent Director;
provided
,
however
, that no individual
initially elected or nominated as a director of the Company as a result of an
actual or threatened election contest with respect to the election or removal of
directors ("Election Contest") or other actual or threatened solicitation of
proxies or consents by or on behalf of any Person other than the Board ("Proxy
Contest"), including by reason of any agreement intended to avoid or settle any
Election Contest or Proxy Contest, shall be deemed an Incumbent Director;
or
(ii) any
person is or becomes a "beneficial owner" (as defined in Rule 13d-3 under
the 1934 Act), directly or indirectly, of either (A) 35% or more of the
then-outstanding shares of common stock of the Company ("Company Common Stock")
or (B) securities of the Company representing 35% or more of the combined
voting power of the Company's then outstanding securities eligible to vote for
the election of directors (the "Company Voting Securities");
provided
,
however
, that for purposes of
this subsection (ii), the following acquisitions shall not constitute a Change
in Control: (w) an acquisition directly from the Company, (x) an
acquisition by the Company or a Subsidiary of the Company, (y) an
acquisition by any employee benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored or
maintained by the Company or any Subsidiary of the Company, or (z) an
acquisition pursuant to a Non-Qualifying Transaction (as defined in subsection
(iii) below); or
(iii) the
consummation of a reorganization, merger, consolidation, statutory share
exchange or similar form of corporate transaction involving the Company or a
Subsidiary (a "Reorganization"), or the sale or other disposition of all or
substantially all of the Company's assets (a "Sale") or the acquisition of
assets or stock of another corporation (an "Acquisition"), unless immediately
following such Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition: (A) all or
substantially all of the individuals and entities who were the beneficial
owners, respectively, of the outstanding Company Common Stock and outstanding
Company Voting Securities immediately prior to such Reorganization, Sale or
Acquisition beneficially own, directly or indirectly, more than 50% of,
respectively, the then outstanding shares of common stock and the combined
voting power of the then outstanding voting securities entitled to vote
generally in the election of directors, as the case may be, of the corporation
resulting from such Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition (including, without
limitation, a corporation which as a result of such transaction owns the Company
or all or substantially all of the Company's assets or stock either directly or
through one or more subsidiaries, the "Surviving Corporation") in substantially
the same proportions as their ownership, immediately prior to such
Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition, of the outstanding Company Common Stock and
the outstanding Company Voting Securities, as the case may be, and (B) no
person (other than (x) the Company or any Subsidiary of the Company,
(y) the Surviving Corporation or its ultimate parent corporation, or
(z) any employee benefit plan or related trust) sponsored or maintained by
any of the foregoing is the beneficial owner, directly or indirectly, of 35% or
more of the total common stock or 35% or more of the total voting power of the
outstanding voting securities eligible to elect directors of the Surviving
Corporation, and (C) at least a majority of the members of the board of
directors of the Surviving Corporation were Incumbent Directors at the time of
the Board's approval of the execution of the initial agreement providing for
such Reorganization, Sale or Acquisition (any Reorganization, Sale or
Acquisition which satisfies all of the criteria specified in (A), (B) and
(C) above shall be deemed to be a "Non-Qualifying Transaction");
or
(iv) approval
by the stockholders of the Company of a complete liquidation or dissolution of
the Company.
(f) "Code"
means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time. Reference
to a specific Section of the Code or regulation thereunder shall include such
Section or regulation, any valid regulation promulgated under such Section, and
any comparable provision of any future law, legislation or regulation amending,
supplementing or superseding such Section or regulation.
(g) "Committee"
means the committee of the Board described in Article 4.
(h) "Company"
means Micron Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation, or any successor
corporation.
(i)
"Continuous Status as a Participant" means the
absence of any interruption or termination of service as an employee, officer,
consultant or non-employee director of the Company or any Affiliate, as
applicable; provided, however, that for purposes of an Incentive Stock Option,
or a Stock Appreciation Right issued in tandem with an Incentive Stock Option,
"Continuous Status as a Participant" means the absence of any interruption or
termination of service as an employee of the Company or any Parent or
Subsidiary, as applicable, pursuant to applicable tax regulations. Continuous
Status as a Participant shall not be considered interrupted in the case of any
leave of absence authorized in writing by the Company
prior to
its commencement; provided, however, that for purposes of Incentive Stock
Options, no such leave may exceed 90 days, unless reemployment upon
expiration of such leave is guaranteed by statute or contract. If reemployment
upon expiration of a leave of absence approved by the Company is not so
guaranteed, on the 91st day of such leave any Incentive Stock Option held by the
Participant shall cease to be treated as an Incentive Stock Option and shall be
treated for tax purposes as a Nonstatutory Stock Option.
(j)
"Covered Employee" means a covered employee as defined in Code
Section 162(m)(3).
(k) "Disability"
or "Disabled" has the same meaning as provided in the long-term disability plan
or policy maintained by the Company or if applicable, most recently maintained,
by the Company or if applicable, an Affiliate, for the Participant, whether or
not such Participant actually receives disability benefits under such plan or
policy. If no long-term disability plan or policy was ever maintained on behalf
of Participant or if the determination of Disability relates to an Incentive
Stock Option, or a Stock Appreciation Right issued in tandem with an Incentive
Stock Option, Disability means Permanent and Total Disability as defined in
Section 22(e)(3) of the Code. Notwithstanding the foregoing, for any Awards
that constitute a nonqualified deferred compensation plan within the meaning of
Section 409A(d) of the Code, Disability has the meaning given such term in
Section 409A of the Code. In the event of a dispute, the determination
whether a Participant is Disabled will be made by the Committee and may be
supported by the advice of a physician competent in the area to which such
Disability relates.
(l)
"Deferred Stock Unit" means a right granted to a Participant under
Article 11.
(m) "Dividend
Equivalent" means a right granted to a Participant under
Article 12.
(n) "Effective
Date" has the meaning assigned such term in Section 3.1.
(o) "Eligible
Participant" means an employee, consultant or non-employee director of the
Company or any Affiliate; provided, however, that no officer, including without
limitation the chief executive officer of the Company, is eligible to be a
Participant in the Plan.
(p) "Exchange"
means the New York Stock Exchange or any other national securities exchange or
national market system on which the Stock may from time to time be listed or
traded.
(q) "Fair
Market Value" of the Stock, on any date, means: (i) if the Stock is listed
or traded on any Exchange, the closing sales price for such Stock (or the
closing bid, if no sales were reported) as quoted on such Exchange (or, if more
than one Exchange, the Exchange with the greatest volume of trading in the
Stock) for such date, or if no sales or bids were reported for such date, on the
last market trading day prior to the day of determination, as reported by Market
Sweep, a service from Interactive Data Services, Inc., or such other source as
the Committee deems reliable; (ii) if the Stock is quoted on the
over-the-counter market or is regularly quoted by a recognized securities
dealer, but selling prices are not reported, the Fair Market Value of the Stock
shall be the mean between the high bid and low asked prices for the Stock on
such date, or if no sales or bids were reported for such date, on the last
market trading day prior to the day of determination, as reported by Market
Sweep, a service from Interactive Data Services, Inc. or such other source as
the Committee deems reliable, or (iii) in the absence of an established
market for the Stock, the Fair Market Value shall be determined by such other
method as the Committee determines in good faith to be reasonable and in
compliance with Code Section 409A.
(r)
"Full Value Award" means an Award other than in the form of an
Option or SAR, and which is settled by the issuance of Stock.
(s) "Grant
Date" of an Award means the first date on which all necessary corporate action
has been taken to approve the grant of the Award as provided in the Plan, or
such later date as is determined and specified as part of that authorization
process. Notice of the grant shall be provided to the grantee within a
reasonable time after the Grant Date.
(t)
"Incentive Stock Option" means an Option that is intended to
be an incentive stock option and meets the requirements of Section 422 of
the Code or any successor provision thereto.
(u) "Non-Employee
Director" means a director of the Company who is not a common law employee of
the Company or an Affiliate.
(v) "Nonstatutory
Stock Option" means an Option that is not an Incentive Stock
Option.
(w) "Option"
means a right granted to a Participant under Article 7 of the Plan to
purchase Stock at a specified price during specified time periods. An Option may
be either an Incentive Stock Option or a Nonstatutory Stock Option.
(x) "Other
Stock-Based Award" means a right, granted to a Participant under Article 13
that relates to or is valued by reference to Stock or other Awards relating to
Stock.
(y) "Parent"
means a corporation, limited liability company, partnership or other entity
which owns or beneficially owns a majority of the outstanding voting stock or
voting power of the Company. Notwithstanding the above, with respect to an
Incentive Stock Option, Parent shall have the meaning set forth in
Section 424(e) of the Code.
(z) "Participant"
means a person who, as an employee, non-employee director or consultant of the
Company or any Affiliate, has been granted an Award under the Plan; provided
that in the case of the death of a Participant, the term "Participant" refers to
a beneficiary designated pursuant to Section 14.5 or the legal guardian or
other legal representative acting in a fiduciary capacity on behalf of the
Participant under applicable state law and court supervision. Notwithstanding
the foregoing, a Participant shall not include the chief executive officer or
any other officers of the Company.
(aa) "Performance
Share" means any right granted to a Participant under Article 9 to a unit
to be valued by reference to a designated number of Shares to be paid upon
achievement of such performance goals as the Committee establishes with regard
to such Performance Share.
(bb) "Person"
means any individual, entity or group, within the meaning of
Section 3(a)(9) of the 1934 Act and as used in Section 13(d)(3) or
14(d)(2) of the 1934 Act.
(cc) "Plan"
means the Micron Technology, Inc. 2007 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended
from time to time.
(dd) "Qualified
Performance-Based Award" means an Award that is either (i) intended to
qualify for the Section 162(m) Exemption and is made subject to performance
goals based on Qualified Business Criteria as set forth in
Section 14.10(b), or (ii) an Option or SAR.
(ee)
"Qualified Business Criteria" means one or more of the
Business Criteria listed in Section 14.10(b) upon which performance goals
for certain Qualified Performance-Based Awards may be established by the
Committee.
(ff) "Restricted
Stock Award" means Stock granted to a Participant under Article 10 that is
subject to certain restrictions and to risk of forfeiture.
(gg) "Restricted
Stock Unit Award" means the right granted to a Participant under Article 10
to receive shares of Stock (or the equivalent value in cash or other property if
the Committee so provides) in the future, which right is subject to certain
restrictions and to risk of forfeiture.
(hh) "Section 162(m)
Exemption" means the exemption from the limitation on deductibility imposed by
Section 162(m) of the Code that is set forth in Section 162(m)(4)(C)
of the Code or any successor provision thereto.
(ii) "Shares"
means shares of the Company's Stock. If there has been an adjustment or
substitution pursuant to Section 15.1, the term "Shares" shall also include
any shares of stock or other securities that are substituted for Shares or into
which Shares are adjusted pursuant to Section 15.1.
(jj) "Stock"
means the $.10 par value common stock of the Company and such other securities
of the Company as may be substituted for Stock pursuant to
Article 15.
(kk) "Stock
Appreciation Right" or "SAR" means a right granted to a Participant under
Article 8 to receive a payment equal to the difference between the Fair
Market Value of a Share as of the date of exercise of the SAR over the base
price of the SAR, all as determined pursuant to Article 8.
(ll) "Subsidiary"
means any corporation, limited liability company, partnership or other entity of
which a majority of the outstanding voting stock or voting power is beneficially
owned directly or indirectly by the Company. Notwithstanding the above, with
respect to an Incentive Stock Option, Subsidiary shall have the meaning set
forth in Section 424(f) of the Code.
(mm) "1933
Act" means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended from time to
time.
(nn) "1934
Act" means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended from time to
time.
ARTICLE
3
EFFECTIVE
TERM OF PLAN
3.1.
EFFECTIVE
DATE.
The Plan shall be effective as of the date it is
approved by both the Board and the stockholders of the Company (the "Effective
Date").
3.2.
TERMINATION OF
PLAN.
The Plan shall terminate on the tenth anniversary of the
Effective Date unless earlier terminated as provided herein, which shall
continue to be governed by the applicable terms and conditions of this Plan. The
termination of the Plan on such date shall not affect the validity of any Award
outstanding on the date of termination. No Incentive Stock Options may be
granted more than ten years after the earlier of (a) adoption of this Plan
by the Board, or (b) the Effective Date.
ARTICLE
4
ADMINISTRATION
4.1.
COMMITTEE.
The
Plan shall be administered by a Committee appointed by the Board (which
Committee shall consist of at least two directors) or, at the discretion of the
Board from time to time, the Plan may be administered by the Board. It is
intended that at least two of the directors appointed to serve on the Committee
shall be "non-employee directors" (within the meaning of Rule 16b-3
promulgated under the 1934 Act) and "outside directors" (within the meaning of
Code Section 162(m)) and that any such members of the Committee who do not
so qualify shall abstain from participating in any decision to make or
administer Awards that are made to Eligible Participants who at the time of
consideration for such Award (i) are persons subject to the short-swing
profit rules of Section 16 of the 1934 Act, or (ii) are reasonably
anticipated to become Covered Employees during the term of the Award. However,
the mere fact that a Committee member shall fail to qualify under either of the
foregoing requirements or shall fail to abstain from such action shall not
invalidate any Award made by the Committee which Award is otherwise validly made
under the Plan. The members of the Committee shall be appointed by, and may be
changed at any time and from time to time in the discretion of, the Board. The
Board may reserve to itself any or all of the authority and responsibility of
the Committee under the Plan or may act as administrator of the Plan for any and
all purposes. To the extent the Board has reserved any authority and
responsibility or during any time that the Board is acting as administrator of
the Plan, it shall have all the powers of the Committee hereunder, and any
reference herein to the Committee (other than in this Section 4.1) shall
include the Board. To the extent any action of the Board under the Plan
conflicts with actions taken by the Committee, the actions of the Board shall
control.
4.2.
ACTION AND INTERPRETATIONS BY THE
COMMITTEE.
For purposes of administering the Plan, the
Committee may from time to time adopt rules, regulations, guidelines and
procedures for carrying out the provisions and purposes of the Plan and make
such other determinations, not inconsistent with the Plan, as the
Committee
may deem appropriate. The Committee's interpretation of the Plan, any Awards
granted under the Plan, any Award Certificate and all decisions and
determinations by the Committee with respect to the Plan are final, binding, and
conclusive on all parties. Each member of the Committee is entitled to, in good
faith, rely or act upon any report or other information furnished to that member
by any officer or other employee of the Company or any Affiliate, the Company's
or an Affiliate's independent certified public accountants, Company counsel or
any executive compensation consultant or other professional retained by the
Company to assist in the administration of the Plan.
4.3.
AUTHORITY OF
COMMITTEE.
Except as provided below, the Committee has the
exclusive power, authority and discretion to:
(a) Grant
Awards;
(b) Designate
Participants;
(c) Determine
the type or types of Awards to be granted to each Participant;
(d) Determine
the number of Awards to be granted and the number of Shares or dollar amount to
which an Award will relate;
(e) Determine
the terms and conditions of any Award granted under the Plan, including but not
limited to, the exercise price, base price, or purchase price, any restrictions
or limitations on the Award, any schedule for lapse of forfeiture restrictions
or restrictions on the exercisability of an Award, and accelerations or waivers
thereof, based in each case on such considerations as the Committee in its sole
discretion determines;
(f) Accelerate
the vesting, exercisability or lapse of restrictions of any outstanding Award,
in accordance with Article 14, based in each case on such considerations as
the Committee in its sole discretion determines;
(g) Determine
whether, to what extent, and under what circumstances an Award may be settled
in, or the exercise price of an Award may be paid in, cash, Stock, other Awards,
or other property, or an Award may be canceled, forfeited, or
surrendered;
(h) Prescribe
the form of each Award Certificate, which need not be identical for each
Participant;
(i)
Decide all other matters that must be determined in connection with an
Award;
(j)
Establish, adopt or revise any rules, regulations, guidelines or procedures as
it may deem necessary or advisable to administer the Plan;
(k) Make
all other decisions and determinations that may be required under the Plan or as
the Committee deems necessary or advisable to administer the Plan;
(l)
Amend the Plan or any Award Certificate as provided herein; and
(m) Adopt
such modifications, procedures, and subplans as may be necessary or desirable to
comply with provisions of the laws of non-U.S. jurisdictions in which the
Company or any Affiliate may operate, in order to assure the viability of the
benefits of Awards granted to participants located in such other jurisdictions
and to meet the objectives of the Plan.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, grants
of Awards to Non-Employee Directors hereunder shall be made only in accordance
with the terms, conditions and parameters of a plan, program or policy for the
compensation of Non-Employee Directors as in effect from time to time, and the
Committee may not make discretionary grants hereunder to Non-Employee
Directors.
Notwithstanding the above, the Board
may, by resolution, expressly delegate to a special committee, consisting of one
or more directors who may but need not be officers of the Company, the
authority, within specified parameters, to (i) designate officers,
employees and/or consultants of the Company or any of its Affiliates to be
recipients of Awards under the Plan, and (ii) to determine the number of
such Awards to be received by any such Participants; provided, however, that
such delegation of duties and responsibilities to an officer of the Company may
not be made with respect to the grant of Awards to eligible participants
(a) who are subject to Section 16(a) of the 1934 Act at the Grant
Date, or (b) who as of the Grant Date are reasonably anticipated to be
become Covered Employees during the term of the Award. The acts of such
delegates shall be treated hereunder as acts of the Board and such delegates
shall report regularly to the Board and the Compensation Committee regarding the
delegated duties and responsibilities and any Awards so granted.
4.4.
AWARD
CERTIFICATES.
Each Award shall be evidenced by an Award
Certificate. Each Award Certificate shall include such provisions, not
inconsistent with the Plan, as may be specified by the Committee.
ARTICLE
5
SHARES
SUBJECT TO THE PLAN
5.1.
NUMBER OF
SHARES.
Subject to adjustment as provided in Sections 5.2 and
15.1, the aggregate number of Shares reserved and available for issuance
pursuant to Awards granted under the Plan shall be 40,000,000; provided,
however, that each Share issued under the Plan pursuant to a Full Value Award
shall reduce the number of available Shares by two (2) shares. The maximum
number of Shares that may be issued upon exercise of Incentive Stock Options
granted under the Plan shall be 2,000,000.
5.2.
SHARE
COUNTING.
Shares covered by an Award shall be subtracted from
the Plan share reserve as of the date of grant, but shall be added back to the
Plan share reserve in accordance with this Section 5.2.
(a) To
the extent that an Award is canceled, terminates, expires, is forfeited or
lapses for any reason, any unissued or forfeited Shares subject to the Award
will again be available for issuance pursuant to Awards granted under the
Plan.
(b) Shares
subject to Awards settled in cash will again be available for issuance pursuant
to Awards granted under the Plan.
(c) Substitute
Awards granted pursuant to Section 14.14 of the Plan shall not count
against the Shares otherwise available for issuance under the Plan under
Section 5.1.
5.3.
STOCK
DISTRIBUTED.
Any Stock distributed pursuant to an Award may
consist, in whole or in part, of authorized and unissued Stock, treasury Stock
or Stock purchased on the open market.
5.4.
LIMITATION ON
AWARDS.
Notwithstanding any provision in the Plan to the
contrary (but subject to adjustment as provided in Section 15.1), the
maximum number of Shares with respect to one or more Options and/or SARs that
may be granted during any one calendar year under the Plan to any one
Participant shall be 2,000,000. The maximum aggregate grant with respect to
Awards of Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, Deferred Stock Units,
Performance Shares or other Stock-Based Awards (other than Options or SARs)
granted in any one calendar year to any one Participant shall be
2,000,000.
ARTICLE
6
ELIGIBILITY
6.1.
GENERAL.
Awards
may be granted only to Eligible Participants; except that Incentive Stock
Options may be granted to only to Eligible Participants who are employees of the
Company or a Parent or Subsidiary as defined in Section 424(e) and
(f) of the Code. Eligible Participants who are service providers to an
Affiliate may be granted Options or SARs under this Plan only if the Affiliate
qualifies as an "eligible issuer of service recipient stock" within the meaning
of §1.409A-1(b)(5)(iii)(E) of the final regulations under Code
Section 409A.
ARTICLE
7
STOCK
OPTIONS
7.1.
GENERAL.
The
Committee is authorized to grant Options to Participants on the following terms
and conditions:
(a) EXERCISE
PRICE. The exercise price per Share under an Option shall be determined by the
Committee; provided that the exercise price for any Option (other than an Option
issued as a substitute Award pursuant to Section 14.14) shall not be less
than the Fair Market Value as of the Grant Date.
(b) PROHIBITION
ON REPRICING. Except as otherwise provided in Section 15.1, the exercise
price of an Option may not be reduced, directly or indirectly by cancellation
and regrant or otherwise, without the prior approval of the shareholders of the
Company.
(c) TIME
AND CONDITIONS OF EXERCISE. The Committee shall determine the time or times at
which an Option may be exercised in whole or in part, subject to
Section 7.1(e). The Committee shall also determine the performance or other
conditions, if any, that must be satisfied before all or part of an Option may
be exercised or vested.
(d) PAYMENT.
The Committee shall determine the methods by which the exercise price of an
Option may be paid, the form of payment, including, without limitation, cash,
Shares, or other property (including "cashless exercise" arrangements), and the
methods by which Shares shall be delivered or deemed to be delivered to
Participants.
(e) EXERCISE
TERM. No option granted under the Plan shall be exercisable for more than six
years from the Grant Date..
(f)
NO DEFERRAL FEATURE. No Option shall provide for any feature for the
deferral of compensation other than the deferral of recognition of income until
the exercise or disposition of the Option.
(g) SUSPENSION.
Any Participant who is also a participant in the Retirement at Micron ("RAM")
Section 401(k) Plan and who requests and receives a hardship distribution
from the RAM Plan, is prohibited from making, and must suspend, his or her
employee elective contributions and employee contributions including, without
limitation on the foregoing, the exercise of any Option granted from the date of
receipt by that employee of the RAM hardship distribution.
7.2.
INCENTIVE STOCK
OPTIONS.
The terms of any Incentive Stock Options granted
under the Plan must comply with the requirements of Section 422 of the
Code. If all of the requirements of Section 422 of the Code are not met,
the Option shall automatically become a Nonstatutory Stock Option.
ARTICLE
8
STOCK
APPRECIATION RIGHTS
8.1.
GRANT OF STOCK APPRECIATION
RIGHTS.
The Committee is authorized to grant Stock
Appreciation Rights to Participants on the following terms and
conditions:
(a) RIGHT
TO PAYMENT. Upon the exercise of a Stock Appreciation Right, the
Participant to whom it is granted has the right to receive the excess, if any,
of:
(1) The
Fair Market Value of one Share on the date of exercise; over
(2) The
base price of the Stock Appreciation Right as determined by the Committee, which
shall not be less than the Fair Market Value of one Share on the Grant
Date.
(b) PROHIBITION
ON REPRICING. Except as otherwise provided in Section 15.1, the
base price of a SAR may not be reduced, directly or indirectly by cancellation
and regrant or otherwise, without the prior approval of the shareholders of the
Company.
(c) EXERCISE
TERM. No SAR granted under the Plan shall be exercisable for more
than six years from the Grant Date.
(d) NO
DEFERRAL FEATURE. No SAR shall provide for any feature for the
deferral of compensation other than the deferral of recognition of income until
the exercise or disposition of the SAR.
(e) OTHER
TERMS. All awards of Stock Appreciation Rights shall be evidenced by
an Award Certificate. Subject to the limitations of this Article 8, the
terms, methods of exercise, methods of settlement, form of consideration payable
in settlement, and any other terms and conditions of any Stock Appreciation
Right shall be determined by the Committee at the time of the grant of the Award
and shall be reflected in the Award Certificate.
ARTICLE
9
PERFORMANCE
SHARES
9.1.
GRANT OF PERFORMANCE
SHARES.
The Committee is authorized to grant Performance
Shares to Participants on such terms and conditions as may be selected by the
Committee. The Committee shall have the complete discretion to determine the
number of Performance Shares granted to each Participant, subject to
Section 5.4, and to designate the provisions of such Performance Shares as
provided in Section 4.3. All Performance Shares shall be evidenced by an
Award Certificate or a written program established by the Committee, pursuant to
which Performance Shares are awarded under the Plan under uniform terms,
conditions and restrictions set forth in such written program.
9.2.
PERFORMANCE
GOALS.
The Committee may establish performance goals for
Performance Shares which may be based on any criteria selected by the Committee.
Such performance goals may be described in terms of Company-wide objectives or
in terms of objectives that relate to the performance of the Participant, an
Affiliate or a division, region, department or function within the Company or an
Affiliate. If the Committee determines that a change in the business,
operations, corporate structure or capital structure of the Company or the
manner in which the Company or an Affiliate conducts its business, or other
events or circumstances render performance goals to be unsuitable, the Committee
may modify such performance goals in whole or in part, as the Committee deems
appropriate. If a Participant is promoted, demoted or transferred to a different
business unit or function during a performance period, the Committee may
determine that the performance goals or performance period are no longer
appropriate and may (i) adjust, change or eliminate the performance goals
or the applicable performance period as it deems appropriate to make such goals
and period comparable to the initial goals and period, or (ii) make a cash
payment to the participant in amount determined by the Committee. The foregoing
two sentences shall not apply with respect to an Award of Performance Shares
that is intended to be a Qualified Performance-Based Award.
9.3.
RIGHT TO
PAYMENT.
The grant of a Performance Share to a Participant
will entitle the Participant to receive at a specified later time a specified
number of Shares, or the equivalent value in cash or other property, if the
performance goals established by the Committee are achieved and the other terms
and conditions thereof are satisfied. The Committee shall set performance goals
and other terms or conditions to payment of the Performance Shares in its
discretion which, depending on the extent to which they are met, will determine
the number of the Performance Shares that will be earned by the
Participant.
9.4.
OTHER
TERMS.
Performance Shares may be payable in cash, Stock, or
other property, and have such other terms and conditions as determined by the
Committee and reflected in the Award Certificate.
ARTICLE
10
RESTRICTED
STOCK AND RESTRICTED STOCK UNIT AWARDS
10.1.
GRANT OF RESTRICTED STOCK AND
RESTRICTED STOCK UNITS.
Subject to the terms and
conditions
of this Article 10, the Committee is authorized to make Awards of
Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units to Participants in such amounts and
subject to such terms and conditions as may be selected by the Committee. An
Award of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units shall be evidenced by an
Award Certificate setting forth the terms, conditions, and restrictions
applicable to the Award.
10.2.
ISSUANCE AND
RESTRICTIONS.
Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units shall
be subject to such restrictions on transferability and other restrictions as the
Committee may impose (including, without limitation, limitations on the right to
vote Restricted Stock or the right to receive dividends on the Restricted
Stock); provided, however, at a minimum, all Restricted Stock and Restricted
Stock Units shall be subject to the restrictions set forth in Section 14.4
for a period of no less than (a) one year from the date of award with
respect to Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units subject to restrictions
that lapse based upon satisfaction of performance goals, and (b) three
years from the date of award with respect to Restricted Stock or Restricted
Stock Units subject to time-based restrictions that lapse based upon one's
Continuous Status as a Participant. For avoidance of doubt, nothing in the
foregoing shall preclude any applicable restriction, including those set forth
in Section 14.4 hereof, from lapsing ratably, including, but not limited
to, roughly annual increments over three years, with respect to the Restricted
Stock or Restricted Stock Units referred to in Section 10.2(b). Moreover,
nothing in the foregoing shall preclude or be interpreted to preclude Awards to
Non-employee Directors from containing a period of restriction shorter than that
set forth above. Finally, nothing in this Section 10.2 shall be deemed or
interpreted to preclude the waiver, lapse or the acceleration of lapse, of any
restrictions with respect to Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units in
accordance with or as permitted by Sections 14.7 through Section 14.9,
respectively, Article 15 or any other provision of the Plan. Subject to the
remaining terms and conditions of the Plan, these restrictions may lapse
separately or in combination at such times, under such circumstances, in such
installments, upon the satisfaction of performance goals or otherwise, as the
Committee determines at the time of the grant of the Award or thereafter. Except
as otherwise provided in an Award Certificate or any special Plan document
governing an Award, the Participant shall have all of the rights of a
stockholder with respect to the Restricted Stock, and the Participant shall have
none of the rights of a stockholder with respect to Restricted Stock Units until
such time as Shares of Stock are paid in settlement of the Restricted Stock
Units.
10.3.
FORFEITURE.
Except
as otherwise determined by the Committee at the time of the grant of the Award
or thereafter, upon termination of Continuous Status as a Participant during the
applicable restriction period or upon failure to satisfy a performance goal
during the applicable restriction period, Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock
Units that are at that time subject to restrictions shall be forfeited;
provided, however, that the Committee may provide in any Award Certificate,
subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan, that restrictions or forfeiture
conditions relating to Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units will be waived
in whole or in part in the event of terminations resulting from specified
causes, including, but not limited to, death, Disability, or for the convenience
or in the best interests of the Company.
10.4.
DELIVERY OF RESTRICTED
STOCK.
Shares of Restricted Stock shall be delivered to the
Participant at the time of grant either by book-entry registration or by
delivering to the Participant, or a custodian or escrow agent (including,
without limitation, the Company or one or more of its employees) designated by
the Committee, a stock certificate or certificates registered in the name of the
Participant. If physical certificates representing shares of Restricted Stock
are registered in the name of the Participant, such certificates must bear an
appropriate legend referring to the terms, conditions, and restrictions
applicable to such Restricted Stock.
ARTICLE
11
DEFERRED
STOCK UNITS
11.1.
GRANT OF DEFERRED STOCK
UNITS.
The Committee is authorized to grant Deferred Stock
Units to Participants subject to such terms and conditions as may be selected by
the Committee. Deferred Stock Units shall entitle the Participant to receive
Shares of Stock (or the equivalent value in cash or other property if so
determined by the Committee) at a future time as determined by the Committee, or
as determined by the Participant within guidelines established by the Committee
in the case of voluntary deferral elections. An Award of Deferred Stock Units
shall be evidenced by an Award Certificate setting forth the terms and
conditions applicable to the Award.
ARTICLE
12
DIVIDEND
EQUIVALENTS
12.1.
GRANT OF DIVIDEND
EQUIVALENTS.
The Committee is authorized to grant Dividend
Equivalents to Participants subject to such terms and conditions as may be
selected by the Committee. Dividend Equivalents shall entitle the Participant to
receive payments equal to dividends with respect to all or a portion of the
number of Shares subject to an Award, as determined by the Committee. The
Committee may provide that Dividend Equivalents be paid or distributed when
accrued or be deemed to have been reinvested in additional Shares, or otherwise
reinvested. Unless otherwise provided in the applicable Award Certificate,
Dividend Equivalents will be paid or distributed no later than the 15
th
day of
the 3
rd
month
following the later of (i) the calendar year in which the corresponding
dividends were paid to shareholders, or (ii) the first calendar year in
which the Participant's right to such Dividends Equivalents is no longer subject
to a substantial risk of forfeiture.
ARTICLE
13
STOCK
OR OTHER STOCK-BASED AWARDS
13.1.
GRANT OF STOCK OR OTHER STOCK-BASED
AWARDS.
The Committee is authorized, subject to limitations
under applicable law, to grant to Participants such other Awards that are
payable in, valued in whole or in part by reference to, or otherwise based on or
related to Shares, as deemed by the Committee to be consistent with the purposes
of the Plan, including without limitation Shares awarded purely as a "bonus" and
not subject to any restrictions or conditions, convertible or exchangeable debt
securities, other rights convertible or exchangeable into Shares, and Awards
valued by reference to book value of Shares or the value of securities of or the
performance of specified Parents or Subsidiaries. The Committee shall determine
the terms and conditions of such Awards.
ARTICLE
14
PROVISIONS
APPLICABLE TO AWARDS
14.1.
STAND-ALONE AND TANDEM
AWARDS.
Awards granted under the Plan may, in the discretion
of the Committee, be granted either alone or in addition to, in tandem with, any
other Award granted under the Plan. Subject to Section 16.2, awards granted
in addition to or in tandem with other Awards may be granted either at the same
time as or at a different time from the grant of such other Awards.
14.2.
TERM OF AWARD.
The
term of each Award shall be for the period as determined by the Committee,
provided that in no event shall the term of any Incentive Stock Option or a
Stock Appreciation Right granted in tandem with the Incentive Stock Option
exceed a period of ten years from its Grant Date.
14.3.
FORM
OF PAYMENT FOR AWARDS.
Subject to the terms of the Plan and
any applicable law or Award Certificate, payments or transfers to be made by the
Company or an Affiliate on the grant or exercise of an Award may be made in such
form as the Committee determines at or after the Grant Date, including without
limitation, cash, Stock, other Awards, or other property, or any combination,
and may be made in a single payment or transfer, in installments, or (except
with respect to Options or SARs) on a deferred basis, in each case determined in
accordance with rules adopted by, and at the discretion of, the
Committee.
14.4.
LIMITS ON
TRANSFER.
No right or interest of a Participant in any
unexercised or restricted Award may be pledged, encumbered, or hypothecated to
or in favor of any party other than the Company or an Affiliate, or shall be
subject to any lien, obligation, or liability of such Participant to any other
party other than the Company or an Affiliate. No unexercised or restricted Award
shall be assignable or transferable by a Participant other than by will or the
laws of descent and distribution or, except in the case of an Incentive Stock
Option, pursuant to a domestic relations order that would satisfy
Section 414(p)(1)(A) of the Code if such Section applied to an Award under
the Plan; provided, however, that the Committee may (but need not) permit other
transfers where the Committee concludes that such transferability (i) does
not result in accelerated taxation, (ii) does not cause any Option intended
to be an Incentive Stock Option to fail to be described in Code
Section 422(b), and (iii) is otherwise appropriate and desirable,
taking into account any factors deemed relevant, including without limitation,
state or federal tax or securities laws applicable to transferable
Awards.
14.5.
BENEFICIARIES.
Notwithstanding
Section 14.4, a Participant may, in the manner determined by the Committee,
designate a beneficiary to exercise the rights of the Participant and to receive
any distribution with
respect
to any Award upon the Participant's death. A beneficiary, legal guardian, legal
representative, or other person claiming any rights under the Plan is subject to
all terms and conditions of the Plan and any Award Certificate applicable to the
Participant, except to the extent the Plan and Award Certificate otherwise
provide, and to any additional restrictions deemed necessary or appropriate by
the Committee. If no beneficiary has been designated or survives the
Participant, payment shall be made to the Participant's estate. Subject to the
foregoing, a beneficiary designation may be changed or revoked by a Participant
at any time provided the change or revocation is filed with the
Committee.
14.6.
STOCK TRADING
RESTRICTIONS.
All Stock issuable under the Plan is subject to
any stop-transfer orders and other restrictions as the Committee deems necessary
or advisable to comply with federal or state securities laws, rules and
regulations and the rules of any national securities exchange or automated
quotation system on which the Stock is listed, quoted, or traded. The Committee
may place legends on any Stock certificate or issue instructions to the transfer
agent to reference restrictions applicable to the Stock.
14.7.
ACCELERATION UPON A CHANGE IN
CONTROL.
Except as otherwise provided in the Award Certificate
or any special Plan document governing an Award, upon the occurrence of a Change
in Control, all outstanding Options, SARs, and other Awards in the nature of
rights that may be exercised shall become fully exercisable, and all time-based
vesting restrictions on outstanding Awards shall lapse. Except as otherwise
provided in the Award Certificate or any special Plan document governing an
Award, upon the occurrence of a Change in Control, the target payout
opportunities attainable under all outstanding performance-based Awards shall be
deemed to have been fully earned as of the effective date of the Change in
Control based upon an assumed achievement of all relevant performance goals at
the "target" level and there shall be prorata payout to Participants within
thirty (30) days following the effective date of the Change in Control (or
any later date required by Section 17.3 of the Plan) based upon the length
of time within the performance period that has elapsed prior to the Change in
Control.
14.8.
ACCELERATION UPON DEATH OR
DISABILITY.
Except as otherwise provided in the Award
Certificate or any special Plan document governing an Award, upon the
Participant's death or Disability during his or her Continuous Status as a
Participant, (i) all of such Participant's outstanding Options, SARs, and
other Awards in the nature of rights that may be exercised shall become fully
exercisable, (ii) all time-based vesting restrictions on the Participant's
outstanding Awards shall lapse, and (iii) the target payout opportunities
attainable under all of such Participant's outstanding performance-based Awards
shall be deemed to have been fully earned as of the date of termination based
upon an assumed achievement of all relevant performance goals at the "target"
level and there shall be a prorata payout to the Participant or his or her
estate within thirty (30) days following the date of termination (or any
later date required by Section 17.3 of the Plan) based upon the length of
time within the performance period that has elapsed prior to the date of
termination. Any Awards shall thereafter continue or lapse in accordance with
the other provisions of the Plan and the Awards Certificate. To the extent that
this provision causes Incentive Stock Options to exceed the dollar limitation
set forth in Code Section 422(d), the excess Options shall be deemed to be
Nonstatutory Stock Options.
14.9.
ACCELERATION FOR ANY OTHER
REASON.
Regardless of whether an event has occurred as
described in Section 14.7 or 14.8 above, and subject to Section 14.11
as to Qualified Performance-Based Awards, the Committee may in its sole
discretion at any time determine that all or a portion of a Participant's
Options, SARs, and other Awards in the nature of rights that may be exercised
shall become fully or partially exercisable, that all or a part of the
time-based vesting restrictions on all or a portion of the outstanding Awards
shall lapse, and/or that any performance-based criteria with respect to any
Awards shall be deemed to be wholly or partially satisfied, in each case, as of
such date as the Committee may, in its sole discretion, declare; provided,
however, the Committee shall not exercise such discretion with respect to Full
Value Awards comprised of Shares of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units
which, in the aggregate, exceed five percent (5%) of the aggregate number of
Shares reserved and available for issuance pursuant to Awards granted under the
Plan; provided, further, that when calculating whether the five percent (5%)
maximum has been reached, the Committee shall not count or consider any Shares
of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units granted to Non-Employee Directors
or regarding which the Committee accelerated vesting rights, waived restrictions
or determined performance-based criteria had been satisfied resulting from an
event described in Section 14.7, Article 15, a Participant's
termination of employment or separation from service resulting from death,
Disability or for the convenience or in the bests interests of the Company. The
Committee may discriminate among Participants and among Awards granted to a
Participant in exercising its discretion pursuant to this
Section 14.9.
14.10.
EFFECT OF
ACCELERATION.
If an Award is accelerated under
Section 14.7, Section 14.8 or Section 14.9, the Committee may, in
its sole discretion, provide (i) that the Award will expire after a
designated period of time after such acceleration to the extent not then
exercised, (ii) that the Award will be settled in cash rather than Stock,
(iii) that the Award will be assumed by another party to a transaction
giving rise to the acceleration or otherwise be equitably converted or
substituted in connection with such transaction, (iv) that the Award may be
settled by payment in cash or cash equivalents equal to the excess of the Fair
Market Value of the underlying Stock, as of a specified date associated with the
transaction, over the exercise price of the Award, or (v) any combination
of the foregoing. The Committee's determination need not be uniform and may be
different for different Participants whether or not such Participants are
similarly situated. To the extent that such acceleration causes Incentive Stock
Options to exceed the dollar limitation set forth in Code Section 422(d),
the excess Options shall be deemed to be Nonstatutory Stock
Options.
14.11.
QUALIFIED PERFORMANCE-BASED
AWARDS.
(a) The
provisions of the Plan are intended to ensure that all Options and Stock
Appreciation Rights granted hereunder to any Covered Employee shall qualify for
the Section 162(m) Exemption; provided that the exercise or base price of
such Award is not less than the Fair Market Value of the Shares on the Grant
Date.
(b) When
granting any other Award, the Committee may designate such Award as a Qualified
Performance-Based Award, based upon a determination that the recipient is or may
be a Covered Employee with respect to such Award, and the Committee wishes such
Award to qualify for the Section 162(m) Exemption. If an Award is so
designated, the Committee shall establish performance goals for such Award
within the time period prescribed by Section 162(m) of the Code based on
one or more of the following Qualified Business Criteria, which may be expressed
in terms of Company-wide objectives or in terms of objectives that relate to the
performance of an Affiliate or a unit, division, region, department or function
within the Company or an Affiliate:
·
|
Gross
and/or net revenue (including whether in the aggregate or attributable to
specific products)
|
·
|
Cost
of Goods Sold and Gross Margin
|
·
|
Costs
and expenses, including Research & Development and Selling,
General & Administrative
|
·
|
Income
(gross, operating, net, etc.)
|
·
|
Earnings,
including before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (whether
in the aggregate or on a per share
basis
|
·
|
Cash
flows and share price
|
·
|
Return
on investment, capital, equity
|
·
|
Manufacturing
efficiency (including yield enhancement and cycle time reductions),
quality improvements and customer
satisfaction
|
·
|
Product
life cycle management (including product and technology design,
development, transfer, manufacturing introduction, and sales price
optimization and management)
|
·
|
Economic
profit or loss
|
·
|
Employee
retention, compensation, training and development, including succession
planning
|
·
|
Objective
goals consistent with the Participant's specific duties and
responsibilities, designed to further the financial, operational and other
business interests of the Company, including goals and objectives with
respect to regulatory compliance
matters.
|
Performance goals with respect to the
foregoing Qualified Business Criteria may be specified in absolute terms
(including completion of pre-established projects, such as the introduction of
specified products), in percentages, or in terms of growth from period to period
or growth rates over time as well as measured relative to an established or
specially-created performance index of Company competitors, peers or other
members of high tech industries. Any member of an index that disappears during a
measurement period shall be disregarded for the entire measurement period.
Performance Goals need not be based upon an increase or positive result under a
business criterion and could include, for example, the maintenance of the status
quo or the limitation of economic losses (measured, in each case, by reference
to a specific business criterion).
(c) Each
Qualified Performance-Based Award (other than an Option or SAR) shall be earned,
vested and payable (as applicable) only upon the achievement of performance
goals established by the Committee based upon one or more of the Qualified
Business Criteria, together with the satisfaction of any other conditions,
including the condition as to continued employment as set forth in subsection
(g) below, as the Committee may determine to be appropriate; provided,
however, that the Committee may provide, in its sole and absolute discretion,
either in connection with the grant thereof or by amendment thereafter, that
achievement of such performance goals will be waived upon the death or
Disability of the Participant, or upon a Change in Control. In addition, the
Committee has the right, in connection with the grant of a Qualified
Performance-Based Award, to exercise negative discretion to determine that the
portion of such Award actually earned, vested and /or payable (as applicable)
shall be less than the portion that would be earned, vested and/or payable based
solely upon application of the applicable performance goals. Performance periods
established by the Committee for any such Qualified Performance-Based Award may
be as short as ninety (90) days and may be any longer period.
(d) The
Committee may provide in any Qualified Performance-Based Award, at the time the
performance goals are established, that any evaluation of performance shall
include, exclude or otherwise equitably adjust for any of the following events
that occurs during a performance period: (a) asset write-downs or
impairment charges; (b) litigation or claim judgments or settlements;
(c) the effect of changes in tax laws, accounting principles or other laws
or provisions affecting reported results; (d) accruals for reorganization
and restructuring programs; (e) extraordinary nonrecurring items as
described in Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 30 and /or in
management's discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of
operations appearing in the Company's annual report to stockholders for the
applicable year; (f) acquisitions or divestitures; and (g) foreign
exchange gains and losses. To the extent such inclusions or exclusions affect
Awards to Covered Employees, they shall be prescribed in a form and at a time
that meets the requirements of Code Section 162(m) for
deductibility.
(e) Any
payment of a Qualified Performance-Based Award granted with performance goals
pursuant to subsection (c) above shall be conditioned on the written
certification of the Committee in each case that the performance goals and any
other material conditions were satisfied. Written certification may take the
form of a Committee resolution passed by a majority of the Committee at a
properly convened meeting or through unanimous action by the Committee via
action by written consent. The certification requirement also may be satisfied
by a separate writing executed by the Chairman of the Committee, acting in his
capacity as such, following the foregoing Committee action or by the Chairman
executing approved minutes of the Committee in which such determinations were
made. Except as specifically provided in subsection (c), no Qualified
Performance-Based Award held by a Covered Employee or an employee who in the
reasonable judgment of the Committee may be a Covered Employee on the date of
payment, may be amended, nor may the Committee exercise any discretionary
authority it may otherwise have under the Plan with respect to a Qualified
Performance-Based Award under the Plan, in any manner to waive the achievement
of the applicable performance goal based on Qualified Business Criteria or to
increase the amount payable pursuant thereto or the value thereof, or otherwise
in a manner that would cause the Qualified Performance-Based Award to cease to
qualify for the Section 162(m) Exemption.
(f) Section 5.4
sets forth the maximum number of Shares that may be granted in any one-year
period to a Participant in designated forms of stock-based Awards.
(g) With
respect to a Participant who is an officer of the Company, any payment of a
Qualified Performance-Based Award granted with performance goals pursuant to
subsection (c) above shall be conditioned on the officer having remained
continuously employed by the Company or an Affiliate for the entire performance
or measurement period, including, as well, through the date of determination and
certification of the payment of any such Award pursuant to subsection
(e) above (the "Certification Date"). For purposes of the Plan, with
respect to any given performance or measurement period, an officer of the
Company (i) who terminates employment (regardless of cause) or who
otherwise ceases to be an officer, prior to the Certification Date, and
(ii) who, pursuant to a separate contractual arrangement with the Company
is entitled to receive payments from the Company thereunder extending to or
beyond such Certification Date as a result of such termination or cessation in
officer status, shall be deemed to have been employed by the Company as an
officer through the Certification Date for purposes of payment
eligibility.
14.12.
TERMINATION OF
EMPLOYMENT.
Whether military, government or other service or
other leave of absence shall constitute a termination of employment shall be
determined in each case by the Committee at its discretion, and any
determination by the Committee shall be final and conclusive. A Participant's
Continuous Status as a Participant shall not be deemed to terminate (i) in
a circumstance in which a Participant transfers from the Company to an
Affiliate, transfers from an Affiliate to the Company, or transfers from one
Affiliate to another Affiliate, or (ii) in the discretion of the Committee
as specified at or prior to such occurrence, in the case of a spin-off, sale or
disposition of the Participant's employer from the Company or any Affiliate. To
the extent that this provision causes Incentive Stock Options to extend beyond
three months from the date a Participant is deemed to be an employee of the
Company, a Parent or Subsidiary for purposes of Sections 424(e) and 424(f) of
the Code, the Options held by such Participant shall be deemed to be
Nonstatutory Stock Options.
14.13.
FORFEITURE
EVENTS.
The Committee may specify in an Award Certificate that
the Participant's rights, payments and benefits with respect to an Award shall
be subject to reduction, cancellation, forfeiture or recoupment upon the
occurrence of certain specified events, in addition to any otherwise applicable
vesting or performance conditions of an Award. Such events shall include, but
shall not be limited to, termination of employment for cause, violation of
material Company or Affiliate policies, breach of noncompetition,
confidentiality or other restrictive covenants that may apply to the
Participant, or other conduct by the Participant that is detrimental to the
business or reputation of the Company or any Affiliate.
14.14.
SUBSTITUTE
AWARDS.
The Committee may grant Awards under the Plan in
substitution for stock and stock-based awards held by employees of another
entity who become employees of the Company or an Affiliate as a result of a
merger or consolidation of the former employing entity with the Company or an
Affiliate or the acquisition by the Company or an Affiliate of property or stock
of the former employing corporation. The Committee may direct that the
substitute awards be granted on such terms and conditions as the Committee
considers appropriate in the circumstances.
ARTICLE
15
CHANGES
IN CAPITAL STRUCTURE
15.1.
MANDATORY
ADJUSTMENTS.
In the event of a nonreciprocal transaction
between the Company and its stockholders that causes the per-share value of the
Stock to change (including, without limitation, any stock dividend, stock split,
spin-off, rights offering, or large nonrecurring cash dividend), the
authorization limits under Section 5.1 and 5.4 shall be adjusted
proportionately, and the Committee shall make such adjustments to the Plan and
Awards as it deems necessary, in its sole discretion, to prevent dilution or
enlargement of rights immediately resulting from such transaction. Action by the
Committee may include: (i) adjustment of the number and kind of shares that
may be delivered under the Plan; (ii) adjustment of the number and kind of
shares subject to outstanding Awards; (iii) adjustment of the exercise
price of outstanding Awards or the measure to be used to determine the amount of
the benefit payable on an Award; and (iv) any other adjustments that the
Committee determines to be equitable. Without limiting the foregoing, in the
event of a subdivision of the outstanding Stock (stock-split), a declaration of
a dividend payable in Shares, or a combination or consolidation of the
outstanding Stock into a lesser number of Shares, the authorization limits under
Section 5.1 and 5.4 shall automatically be adjusted proportionately, and
the Shares then subject to each Award shall automatically, without the necessity
for any additional action by the Committee, be adjusted proportionately without
any change in the aggregate purchase price therefor.
15.2.
DISCRETIONARY
ADJUSTMENTS.
Upon the occurrence or in anticipation of any
corporate event or transaction involving the Company (including, without
limitation, any merger, reorganization, recapitalization, combination or
exchange of shares, or any transaction described in Section 15.1), the
Committee may, in its sole discretion, provide (i) that Awards will be
settled in cash rather than Stock, (ii) that Awards will become immediately
vested and exercisable and will expire after a designated period of time to the
extent not then exercised, (iii) that Awards will be assumed by another
party to a transaction or otherwise be equitably converted or substituted in
connection with such transaction, (iv) that outstanding Awards may be
settled by payment in cash or cash equivalents equal to the excess of the Fair
Market Value of the underlying Stock, as of a specified date associated with the
transaction, over the exercise price of the Award, (v) that performance
targets and performance periods for Performance Awards will be modified,
consistent with Code Section 162(m) where applicable, or (vi) any
combination of the foregoing. The Committee's determination need not be uniform
and may be different for different Participants whether or not such Participants
are similarly situated.
15.3.
GENERAL.
Any
discretionary adjustments made pursuant to this Article 15 shall be subject
to the provisions of Section 16.2. To the extent that any adjustments made
pursuant to this Article 15 cause Incentive Stock Options to cease to
qualify as Incentive Stock Options, such Options shall be deemed to be
Nonstatutory Stock Options.
ARTICLE
16
AMENDMENT,
MODIFICATION AND TERMINATION
16.1.
AMENDMENT, MODIFICATION AND
TERMINATION.
The Board or the Committee may, at any time and
from time to time, amend, modify or terminate the Plan without stockholder
approval; provided, however, that if an amendment to the Plan would, in the
reasonable opinion of the Board or the Committee, either (i) materially
increase the number of Shares available under the Plan, (ii) expand the
types of awards under the Plan, (iii) materially expand the class of
participants eligible to participate in the Plan, (iv) materially extend
the term of the Plan, or (v) otherwise constitute a material change
requiring stockholder approval under applicable laws, policies or regulations or
the applicable listing or other requirements of an Exchange, then such amendment
shall be subject to stockholder approval; and provided, further, that the Board
or Committee may condition any other amendment or modification on the approval
of stockholders of the Company for any reason, including by reason of such
approval being necessary or deemed advisable to (i) to comply with the
listing or other requirements of an Exchange, or (ii) to satisfy any other
tax, securities or other applicable laws, policies or regulations.
16.2.
AWARDS PREVIOUSLY
GRANTED.
At any time and from time to time, the Committee may
amend, modify or terminate any outstanding Award without approval of the
Participant; provided, however:
(a) Subject
to the terms of the applicable Award Certificate, such amendment, modification
or termination shall not, without the Participant's consent, reduce or diminish
the value of such Award
determined
as if the Award had been exercised, vested, cashed in or otherwise settled on
the date of such amendment or termination (with the per-share value of an Option
or Stock Appreciation Right for this purpose being calculated as the excess, if
any, of the Fair Market Value as of the date of such amendment or termination
over the exercise or base price of such Award);
(b) The
original term of an Option may not be extended without the prior approval of the
stockholders of the Company;
(c) Except
as otherwise provided in Article 15, the exercise price of an Option may
not be reduced, directly or indirectly, without the prior approval of the
stockholders of the Company; and
(d) No
termination, amendment, or modification of the Plan shall adversely affect any
Award previously granted under the Plan, without the written consent of the
Participant affected thereby. An outstanding Award shall not be deemed to be
"adversely affected" by a Plan amendment if such amendment would not reduce or
diminish the value of such Award determined as if the Award had been exercised,
vested, cashed in or otherwise settled on the date of such amendment (with the
per-share value of an Option or Stock Appreciation Right for this purpose being
calculated as the excess, if any, of the Fair Market Value as of the date of
such amendment over the exercise or base price of such Award).
16.3.
COMPLIANCE
AMENDMENTS.
Notwithstanding anything in the Plan or in any
Award Certificate to the contrary, the Committee may amend the Plan or an Award
Certificate, to take effect retroactively or otherwise, as deemed necessary or
advisable for the purpose of conforming the Plan or Award Certificate to any
present or future law relating to plans of this or similar nature (including,
but not limited to, Section 409A of the Code), and to the administrative
regulations and rulings promulgated thereunder. By accepting an Award under this
Plan, a Participant agrees to any amendment made pursuant to this
Section 16.3 to any Award granted under the Plan without further
consideration or action.
ARTICLE
17
GENERAL
PROVISIONS
17.1.
NO RIGHTS TO AWARDS; NON-UNIFORM
DETERMINATIONS.
No Participant or any Eligible Participant
shall have any claim to be granted any Award under the Plan. Neither the
Company, its Affiliates nor the Committee is obligated to treat Participants or
Eligible Participants uniformly, and determinations made under the Plan may be
made by the Committee selectively among Eligible Participants who receive, or
are eligible to receive, Awards (whether or not such Eligible Participants are
similarly situated).
17.2.
NO STOCKHOLDER
RIGHTS.
No Award gives a Participant any of the rights of a
stockholder of the Company unless and until Shares are in fact issued to such
person in connection with such Award.
17.3.
SPECIAL PROVISIONS RELATED TO
SECTION 409A OF THE CODE.
(a) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Award Certificate to the contrary, to the extent
that any amount or benefit that would constitute non-exempt "deferred
compensation" for purposes of Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be
payable or distributable under the Plan or any Award Certificate by reason of
the occurrence of a Change in Control, or the Participant's Disability or
separation from service, such amount or benefit will not be payable or
distributable to the Participant by reason of such circumstance unless
(i) the circumstances giving rise to such Change in Control, Disability or
separation from service meet any description or definition of "change in control
event", "disability" or "separation from service", as the case may be, in
Section 409A of the Code and applicable regulations (without giving effect
to any elective provisions that may be available under such definition), or
(ii) the payment or distribution of such amount or benefit would be exempt
from the application of Section 409A of the Code by reason of the
short-term deferral exemption or otherwise. This provision does not prohibit the
vesting
of any Award
upon a Change in Control, Disability or separation from service, however
defined. If this provision prevents the payment or distribution of any amount or
benefit, such payment or distribution shall be made on the next earliest payment
or distribution date or event specified in the Award Certificate that is
permissible under Section 409A.
(b) If
any one or more Awards granted under the Plan to a Participant could qualify for
any separation pay exemption described in Treas. Reg.
Section 1.409A-1(b)(9), but such Awards in the aggregate exceed the dollar
limit permitted for the separation pay exemptions, the Company (acting through
the Committee or the Company's President) shall determine which Awards or
portions thereof will be subject to such exemptions.
(c) Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Award Certificate to the contrary, if any amount
or benefit that would constitute non-exempt "deferred compensation" for purposes
of Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable
under this Plan or any Award Certificate by reason of a Participant's separation
from service during a period in which the Participant is a Specified Employee
(as defined below), then, subject to any permissible acceleration of payment by
the Committee under Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic
relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of interest), or
(j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):
(i) if
the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, the Participant's right to
receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be
delayed until the earlier of the Participant's death or the first day of the
seventh month following the Participant's separation from service;
and
(ii) if
the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt
deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month
period immediately following the Participant's separation from service will be
accumulated and the Participant's right to receive payment or distribution of
such accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of the Participant's
death or the first day of the seventh month following the Participant's
separation from service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or
distributed to the Participant and the normal payment or distribution schedule
for any remaining payments or distributions will resume.
For purposes of this Plan, the term
"Specified Employee" has the meaning given such term in Code Section 409A
and the final regulations thereunder,
provided, however
, that, as
permitted in such final regulations, the Company's Specified Employees and its
application of the six-month delay rule of Code
Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) shall be determined in accordance with rules
adopted by the Board or any committee of the Board, which shall be applied
consistently with respect to all nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements
of the Company, including this Plan.
17.4.
WITHHOLDING.
The
Company or any Affiliate shall have the authority and the right to deduct or
withhold, or require a Participant to remit to the Company, an amount sufficient
to satisfy federal, state, and local taxes (including the Participant's FICA
obligation) required by law to be withheld with respect to any exercise, lapse
of restriction or other taxable event arising as a result of the Plan. With
respect to withholding required upon any taxable event under the Plan, the
Committee may, at the time the Award is granted or thereafter, require or permit
that any such withholding requirement be satisfied, in whole or in part, by
withholding from the Award Shares having a Fair Market Value on the date of
withholding equal to the minimum amount (and not any greater amount) required to
be withheld for tax purposes, all in accordance with such procedures as the
Committee establishes. All such elections shall be subject to any restrictions
or limitations that the Committee, in its sole discretion, deems
appropriate.
17.5.
NO RIGHT TO CONTINUED
SERVICE.
Nothing in the Plan, any Award Certificate or any
other document or statement made with respect to the Plan, shall interfere with
or limit in any way the right of the Company or any Affiliate to terminate any
Participant's employment or status as an officer, director or consultant at any
time, nor confer upon any Participant any right to continue as an employee,
officer, director or consultant of the Company or any Affiliate, whether for the
duration of a Participant's Award or otherwise. Neither an Award nor any
benefits arising under this Plan shall constitute an employment contract with
the Company or any Affiliate and, accordingly, subject to Article 16, this
Plan and the benefits hereunder may be terminated at any time in the sole and
exclusive discretion of the Board of Directors without giving rise to any
liability on the part of the Company or an of its Affiliates.
17.6.
UNFUNDED STATUS OF
AWARDS.
The Plan is intended to be an "unfunded" plan for
incentive and deferred compensation. With respect to any payments not yet made
to a Participant pursuant to an Award, nothing contained in the Plan or any
Award Certificate shall give the Participant any rights that are greater than
those of a general creditor of the Company or any Affiliate. This Plan is not
intended to be subject to ERISA.
17.7.
RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER
BENEFITS.
No payment under the Plan shall be taken into
account in determining any benefits under any pension, retirement, savings,
profit sharing, group insurance, welfare or benefit plan of the Company or any
Affiliate unless provided otherwise in such other plan.
17.8.
EXPENSES.
The
expenses of administering the Plan shall be borne by the Company and its
Affiliates.
17.9.
TITLES AND
HEADINGS.
The titles and headings of the Sections in the Plan
are for convenience of reference only, and in the event of any conflict, the
text of the Plan, rather than such titles or headings, shall
control.
17.10.
GENDER AND
NUMBER.
Except where otherwise indicated by the context, any
masculine term used herein also shall include the feminine; the plural shall
include the singular and the singular shall include the plural.
17.11.
FRACTIONAL
SHARES.
No fractional Shares shall be issued and the Committee
shall determine, in its discretion, whether cash shall be given in lieu of
fractional Shares or whether such fractional Shares shall be eliminated by
rounding up or down.
17.12.
GOVERNMENT AND OTHER
REGULATIONS.
(a) Notwithstanding
any other provision of the Plan, no Participant who acquires Shares pursuant to
the Plan may, during any period of time that such Participant is an affiliate of
the Company (within the meaning of the rules and regulations of the Securities
and Exchange Commission under the 1933 Act), sell such Shares, unless such offer
and sale is made (i) pursuant to an effective registration statement under
the 1933 Act, which is current and includes the Shares to be sold, or
(ii) pursuant to an appropriate exemption from the registration requirement
of the 1933 Act, such as that set forth in Rule 144 promulgated under the
1933 Act.
(b) Notwithstanding
any other provision of the Plan, if at any time the Committee shall determine
that the registration, listing or qualification of the Shares covered by an
Award upon any Exchange or under any foreign, federal, state or local law or
practice, or the consent or approval of any governmental regulatory body, is
necessary or desirable as a condition of, or in connection with, the granting of
such Award or the purchase or receipt of Shares thereunder, no Shares may be
purchased, delivered or received pursuant to such Award unless and until such
registration, listing, qualification, consent or approval shall have been
effected or obtained free of any condition not acceptable to the Committee. Any
Participant receiving or purchasing Shares pursuant to an Award shall make such
representations and agreements and furnish such information as the Committee may
request to assure compliance with the foregoing or any other applicable legal
requirements. The Company shall not be required to issue or deliver any
certificate or certificates for Shares under the Plan prior to the Committee's
determination that all related requirements have been fulfilled. The Company
shall in no event be obligated to register any securities pursuant to the 1933
Act or applicable state or foreign law or to take any other action in order to
cause the issuance and delivery of such certificates to comply with any such
law, regulation or requirement.
17.13.
GOVERNING LAW.
To
the extent not governed by federal law, the Plan and all Award Certificates
shall be construed in accordance with and governed by the laws of the State of
Delaware.
17.14.
ADDITIONAL
PROVISIONS.
Each Award Certificate may contain such other
terms and conditions as the Committee may determine; provided that such other
terms and conditions are not inconsistent with the provisions of the
Plan.
17.15.
NO LIMITATIONS ON RIGHTS OF
COMPANY.
The grant of any Award shall not in any way affect
the right or power of the Company to make adjustments, reclassification or
changes in its capital or business structure or to merge, consolidate, dissolve,
liquidate, sell or transfer all or any part of its business or assets. The Plan
shall not restrict the authority of the Company, for proper corporate purposes,
to draft or assume awards, other than under the Plan, to or with respect to any
person. If the Committee so directs, the Company may issue or transfer Shares to
an Affiliate, for such lawful consideration as the Committee may specify, upon
the condition or understanding that the Affiliate will transfer such Shares to a
Participant in accordance with the terms of an Award granted to such Participant
and specified by the Committee pursuant to the provisions of the
Plan.
17.16.
INDEMNIFICATION.
Each
person who is or shall have been a member of the Committee, or of the Board, or
an officer of the Company to whom authority was delegated in accordance with
Article 4 shall be indemnified and held harmless by the Company against and
from any loss, cost, liability, or expense that may be imposed upon or
reasonably incurred by him or her in connection with or resulting from any
claim, action, suit, or proceeding to which he or she may be a party or in which
he or she may be involved by reason of any action taken or failure to act under
the Plan and against and from any and all amounts paid by him or her in
settlement thereof, with the Company's approval, or paid by him or her in
satisfaction of any judgment in any such action, suit, or proceeding against him
or her, provided he or she shall give the Company an opportunity, at its own
expense, to handle and defend the same before he or she undertakes to handle and
defend it on his or her own behalf, unless such loss, cost, liability, or
expense is a result of his or her own willful misconduct or except as expressly
provided by statute. The foregoing right of indemnification shall not be
exclusive of any other rights of indemnification to which such persons may be
entitled under the Company's Certificate of Incorporation or Bylaws, as a matter
of law, or otherwise, or any power that the Company may have to indemnify them
or hold them harmless.
20
Exhibit
10.64
LEXAR
MEDIA, INC.
1996 STOCK OPTION/STOCK
ISSUANCE PLAN
(As
Adopted December 18, 1996 and Amended May 9, 1997, October 30,
1998,
September
15, 1999 and December 8, 1999)
ARTICLE
ONE
GENERAL
PROVISIONS
I.
PURPOSE OF THE PLAN
This 1996 Stock Option/Stock Issuance
Plan is intended to promote the interests of Lexar Media, Inc., a California
corporation, by providing eligible persons with the opportunity to acquire a
proprietary interest, or otherwise increase their proprietary interest, in the
Corporation as an incentive for them to remain in the service of the
Corporation.
Capitalized terms herein shall have the
meanings assigned to such terms in the attached Appendix.
II.
STRUCTURE OF THE PLAN
A. The
Plan shall be divided into two (2) separate equity programs:
(i) the
Option Grant Program under which eligible persons may, at the discretion of the
Plan Administrator, be granted options to purchase shares of Common Stock,
and
(ii) the
Stock Issuance Program under which eligible persons may at the discretion of the
Plan Administrator, be issued shares of Common Stock directly, either through
the immediate purchase of such shares or as a bonus for services rendered the
Corporation (or any Parent or Subsidiary).
B. The
provisions of Articles One and Four shall apply to both equity
programs
under the Plan and shall accordingly govern the interests of all
persons
under the Plan.
III. ADMINISTRATION
OF THE PLAN
A. The
Plan shall be administered by the Board. However, any or all administrative
functions otherwise exercisable by the Board may be delegated to the Committee.
Members of the Committee shall serve for such period of time as the Board may
determine and shall be subject to removal by the Board at any time. The Board
may also at any time terminate the functions of the Committee and reassume all
powers and authority previously delegated to the Committee.
B. The
Plan Administrator shall have full power and authority (subject to the
provisions of the Plan) to establish such rules and regulations as it may deem
appropriate for proper administration of the Plan and to make such
determinations under, and issue such interpretations of, the Plan and any
outstanding options or stock issuances thereunder as it may deem necessary or
advisable. Decisions of the Pan Administrator shall be final and binding on all
parties who have an interest in the Plan or any option or stock issuance
thereunder.
IV. ELIGIBILITY
A. The
persons eligible to participate in the Plan are as follows:
(i)
Employees,
(ii)
non-employee members of the Board or the non-employee members of the board of
directors of any Parent or Subsidiary, and
(iii)
consultants and other independent advisors who provide services to the
Corporation (or any Parent or Subsidiary).
B. The
Plan Administrator shall have full authority to determine, (i) with respect to
the option grants under the Option Grant Program, which eligible persons are to
receive option grants the time or times when such option grants are to be made,
the number of shares to be covered by each such grant, the status of the granted
options as either an Incentive Option or a Non-Statutory Option, the time or
times at which each option is to become exercisable, the vesting schedule (if
any) applicable to the option shares and the maximum term for which the option
is to remain outstanding, and (ii) with respect to stock issuances under the
Stock Issuance Program, which eligible persons are to receive stock issuances,
the time or times when such issuances are to be made, the number of shares to be
issued to each Participant, the vesting schedule (if any) applicable to the
issued shares and the consideration to be paid by the Participant for such
shares.
C. The
Plan Administrator shall have the absolute discretion either to grant options in
accordance with the Option Grant Program or to effect stock issuances
in accordance with the Stock Issuance Program.
V. STOCK
SUBJECT TO THE PLAN
A. The
stock issuable under the Plan shall be shares of authorized but unissued or
reacquired Common Stock. The maximum number of shares of Common Stock
which may be issued over the term of the Plan shall not exceed Thirteen Million
Thirty-Eight Thousand Eighty-Two (13,038,082) shares.
B. Shares
of Common Stock subject to outstanding options shall be available for subsequent
issuance under the Plan to the extent (i) the options expire or
terminate for any reasons prior to exercise in full or (ii) the options are
cancelled in accordance with the cancellation-regrant provisions
of Article Two. Unvested shares issued under the Plan and
subsequently repurchased by the Corporation, at the option exercise price paid
per share, pursuant to the Corporation's repurchase rights under the
Plan shall be added back to the number of shares of Common Stock reserved for
issuance under the Pan and shall accordingly be available for reissuance through
one or more subsequent option grants or direct stock issuances under the
Plan.
C. Should
any change be made to the Common Stock by reason of any stock split, stock
dividend, recapitalization, combination of shares, exchange of shares or other
change affecting the outstanding Common Stock as a class without the
Corporation's receipt of consideration, appropriate adjustments shall be made to
(i) the maximum number and/or class securities issuable under the Plan and (ii)
the number and/or class of securities and the exercise price per share in effect
under each outstanding option in order to prevent the dilution or enlargement of
benefits thereunder. The adjustments determined by the Plan Administrator shall
be final, binding and conclusive. In no event shall any such adjustments be made
in connection with the conversion of one of more outstanding shares of the
Corporation's preferred stock into shares of Common Stock.
ARTICLE
TWO
OPTION GRANT
PROGRAM
I.
OPTION
TERMS
Each option shall be evidenced by one
or more documents in the form approved by the Plan Administrator; provided,
however, that each such document shall comply with the terms specified
below. Each document evidencing an Incentive Option shall, in
addition, be subject to the provisions of the Plan applicable to such
options.
A.
Exercise
Price
.
1. The
exercise price per share shall be fixed by the Plan Administrator in accordance
with the following provisions:
(i) The
exercise price per share shall not be less than one hundred percent (100%) of
the Fair Market Value per share of Common Stock on the option grant
date.
(ii) If
the person to whom the option is granted is a 10% Shareholder, then the exercise
price per share shall not be less than one hundred ten percent (110%) of the
Fair Market Value per share of Common Stock on the option grant
date.
2. The
exercise price shall become immediately due upon exercise of the option and
shall, subject to the provisions of Section I of Article Four and the documents
evidencing the option, be payable in cash or check made payable to the
Corporation. Should the Common Stock be registered under Section 12(g) of the
1934 Act at the time the option is exercised, then the exercise price may also
be paid as follows:
(i) in
shares of Common Stock held for the requisite period necessary to avoid a charge
to the Corporation's earnings for financial reporting purposes and valued at
Fair Market Value on the Exercise Date, or
(ii) to
the extent the option is exercised for vested shares, through all special sale
and remittance procedure pursuant to which the Optionee shall concurrently
provide irrevocable written instructions (A) to the Corporation-designated
brokerage firm to effect the immediate sale of the purchased shares and remit to
the Corporation, out of the sale proceeds available on the settlement date,
sufficient funds to cover the aggregate exercise price payable for the purchased
shares plus all applicable Federal, state and local income and employment taxes
required to be withheld by the Corporation by reason of such exercise and (B) to
the Corporation to deliver the certificates for the purchased shares directly to
such brokerage firm in order to complete the sale.
Except to
the extent such sale and remittance procedure is utilized, payment of the
exercise price for the purchased shares must be made on the Exercise
Date.
B.
Exercise and Term of
Options
. Each option shall be exercisable at such time or
times, during such period and for such number of shares as shall be determined
by the Plan Administrator and set forth in the documents evidencing the option
grant. However, no option shall have a term in excess of ten (10)
years measured from the option grant due.
C.
Effect of Termination of
Services
.
1. The
following provisions shall govern the exercise of any options held by the
Optionee at the time of cessation of Service or death:
(i) Should
the Optionee cease to remain in Service for any reason other than Disability or
death, then the Optionee shall have a period of three (3) months following the
date of such cessation of Service during which to exercise each outstanding
option held by such Optionee.
(ii) Should
Optionee's Service terminate by reason of Disability, then the Optionee shall
have a period of twelve (12) months following the date of such cessation of
Service during which to exercise each outstanding option held by such
Optionee.
(iii) If
the Optionee dies while holding an outstanding option, then the personal
representative of his or her estate or the person or persons to whom the option
is transferred pursuant to the Optionee's will or the laws of inheritance shall
have a twelve (12)-month period following the date of the Optionee's death to
exercise such option.
(iv) Under
no circumstances, however, shall any such option be exercisable after the
specified expiration of the option term.
(v) During
the application post-Service exercise period, the option may not be exercised in
the aggregate for more than the number of vested shares for which the option is
exercisable on the date of the Optionee's cessation of Service. Upon
the expiration of the applicable exercise period or (if earlier) upon the
expiration of the option term, the option shall terminate and cease to be
outstanding for any vested shares for which the option has not been
exercised. However, the option shall, immediately upon the Optionee's
cessation of Service, terminate and cease to be outstanding with respect to any
and all option shares for which the option is not otherwise at the time
exercisable or in which the Optionee is not otherwise at the time
vested.
2. The Plan
Administrator shall have the discretion, exercisable either at the time an
option is granted or at any time while the option remains outstanding,
to:
(i) extend
the period of time for which the option is to remain exercisable following
Optionee's cessation of Service or death from the limited period otherwise in
effect for that option to such greater period of time as the Plan Administrator
shall deem appropriate, but in no event beyond the expiration of the option
term, and/or
(ii)
permit the option to be exercised, during the applicable post-Service exercise
period, not only with respect to the number of vested shares of Common Stock for
which such option is exercisable at the time of the Optionee's cessation of
Service but also with respect to one or more additional installments in which
the Optionee would have vested under the option had the Optionee continued in
Service.
D.
Shareholder
Rights
. The holder of an option shall have no shareholder
rights with respect to the shares subject to the option until such person shall
have exercised the option, paid the exercise price and become a holder of record
of the purchased shares.
E.
Unvested
Shares
. The Plan Administrator shall have the discretion to
grant options which are exercisable for unvested shares of Common
Stock. Should the Optionee cease Service while holding such unvested
shares, the Corporation shall have the right to repurchase, at the exercise
price paid per share, all or (at the discretion of the Corporation and with the
consent of the Optionee) any of those unvested shares. The terms upon
which such repurchase right shall be exercisable (including the period and
procedure for exercise and the appropriate vesting schedule for the purchased
shares) shall be established by the Plan Administrator and set forth in the
document evidencing such repurchase right. The Plan Administrator may
not impose a vesting schedule upon any option grant or any shares of Common
Stock subject to the option which is more restrictive than twenty percent (20%)
per year vesting, with the initial vesting to occur not later than one (1) year
after the option grant date. However, this minimum vesting requirement shall not
be applicable with respect to any options granted to an officer or Board
member.
F.
First Refusal
Rights
. Until such time as the Common Stock is first
registered under Section 12(g) of the 1934 Act, the Corporation shall have the
right of first refusal with respect to any proposed disposition by the Optionee
(or any successor in interest) of any shares of Common Stock issued under the
Plan. Such right of first refusal shall be exercisable in accordance
with the terms established by the Plan Administrator and set froth in the
document evidencing such right.
G.
Limited Transferability by
Options
. During the lifetime of the Optionee, the option shall
be exercisable only by the Optionee and shall not be assignable or transferable
other than by will or by the laws of descent and distribution following the
Optionee's death.
H.
Withholding
. The
Corporation's obligation to deliver shares of Common Stock upon the exercise of
any options granted under the Plan shall be subject to the satisfaction of all
applicable Federal, state and local income and employment tax withholding
requirements.
II.
INCENTIVE OPTIONS
The terms specified below shall be
applicable to all Incentive Options. Except as modified by the
provisions of this Section II, all the provisions of the Plan shall be
applicable to Incentive Options. Options which are specifically
designated as Non-Statutory Options shall
not
be subject to the
terms of this Section II.
I.
Eligibility
. Incentive
Options may only be granted to Employees.
J.
Exercise
Price
. The exercise price per share shall not be less than one
hundred percent (100%) of the Fair Market Value per share of Common Stock on the
option grant date.
K.
Dollar
Limitation
. The aggregate Fair Market Value of the shares of
Common Stock (determined as of the respective date or dates of grant) for which
one or more options granted to any Employee under the Plan (or any other option
plan of the Corporation or any Parent or Subsidiary) may for the first time
become exercisable as Incentive Options during any one (1) calendar year shall
not exceed the sum of One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000). To the
extent the Employee holds two (2) or more such options which become exercisable
for the first time in the same calendar year, the foregoing limitation on the
exercisability of such options as Incentive Options shall be applied on the
basis of the order in which such options are granted.
D.
10%
Shareholder
. If any Employee to whom an Incentive Option is
granted is a 10% Shareholder, then the option term shall not exceed five (5)
years measured from the option grant date.
III. CORPORATE TRANSACTION
A. The
shares subject to each option outstanding under the Plan at the time of a
Corporate Transaction shall automatically vest in full so that each such option
shall, immediately prior to the effective date of the Corporate Transaction,
become fully exercisable for all of the shares of Common Stock at the time
subject to that option and may be exercised for any or all of those shares as
fully-vested shares of Common Stock. However, the shares subject to
an outstanding option shall not vest on such an accelerated basis if and to the
extent: (i) such option is assumed by the successor corporation (or
parent thereof) in the Corporate Transaction and the Corporation's repurchase
rights with respect to the unvested option shares are concurrently assigned to
such successor corporation (or parent thereof) or (ii) such option is to be
replaced with a cash incentive program of the successor corporation which
preserves the spread existing on the unvested option shares at the time of the
Corporate Transaction and provides for subsequent payout in accordance with the
same vesting schedule applicable to those unvested option shares or (iii) the
acceleration of such option is subject to other limitations imposed by the Plan
Administrator at the time of the option grant.
B. All
outstanding repurchase rights shall also terminate automatically, and the shares
of Common Stock subject to those terminated rights shall immediately vest in
full, in the event of any Corporate Transaction, except to the
extent: (i) those repurchase rights are assigned to the successor
corporation (or parent thereof) in connection with such Corporate Transaction or
(ii) such accelerated vesting is precluded by other limitations imposed by the
Plan Administrator at the time the repurchase right is issued.
C. Immediately
following the consummation of the Corporate Transaction, all outstanding options
shall terminate and cease to be outstanding, except to the extent assumed by the
successor corporation (or parent thereof).
D. Each
option which is assumed in connection with a Corporate Transaction shall be
appropriately adjusted, immediately after such Corporate Transaction, to apply
to the number and class of securities which would have been issuable to the
Optionee in consummation of such Corporate Transaction, had the option been
exercised immediately prior to such Corporate Transaction. Appropriate
adjustments shall also be made to (i) the number and class of securities
available for issuance under the Plan following the consummation of such
Corporate Transaction and (ii) the exercise price payable per share under each
outstanding option,
provided
the aggregate exercise price payable for such securities shall
remain the same.
E. The
Plan Administrator shall have the discretion, exercisable either at the time the
option is granted or at any time while the option remains outstanding, to
provide for the automatic acceleration (in whole or in part) of one or more
outstanding options (and the automatic termination of one or more outstanding
repurchase rights, with the immediate vesting of the shares of Common Stock
subject to those terminated rights) upon the occurrence of a Corporate
Transaction, whether or not those options are to be assumed or replaced (or
those repurchase rights are to be assigned) in the Corporate
Transaction.
F. The
Plan Administrator shall also have full power and authority, exercisable either
at the time the option is granted or at any time while the option remains
outstanding, to structure such option so that the shares subject to that option
will automatically vest on an accelerated basis should the Optionee's Service
terminate by reason of an Involuntary Termination within a designated period
(not to exceed eighteen (18) months) following the effective date of any
Corporate Transaction in which the option is assumed and the repurchase rights
applicable to those shares do not otherwise terminate. Any such
option shall remain exercisable for the fully-vested option shares until the
earlier
of (i)
the expiration of the option term or (ii) the expiration of the one (1)-year
period measured from the effective date of the Involuntary
Termination. In addition, the Plan Administrator may provide that one
or more of the outstanding repurchase rights with respect to shares held by the
Optionee at the time of such Involuntary Termination shall immediately terminate
on an accelerated basis, and the shares subject to those terminated rights shall
accordingly vest.
G. The
portion of any Incentive Option accelerated in connection with a Corporate
Transaction shall remain exercisable as an Incentive Option only to the extent
the applicable One Hundred Thousand Dollar limitation is not
exceeded. To the extent such dollar limitation is exceeded, the
accelerated portion of such option shall be exercisable as a Non-Statutory
Option under the Federal tax laws.
H. The
grant of options under the Plan shall in no way affect the right of the
Corporation to adjust, reclassify, reorganize or otherwise change its capital or
business structure or to merge, consolidate, dissolve, liquidate or sell or
transfer all or any part of its business or assets.
IV. CANCELLATION
AND REGRANT OF OPTIONS
The Plan Administrator shall have the
authority to effect, at any time and from time to time, with the consent of the
affected option holders, the cancellation of any or all outstanding options
under the Plan and to grant in substitution therefor new options covering the
same or different number of shares of Common Stock but with an exercise price
per share based on the Fair Market Value per share of Common Stock on the new
option grant date.
ARTICLE
THREE
STOCK ISSUANCE
PROGRAM
I.
STOCK ISSUANCE TERMS
Shares of Common Stock maybe issued
under the Stock Issuance Program through direct and immediate issuances without
any intervening option grants. Each such stock issuance shall be evidenced by a
Stock Issuance Agreement which complies with the terms specified
below.
A.
Purchase
Price
.
1. The
purchase price per share shall be fixed by the Plan Administrator but shall not
be less than one hundred percent (100%) of the Fair Market Value per share of
Common Stock on the issue date. However, the purchase price per share
of Common Stock issued to a 10% Shareholder shall not be less than one hundred
and ten percent (110%) of such Fair Market Value.
2. Subject
to the provisions of Section I of Article Four, shares of Common Stock may be
issued under the Stock Issuance Program for any of the following items of
consideration which the Plan Administrator may deem appropriate in each
individual instance:
(i) cash
or check made payable to the Corporation, or
(ii) past
services rendered to the Corporation (or any Parent or Subsidiary).
B.
Vesting
Provisions
.
1. Shares of
Common Stock issued under the Stock Issuance Program may, in the discretion of
the Plan Administrator, be fully and immediately vested upon issuance or may
vest in one or more installments over the Participant's period of Service or
upon attainment of specified performance objectives. However, the
Plan Administrator may not impose a vesting schedule upon any stock issuance
effected under the Stock Issuance Program which is more restrictive than twenty
percent (20%) per year vesting, with initial vesting to occur not later than one
(1) year after the issuance date. However, this minimum vesting requirement
shall not be applicable with respect to any stock issued to an officer or Board
member.
2. Any new,
substituted or additional securities or other property (including money paid
other than as a regular cash dividend) which the Participant may have the right
to receive with respect the Participant's unvested shares of Common Stock by
reason of any stock dividend, stock split, recapitalization, combination of
shares, exchange of shares or other change affecting the outstanding Common
Stock as a class without the Corporation's receipt of consideration
shall be issued subject to (i) the same vesting requirements
applicable to the Participant's unvested shares of Common Stock and (ii) such
escrow arrangements as the Plan Administrator shall deem
appropriate.
3. The
Participant shall have full shareholder rights with respect to any shares of
Common Stock issued to the Participant under the Stock Issuance Program, whether
or not the Participant's interest in those shares is vested. Accordingly, the
Participant shall have the right to vote such shares and to receive any regular
cash dividends paid on such shares.
4. Should
the Participant cease to remain in Service while holding one or more unvested
shares of Common Stock issued under the Stock Issuance Program or should the
performance objectives not be attained with respect to one or more such unvested
shares of Common Stock, then those shares shall be immediately surrendered to
the Corporation for cancellation, and the Participant shall have no further
shareholder rights with respect to those shares. To the extent the surrendered
shares were previously issued to the Participant for consideration paid in cash
or cash equivalent (including the Participant's purchase-money indebtedness),
the Corporation shall repay to the Participant the cash consideration paid for
the surrendered shares and shall cancel the unpaid principal balance of any
outstanding purchase-money note of the Participant attributable to such
surrendered shares.
5. The Plan
Administrator may in its discretion waive the surrender and cancellation of one
or more unvested shares of Common Stock (or other assets attributable thereto)
which would otherwise occur upon the non- completion of the vesting schedule
applicable to such shares. Such waiver shall result in the immediate vesting of
the Participant's interest in the shares of Common Stock as to which the waiver
applies. Such waiver may be effected at any time, whether before or after the
Participant's cessation of Service or the attainment or non-attainment of the
applicable performance objectives.
C.
First Refusal
Rights
. Until such time as the Common Stock is first
registered under Section 12(g) of the 1934 Act, the Corporation shall have the
right of first refusal with respect to any proposed disposition by the
Participant (or any successor in interest) of any shares of Common Stock issued
under the Stock Issuance Program. Such right of first refusal shall
be exercisable in accordance with the terms established by the Plan
Administrator and set forth in the document evidencing such right.
II.
CORPORATE TRANSACTION
A. Upon
the occurrence of a Corporate Transaction, all outstanding repurchase rights
under the Stock Issuance Program shall terminate automatically, and the shares
of Common Stock subject to those terminated rights shall immediately vest in
full, except to the extent: (i) those repurchase rights are assigned
to the successor corporation (or parent thereof) in connection with such
Corporate Transaction or (ii) such accelerated vesting is precluded by other
limitations imposed by the Plan Administrator at the time the repurchase right
is issued.
B. The
Plan Administrator shall have the discretionary authority, exercisable either at
the time the unvested shares are issued or any time while the Corporation's
repurchase rights with respect to those shares remain outstanding, to provide
that those rights shall automatically terminate on an accelerated basis, and the
shares of Common Stock subject to those terminated rights shall immediately
vest, in the event the Participant's Service should subsequently terminate by
reason of an Involuntary Termination within a designated period (not to exceed
eighteen (18) months) following the effective date of any Corporate Transaction
in which those repurchase rights are assigned to the successor corporation (or
parent thereof).
III. SHARE
ESCROW/LEGENDS
Unvested shares may, in the Plan
Administrator's discretion, be held in escrow by the Corporation until the
Participant's interest in such shares vests or may be issued directly to the
Participant with restrictive legends on the certificates evidencing those
unvested shares.
ARTICLE
FOUR
MISCELLANEOUS
I.
FINANCING
The Plan Administrator may permit any
Optionee or Participant to pay the option exercise price or the purchase price
for shares issued to such person under the Plan by delivering a full-recourse,
interest-bearing promissory note payable in one or more installments and secured
by the purchased shares. However, any promissory note delivered by a consultant
must be secured by property in addition to the purchased shares of Common
Stock. In no event shall the maximum credit available to the Optionee
or Participant exceed the
sum
of (i) the
aggregate option exercise price or purchase price payable for the purchased
shares plus (ii) any Federal, state and local income and employment tax
liability incurred by the Optionee or the Participant in connection with the
option exercise or share purchase.
II.
EFFECTIVE DATA AND TERM OF PLAN
A. The
Plan shall become effective when adopted by the Board, but not option granted
under the Plan may be exercised, and no shares shall be issued under the Plan,
until the Plan is approved by the Corporation's shareholders. If such
shareholder approval is not obtained within twelve (12) months after the date of
the Board's adoption of the Plan, then all options previously granted under the
Plan shall terminate and cease to be outstanding, and no further options shall
be granted and no shares shall be issued under the Plan. Subject to
such limitation, the Plan Administrator may grant options and issue shares under
the Plan at any time after the effective date of the Plan and before the date
fixed herein for termination of the Plan.
B. The
Plan shall terminate upon the
earliest
of (i) the
expiration of the ten (10)-year period measured from the date the Plan is
adopted by the Board, (ii) the date on which all shares available for issuance
under the Plan shall have been issued or (iii) the termination of all
outstanding options in connection with a Corporate Transaction. All
options and unvested stock issuances outstanding at the time under the Plan
shall continue to have full force and effect in accordance with the provisions
of the documents evidencing such options or issuances.
III. AMENDMENT
OF THE PLAN
A. The
Board shall have complete and exclusive power and authority to amend or modify
the Plan in any or all respects. However, no such amendment or modification
shall adversely affect the rights and obligations with respect to options or
unvested stock issuances at the time outstanding under the Plan unless the
Optionee or the Participant consents to such amendment or modification. In
addition, certain amendments may require shareholder approval pursuant to
applicable laws and regulations.
B. Options
may be granted under the Option Grant Program and shares may be issued under the
Stock Issuance Program which are in each instance in excess of the number of
shares of Common Stock then available for issuance under the Plan, provided any
excess shares actually issued under those programs shall be held in escrow until
there is obtained shareholder approval of an amendment sufficiently increasing
the number of shares of Common Stock available for issuance under the
Plan. If such shareholder approval is not obtained within twelve (12)
months after the date first such excess issuances are made, then (i) any
unexercised options granted on the basis of such excess shares shall terminate
and cease to be outstanding and (ii) the Corporation shall promptly refund to
the Optionees and the Participants the exercise or purchase price paid for any
excess share issued under the Plan and held in escrow, together with interest
(at the applicable Short Term Federal Rate) for the period the shares were held
in escrow, and such shares shall thereupon be automatically cancelled and cease
to be outstanding.
C. Compliance
Amendments. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan or in any notice of
grant, option agreement or other applicable agreement to the contrary, the
Committee may amend the Plan or any notice of grant, option agreement or other
applicable agreement, to take effect retroactively or otherwise, as deemed
necessary or advisable for the purpose of conforming the Plan, notice of grant,
option agreement or other applicable agreement to any present or future law
relating to plans of this or similar nature (including, but not limited to,
Section 409A of the Code), and to the administrative regulations and rulings
promulgated thereunder. By accepting an option under this Plan, a
Optionee agrees to any amendment made pursuant to this Section to any Option
granted under the Plan without further consideration or action.
IV. USE
OF PROCEEDS
Any cash proceeds received by the
Corporation from the sale of shares of Common Stock under the Plan shall be used
for general corporate purposes.
V.
WITHHOLDING
The Corporation's obligation to deliver
shares of Common Stock upon the exercise of any options or upon the issuance or
vesting of any shares issued under the Plan shall be subject to the satisfaction
of all applicable Federal, state and local income and employment tax withholding
requirements.
VI. REGULATORY
APPROVALS
The implementation of the Plan, the
granting of any options under the Plan and the issuance of any shares of Common
Stock (i) upon the exercise of any option or (ii) under the Stock Issuance
Program shall be subject to the Corporation's procurement of all approvals and
permits required by regulatory authorities having jurisdiction over the Plan,
the options granted under it and the shares of Common Stock issued pursuant to
it.
VII. NO
EMPLOYMENT OR SERVICE RIGHTS
Nothing in the Plan shall confer upon
the Optionee or the Participant any right to continue in Service for any period
of specific duration or interfere with or otherwise restrict in any way the
rights of the Corporation (or any Parent or Subsidiary employing or retaining
such person) or of the Optionee or the Participant, which rights are hereby
expressly reserved by each, to terminate such person's Service at any time for
any reason, with or without cause.
VIII. FINANCIAL
REPORTS
The Corporation shall deliver a balance
sheet and an income statement at least annually to each individual holding an
outstanding option under the Plan, unless such individual is a key Employee
whose duties in connection with the Corporation (or any Parent or Subsidiary)
assure such individual access to equivalent information.
IX. 409A
COMPLIANCE
A.
Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, any
discretionary authority available pursuant to this Plan shall only be exercised
in a manner believed in good faith to comply with Section 409A of the Code and
to maintain the exemption from Section 409A for the options and stock issued
hereunder.
B.
Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, nothing herein
shall provide for any feature for the deferral of compensation other than the
deferral of recognition of income until the exercise or disposition of an
option.
C. Special
Provisions Related To Section 409A of the Code.
1. Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any Notice of Grant, Option Agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, to the extent that any amount or benefit
that would constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of
Section 409A of the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under
the Plan or any notice of grant, option agreement or other applicable agreement
by reason of the occurrence of a Change in Control, or the Optionee’s Disability
or separation from service, such amount or benefit will not be payable or
distributable to the Optionee by reason of such circumstance unless (i) the
circumstances giving rise to such Change in Control, Disability or separation
from service meet any description or definition of “change in control event”,
“disability” or “separation from service”, as the case may be, in
Section 409A of the Code and applicable regulations (without giving effect
to any elective provisions that may be available under such definition), or
(ii) the payment or distribution of such amount or benefit would be exempt
from the application of Section 409A of the Code by reason of the
short-term deferral exemption or otherwise. This provision does not
prohibit the vesting of any option upon a Change in Control, Disability or
separation from service, however defined. If this provision prevents
the payment or distribution of any amount or benefit, such payment or
distribution shall be made on the next earliest payment or distribution date or
event specified in the notice of grant, option agreement or other applicable
agreement that is permissible under Section 409A.
2. If any
one or more options granted under the Plan to a Optionee could qualify for any
separation pay exemption described in Treas. Reg. Section 1.409A-1(b)(9), but
such options in the aggregate exceed the dollar limit permitted for the
separation pay exemptions, the Corporation (acting through the Committee or the
Head of Human Resources) shall determine which options or portions thereof will
be subject to such exemptions.
3. Notwithstanding
anything in the Plan or in any notice of grant, option agreement or other
applicable agreement to the contrary, if any amount or benefit that would
constitute non-exempt “deferred compensation” for purposes of Section 409A of
the Code would otherwise be payable or distributable under this Plan or in any
notice of grant, option agreement or other applicable agreement by reason of a
Optionee’s separation from service during a period in which the Optionee is a
Specified Employee (as defined below), then, subject to any permissible
acceleration of payment by the Committee under Treas. Reg. Section
1.409A-3(j)(4)(ii) (domestic relations order), (j)(4)(iii) (conflicts of
interest), or (j)(4)(vi) (payment of employment taxes):
(i) if
the payment or distribution is payable in a lump sum, the Optionee’s right to
receive payment or distribution of such non-exempt deferred compensation will be
delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or the first day of the
seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from service; and
(ii) if
the payment or distribution is payable over time, the amount of such non-exempt
deferred compensation that would otherwise be payable during the six-month
period immediately following the Optionee’s separation from service will be
accumulated and the Optionee’s right to receive payment or distribution of such
accumulated amount will be delayed until the earlier of the Optionee’s death or
the first day of the seventh month following the Optionee’s separation from
service, whereupon the accumulated amount will be paid or distributed to the
Optionee and the normal payment or distribution schedule for any remaining
payments or distributions will resume.
For
purposes of this Plan, the term “Specified Employee” has the meaning given such
term in Code Section 409A and the final regulations thereunder, provided,
however, that, as permitted in such final regulations, the Corporation’s
Specified Employees and its application of the six-month delay rule of Code
Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) shall be determined in accordance with rules adopted by
the Board or any committee of the Board, which shall be applied consistently
with respect to all nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements of the
Corporation, including this Plan.
APPENDIX
The following definitions shall be in
effect under the Plan:
A.
Board
shall mean the
Corporation's Board of Directors.
B.
Code
shall mean the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Reference to a specific
Section of the Code or regulation thereunder shall include such Section or
regulation, any valid regulation promulgated under such Section, and any
comparable provision of any future law, legislation or regulation amending,
supplementing or superseding such Section or regulation.
C.
Committee
shall mean
a committee of two (2) or more Board members appointed by the Board to exercise
one or more administrative functions under the Plan.
D.
Common Stock
shall
mean the Corporation's common stock.
E.
Corporate Transaction
shall mean either of the following shareholder- approved transactions to which
the Corporation is a party:
(i) a
merger or consolidation in which securities possessing more than fifth percent
(50%) of the total combined voting power of the Corporation's outstanding
securities are transferred to a person or persons different from the persons
holding those securities immediately prior to such transaction, or
(ii) the
sale, transfer or other disposition of all or substantially all of the
Corporation's assets in complete liquidation or dissolution of the
Corporation.
F.
Corporation
shall
mean Lexar Media, Inc., a California corporation.
G.
Disability
shall mean
the inability of the Optionee or the Participant to engage in any substantial
gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental
impairment and shall be determined by the Plan Administrator on the basis of
such medical evidence as the Plan Administrator deems warranted under the
circumstances. Notwithstanding the foregoing, for any Options that constitute a
nonqualified deferred compensation plan within the meaning of Section 409A(d) of
the Code, “Disability” has the meaning given such term in Section 409A of the
Code.
H.
Employee
shall mean
an individual who is in the employ of the
Corporation
(or any Parent or Subsidiary), subject to the control and direction
of the
employer entity as to both the work to be performed and the manner
and
method of
performance.
I.
Exercise Date
shall mean the date on which the Corporation shall have
received
written notice of the option exercise.
J.
Fair Market
Value
per share of Common Stock on any relevant date shall
be
determined in accordance with the following provisions:
(i) If
the Common Stock is at the time traded on the Nasdaq National Market, then the
Fair Market Value shall be the closing selling price per share of Common Stock
on the date in question, as such price is reported by the National Association
of Securities Dealers on the Nasdaq National Market or any successor
system. If there is no closing selling price for the Common Stock on
the date in question, then the Fair Market Value shall be the closing selling
price on the last preceding date for which such quotation exists.
(ii) If
the Common Stock is at the time listed on any Stock Exchange, then the Fair
Market Value shall be the closing selling price per share of Common Stock on the
date in question on the Stock Exchange determined by the Plan Administrator to
be the primary market for the Common Stock, as such price is officially quoted
in the composite tape of transactions on such exchange. If there is
no closing selling price for the Common Stock on the date in question, then the
Fair Market Value shall be the closing selling price on the last preceding date
for which such quotation exists.
(iii) If
the Common Stock is at the time neither listed on any Stock Exchange nor traded
on the Nasdaq National Market, then the Fair Market Value shall be determined by
the Plan Administrator after taking into account such factors as the Plan
Administrator shall deem appropriate.
K.
Incentive Option
shall mean an option which satisfies the requirements of Code Section
422.
L.
Involuntary
Termination
shall mean the termination of the Service of
any
individual which occurs by reason of:
(i) such
individual's involuntary dismissal or discharge by the Corporation for reasons
other than Misconduct, or
(ii) such
individual's voluntary resignation following (A) a change in his or her position
with the Corporation which materially reduces his or her level of
responsibility, (B) a reduction in his or her level of compensation (including
base salary, fringe benefits and target bonuses under any corporate-performance
based bonus or incentive programs) by more than fifteen percent (15%) of (C) a
relocation of such individual's place of employment by more than fifty (50)
miles, provided and only if such change, reduction or relocation is effected
without the individual's consent.
M.
Misconduct
shall mean
the commission of any act of fraud, embezzlement or dishonesty by the Optionee
or Participant, any unauthorized use or disclosure by such person of
confidential information or trade secrets of the Corporation (or any Parent or
Subsidiary), or any other intentional misconduct by such person adversely
affecting the business or affairs of the Corporation (or any Parent or
Subsidiary) in a material manner. The foregoing definition shall not
be deemed to be inclusive of all the acts or omissions which the Corporation (or
any Parent or Subsidiary) may consider as grounds for the dismissal or discharge
of any Optionee, Participant or other person in the Service of the Corporation
(or any Parent or Subsidiary).
N.
1934 Act
shall mean
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
O.
Non-Statutory Option
shall mean an option not intended to satisfy the requirements of Code Section
422.
P.
Option Grant Program
shall mean the option grant program in effect under the Plan.
Q.
Optionee
shall mean
any person to whom an option is granted under the Plan.
R.
Parent
shall mean any
corporation (other than the Corporation) in an unbroken chain of corporations
ending with the Corporation, provided each corporation in the unbroken chain
(other than the Corporation) owns, at the time of the determination, stock
possessing fifty percent (50%) or more of the total combined voting power of all
classes of stock in one of the other corporations in such chain.
S.
Participant
shall
mean any person who is issued shares of Common Stock under the Stock Issuance
Program.
T.
Plan
shall mean the
Corporation's 1996 Stock Option/Stock Issuance Plan, as set forth in this
document.
U.
Plan Administrator
shall mean either the Board or the Committee acting in its capacity as
administrator of the Plan.
V.
Service
shall mean
the provision of services to the Corporation (or any Parent or Subsidiary) by a
person in the capacity of an Employee, a non-employee member of the board of
directors or a consultant or independent advisor, except to the extent otherwise
specifically provided in the documents evidencing the option grant.
W.
Stock Exchange
shall
mean either the American Stock Exchange or the New York Stock
Exchange.
X.
Stock Issuance
Agreement
shall mean the agreement entered into by the Corporation and
the Participant at the time of issuance of shares of Common Stock under the
Stock Issuance Program.
Y.
Stock Issuance
Program
shall mean the stock issuance program in effect under the
Plan.
Z.
Subsidiary
shall mean
any corporation (other than the Corporation) in an unbroken chain of
corporations beginning with the Corporation, provided each corporation (other
than the last corporation) in the unbroken chain owns, at the time of the
determination, stock possessing fifty percent (50%) or more of the total
combined voting power of all classes of stock in one of the other corporations
in such chain.
AA.
10% Shareholder
shall
mean the owner of stock (as determined under Code Section 424(d)) possessing
more than ten percent (10%) of the total combined voting power of all classes of
stock of the Corporation (or any Parent or Subsidiary).
EXHIBIT 10.65
[***]
DENOTES CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS OMITTED AND FILED SEPARATELY WITH THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO A REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL
TREATMENT
CONFIDENTIAL
BOISE
SUPPLY TERMINATION AND AMENDMENT AGREEMENT
This
Boise
Supply Termination and Amendment Agreement
(“
Agreement
”)
is made and entered into as of the 10th day of October, 2008 (“
Effective
Date
”), by and among Intel Corporation, a Delaware corporation (“
Intel
”),
Micron Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“
Micron
”),
and IM Flash Technologies, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (“
Joint Venture
Company
”). Each of Intel, Micron, and Joint Venture Company
may be referred to herein individually as a “
Party
” and
collectively as the “
Parties
.”
RECITALS
A. Pursuant
to the Joint Venture Documents (as defined hereinafter) and the transactions
contemplated thereby, Micron and Intel have formed the Joint Venture
Company.
B. The
Joint Venture Documents include the Boise Supply Agreement (as defined
hereinafter) pursuant to which Micron supplies to the Joint Venture Company
Products (as defined below) manufactured at Micron’s fabrication facility in
Boise, Idaho and which Products, in turn are supplied by the Joint Venture
Company to Intel and Micron under the Supply Agreements (as defined
below).
C. Intel
no longer desires the Joint Venture Company to supply Intel with Products made
at Micron’s fabrication facility in Boise, Idaho.
D. The
Parties desire that this Agreement terminate the Boise Supply Agreement and
outline the commitments of Micron and Intel and amends the Joint Venture
Documents resulting from the termination of the Boise Supply Agreements, as
defined below.
AGREEMENT
NOW,
THEREFORE, for good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of
which are hereby acknowledged, the Parties intending to be legally bound do
hereby agree as follows:
ARTICLE
I.
DEFINITIONS; CERTAIN
INTERPRETIVE MATTERS
Section
1.01
Definitions
.
Capitalized
terms used in this Agreement shall have the respective meanings set forth below
in this Section 1.01 unless defined elsewhere in this Agreement:
“
Agreement
”
shall have the meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Applicable Joint
Venture
” shall have the meaning set forth in the Omnibus
Agreement.
“
Applicable
Law
” means any applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances,
orders, codes, arbitration awards, judgments, decrees or other legal
requirements of any Governmental Entity.
“
Boise Fab
”
means that Micron fabrication facility located in Boise, Idaho that maintains a
NAND flash memory product line.
“
Boise Side Letter
Agreement
” means the Boise Side Letter Agreement by and among Micron, the
Joint Venture Company and Intel dated July 13, 2006.
“
Boise Supply
Agreement
” means the Boise Supply Agreement by and between the Joint
Venture Company and Micron dated January 6, 2006.
“
Business
Day
” means a day that is not a Saturday, Sunday or other bank holiday in
the State of New York or country of organization of any Applicable Joint
Venture.
“
Effective
Date
” shall have the meaning set forth in the preamble to this
Agreement.
“
Governmental
Entity
” means any governmental authority or entity, including any agency,
board, bureau, commission, court, department, subdivision or instrumentality
thereof, or any arbitrator or arbitration panel.
“
Intel
”
shall have the meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Joint Venture
Company
” shall have the meaning set forth in the preamble to this
Agreement.
“
Joint Venture
Documents
” means the Master Agreement relating to the formation of the
Joint Venture Company, and each agreement referenced therein (whether directly
or indirectly through reference in any of such referenced agreements) and
includes any such agreements as amended and/or restated from time to time, as
well as this Agreement.
“
LLC Operating
Agreement
” means the Amended and Restated Limited Liability Company
Operating Agreement by and between Micron and Intel dated February 27,
2007.
“
Master
Agreement
” means the Master Agreement by and between Micron and Intel
dated November 18, 2005.
“
Member Activities
Letter Agreement
” means the Amended and Restated Member Activities Letter
Agreement by and between Micron and Intel dated February 27, 2007, as
amended.
“
Micron
”
shall have the meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Omnibus
Agreement
” means the Omnibus Agreement by and between Micron and Intel
dated February 27, 2007.
“
Party
” and
“
Parties
”
shall have the meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Person
”
means any natural person, corporation, joint stock company, limited liability
company, association, partnership, firm, joint venture, organization,
individual, business, trust, estate or any other entity or organization of any
kind or character from any form of association.
“
Products
”
means certain NAND flash memory products, as more specifically defined in the
Supply Agreements.
“
Purchase
Orders
” shall have the meaning set forth in the Boise Supply
Agreement.
“
Scrap, or
Scrapped
” means the lawful disposal of WIP Product by Micron other than
by commercial sale of such WIP Product in any form.
“
Ship, or
Shipped
” means the customary transfer of WIP Product by Micron to the
Joint Venture Company following normal procedures under the Boise Supply
Agreement.
“
Supply
Agreement
” means either the Supply Agreement between Micron and the Joint
Venture Company dated January 6, 2006 or the Supply Agreement between Intel and
the Joint Venture Company dated January 6, 2006, as the context dictates, and
“
Supply
Agreements
” means both of them.
Section
1.02
Certain Interpretive
Matters.
(a)
Unless
the context requires otherwise, (i) all references to Sections, Articles,
Exhibits, Appendices or Schedules are to Sections, Articles, Exhibits,
Appendices or Schedules of or to this Agreement, (ii) each accounting term not
otherwise defined in this Agreement has the meaning commonly applied to it in
accordance with GAAP, (iii) words in the singular include the plural and visa
versa, (iv) the term “including” means “including without limitation,” and (v)
the terms “herein,” “hereof,” “hereunder” and words of similar import shall mean
references to this Agreement as a whole and not to any individual section or
portion hereof. All references to $ or dollar amounts will be to
lawful currency of the United States of America. All references to
“day” or “days” will mean calendar days.
(b)
No
provision of this Agreement will be interpreted in favor of, or against, any of
the Parties by reason of the extent to which any such Party or its counsel
participated in the drafting thereof or by reason of the extent to which any
such provision is inconsistent with any prior draft of this Agreement or such
provision.
ARTICLE
II.
TERMINATION OF BOISE SUPPLY
AGREEMENT
Section
2.01
Termination of
Agreement
. The Boise Supply Agreement is terminated pursuant
to Section 10.1(ii) thereof, effective as of the Effective
Date. Except as modified by Section 2.02 and 2.03 below, those
obligations of Micron and the Joint Venture Company intended to survive
termination pursuant to Section 10.4 of the Boise Supply Agreement shall
continue to so survive in accordance with their respective terms. The
Boise Side Letter Agreement is also terminated as of the Effective
Date.
Section
2.02
Wind Down of
Supply
.
(a)
On the
Effective Date, the Joint Venture Company will cease submitting non-zero demand
forecasts to Micron on behalf of Intel for Products that would have been
manufactured at the Boise Fab.
(b)
On the
Effective Date, Micron will cease initiating wafer production at the Boise Fab
for Products destined for supply to the Joint Venture Company under the Boise
Supply Agreement.
(c)
For those
Products that are intended to fulfill the Joint Venture Company’s supply
obligations to Intel under the Supply Agreement with Intel and that have already
begun the manufacturing process at the Boise Fab on or before the Effective Date
(“
WIP
Product
”), Micron will complete or discontinue manufacture of, or
otherwise deal with such WIP Product as Micron deems appropriate.
(d)
Micron
will supply to the Joint Venture Company those Products finished before the
Effective Date or finished after the Effective Date from WIP Product, in each
case upon the terms and conditions of the Boise Supply Agreement;
provided, however
, that
unless Micron and the Joint Venture Company agree to amend the following date,
Micron will not deliver to the Joint Venture Company or finish manufacturing any
WIP Products after December 4, 2008 and
further provided
that the
price of WIP Products shall be as set forth in Section 3.03.
Section
2.03
Amended Surviving
Obligations
. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the
Boise Supply Agreement:
(a)
All
Purchase Orders placed under the Boise Supply Agreement are hereby terminated
except to the extent such Purchase Orders pertain to the Products Shipped by
Micron to the Joint Venture Company as a result of those activities contemplated
under Section 2.02. The Joint Venture Company and Micron each remain
bounded to fulfill their respective obligations with respect to such Purchase
Orders in accordance with the applicable terms of the Boise Supply Agreement as
may be amended by this Agreement.
(b)
Section
IV of Schedule 2.6 of the Boise Supply Agreement is not
applicable. Micron retains ownership of all Additional Equipment free
and clear of all liens, encumbrances and obligations with respect thereto to the
Joint Venture Company.
(c)
Sections
III and IV of Schedule 4.6 of the Boise Supply Agreement are not applicable, and
no calculations thereunder will be made. To the extent that any
calculation thereunder would have required or would require Micron to make any
payment(s) to the Joint Venture Company, such payments are fully discharged and
Micron is forever released from making them.
(d)
All
masks, reticles, probe cards and other materials in the possession of Micron
used to manufacture Products under the Boise Supply Agreement, whether
originally purchased by Micron or provided to Micron by the Joint Venture
Company, shall be and remain owned solely by Micron.
Section
2.04
Board of
Managers
. Intel and Micron shall cause the Board of Managers
and the Manufacturing Committee and Planning Subcommittee to promptly revise the
Initial Business
Plan,
Ramp Plan, Operating Plan, Performance Criteria, Products (as each of the
foregoing terms is defined in the Boise Supply Agreement) and other operating
parameters of the Joint Venture Company if and as necessary for the Joint
Venture Company to fulfill its obligations to Micron and Intel under their
respective Supply Agreement in recognition that the Joint Venture Company no
longer has the right to purchase Products made by Micron in its Boise Fab (other
than those Products that are the subject of Section 2.02 above).
Section
2.05
Demand
Forecasts
. Intel and Micron shall each promptly revise their
respective Demand Forecasts (as defined in the Supply Agreements) made to the
Joint Venture Company under their respective Supply Agreement if and as
necessary for the Joint Venture Company to fulfill its obligations to Micron and
Intel under their respective Supply Agreement in recognition that the Joint
Venture Company no longer has the right to purchase Products made by Micron in
its Boise Fab (other than those Products that are the subject of Section
2.02).
ARTICLE
III.
TERMINATION
CONSIDERATION
Section
3.01
Capital
Contributions
.
(a)
On or
before November 10, 2008, Intel shall make a capital contribution to the Joint
Venture Company in the amount of Twenty Three Million Seven Hundred Thousand
Dollars and Three Cents ($23,700,000.03).
(b)
On or
before November 10, 2008, Micron shall make a capital contribution to the Joint
Venture Company in the amount of Twenty Four Million Six Hundred Sixty-Seven
Thousand Three Hundred and Forty-Seven United States Dollars
($24,667,347.00).
Section
3.02
Termination
Payment
. On or before November 10, 2008, the Joint Venture
Company shall pay to Micron a termination fee in the amount of Forty Eight
Million Three Hundred Sixty-Seven Thousand Three Hundred Forty-Seven United
States Dollars and Three Cents ($48,367,347.03).
Section
3.03
Disposition of WIP
Product
.
(a)
The price
of the WIP Product Shipped to the Joint Venture Company pursuant to Section 2.02
shall be Micron’s actual costs, as such costs are calculated pursuant to Section
II of Schedule 4.6 of the Boise Supply Agreement, but without any adjustments
pursuant to Section III of Schedule 4.6 or otherwise.
(b)
Micron
will invoice the Joint Venture Company for (i) Micron’s actual costs incurred in
connection with all WIP Products Scrapped pursuant to Section 2.02 and (ii)
eighty per cent (80%) of Micron’s actual costs incurred in connection with M40
WIP Products not Scrapped and not Shipped to the Joint Venture Company, in both
cases (i) and (ii) as such costs are calculated pursuant to Section II of
Schedule 4.6 of the Boise Supply Agreement, but without any adjustments pursuant
to Section III of Schedule 4.6 or otherwise. Micron will provide such
invoices promptly after the end of each applicable fiscal month of Micron, and
the Joint Venture Company shall pay to Micron the amount of such invoice within
thirty (30) days of receipt of invoice. The Joint Venture Company
shall submit to Intel a copy of each such invoice,
and Intel
shall pay to the Joint Venture Company the amount thereof within thirty (30)
days of Intel’s receipt of invoice.
Section
3.04
Payment
Method
. The foregoing contributions and payments shall be made
by wire transfer in United States Dollars in immediately available funds to the
following bank accounts, as applicable:
If to
Micron
:
Beneficiary: Micron
Technology, Inc.
Bank
Name: [***]
Bank
Address: Portland,
Oregon
[***]
[***]
[***]
If to the Joint Venture
Company
:
Beneficiary: IM
Flash Technologies, LLC
[***]
Bank
Address: Portland,
Oregon
[***]
[***]
[***]
ARTICLE
IV.
AMENDMENTS TO JOINT VENTURE
DOCUMENTS
Section
4.01
Omnibus
Agreement
. The last paragraph in the definition of “Operating
Metric Event” in the Omnibus Agreement is hereby deleted as of the Effective
Date.
Section
4.02
LLC Operating
Agreement
. Section 12.5(c)(4) and the first sentence of
Section 13.14 in the LLC Operating Agreement are hereby deleted.
Section
4.03
Member Activities Letter
Agreement
. In the Member Activities Letter
Agreement:
(a)
The
phrase at the beginning of Section 1.1(A) which reads “Except as provided in
Section 1.1(B)(2)” is hereby revised to read “Except as provided in Section
1.1(B)(2) and 1.1(D)”.
(b)
A new
Section 1.1(D) is inserted as follows:
“Notwithstanding
anything to the contrary in this or the other Joint Venture Documents, Micron
may Manufacture Restricted Products in the Boise Fab for sale or other
commercial disposition by Micron and its Affiliated Companies without any
restriction or any accounting to the Joint Venture Company, other Applicable
Joint Venture, Intel or Affiliated Company of Intel.”
Section
4.04
Joint Venture
Document
. This Agreement is a “Joint Venture
Document.”
Section
4.05
Supply Agreements
. In
both the Supply Agreements, Schedule 4.8 is hereby amended to read as
follows:
“The
Parties agree that Price is the accumulation of: (i) the wafer cost for probed
wafers from any Facility and any other direct costs incurred by the Joint
Venture Company, including, but not limited to, amortization of the pre-paid
lease as set forth in the MTV Lease Agreement; (ii) the price the Joint Venture
Company pays for assembling and packaging probed wafers, (iii) the price the
Joint Venture Company pays for final testing of assembled and packaged units,
and (iv) the cost paid by the Joint Venture Company for finished goods
services. All costs shall be determined on a basis of accounting
mutually agreed by the Members. For avoidance of doubt, amortization
of the pre-paid lease as set forth in the MTV Lease Agreement shall be
calculated in accordance with Modified GAAP.”
Section
4.06
Ownership and Sharing
Interests
. None of the Parties’ respective Interest, Economic
Interests, Percentage Interests or Sharing Interest (as such terms are defined
in the Joint Venture Documents, or the Omnibus Agreement) shall be affected by
the terms of this Agreement or by the performance of any obligations
hereunder.
Section
4.07
No Other
Amendments
. Except as provided in this Article IV, no other
amendments to the Joint Venture Documents are intended by this
Agreement.
ARTICLE
V.
MISCELLANEOUS
Section
5.01
Notices
. All
notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be
deemed given upon (a) transmitter’s confirmation of a receipt of a
facsimile transmission, (b) confirmed delivery by a standard overnight carrier
or when delivered by hand, (c) the expiration of five (5) Business Days after
the day when mailed in the United States by certified or registered mail,
postage prepaid, or (d) delivery in person, addressed at the following addresses
(or at such other address for a Party as shall be specified by like
notice):
If
to Intel
:
|
with a copy
to
:
|
Intel
Corporation
1900
Prairie City Road
FM3-63
Folsom,
CA 95630
Attention: NPG
General Manager
Facsimile: 916-377-2756
|
Intel
Corporation
2200
Mission College Blvd.
Mail
Stop SC4-203
Santa
Clara, CA 95054
Attention: General
Counsel
Facsimile: (408)
653-8050
|
|
|
If
to Micron
:
|
|
Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000
S. Federal Way
Mail
Stop 1-507
Boise,
ID 83716
Attention: General
Counsel
Facsimile: (208)
368-4537
|
|
|
|
If to the Joint
Venture Company
|
|
IM
Flash Technologies, LLC
2550
East 3400 North
Lehi,
UT 84043
Attention: David
A. Baglee; Rodney Morgan
Facsimile: (801)
767-5370
|
Section
5.02
Waiver
. The
failure at any time of a Party to require performance by another Party of any
responsibility or obligation required by this Agreement shall in no way affect a
Party’s right to require such performance at any time thereafter, nor shall the
waiver by a Party of a breach of any provision of this Agreement by another
Party constitute a waiver of any other breach of the same or any other provision
nor constitute a waiver of the responsibility or obligation itself.
Section
5.03
Assignment
. This
Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the successors and
assigns of each Party hereto. Except as permitted by the Omnibus
Agreement or Joint Venture Documents, neither this Agreement nor any right or
obligation hereunder may be assigned or delegated by either Party in whole or in
part to any other Person, without the prior written consent of the non-assigning
Party.
Section
5.04
Third Party
Rights
. Nothing in this Agreement, whether express or implied,
is intended or shall be construed to confer, directly or indirectly, upon or
give to any Person, other than the Parties hereto, any legal or equitable right,
remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any covenant, condition
or other provision contained herein.
Section
5.05
Choice of
Law
. This Agreement shall be construed and enforced in
accordance with and governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, USA, without
giving effect to the principles of conflict of laws thereof.
Section
5.06
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Agreement shall be brought in a state or federal court located in Delaware, and
each of the Parties to this Agreement hereby consents and submits to the
exclusive jurisdiction of such courts (and of the appropriate appellate courts
therefrom) in any such suit, action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the
fullest extent permitted by Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or
hereafter have to the laying of the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding
in any such court or that any such suit, action or proceeding which is brought
in any such court has been brought in an inconvenient forum. Process
in any such suit, action or proceeding may be served on any Party anywhere in
the world, whether within or without the jurisdiction of any such
court.
Section
5.07
Headings
. The
headings of the Articles and Sections in this Agreement are provided for
convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part
hereof.
Section
5.08
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement and, for so long as any applicable
terms of the Omnibus Agreement and Joint Venture Documents remain in effect, the
applicable term(s) of the Omnibus Agreement and Joint Venture Documents,
constitute the entire agreement of the Parties hereto with respect to the
subject matter hereof and supersedes all prior agreements and understandings,
oral and written, between the Parties hereto with respect to the subject matter
hereof.
Section
5.09
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Agreement be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Agreement shall remain in
full force in all other respects. Should any provision of this
Agreement be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Laws or
interpretations thereof, or should this Agreement fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the Parties hereto shall negotiate in good faith appropriate
modifications to this Agreement to reflect those changes that are required by
Applicable Law.
Section
5.10
Counterparts
. This
Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed
an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
[Signature
page follows]
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement
has
been executed and
delivered as of the Effective Date.
INTEL
CORPORATION
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Robert J.
Baker
|
|
Name:
|
Robert J.
Baker
|
|
Title:
|
Senior Vice
President
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ D. Mark
Durcan
|
|
Name:
|
D. Mark
Durcan
|
|
Title:
|
President and
COO
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
IM
FLASH TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ David Baglee
|
|
Name:
|
David
Baglee
|
|
Title
|
Executive Officer
|
|
This is
the signature page for the Boise Supply Termination and Amendment Agreement
entered into by and among Intel Corporation, Micron Technology, Inc., and IM
Flash Technology, LLC
EXHIBIT
10.66
[***]
DENOTES CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS OMITTED AND FILED SEPARATELY WITH THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO A REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL
TREATMENT
LOAN
AGREEMENT
This Loan
Agreement (as amended, restated, modified or otherwise supplemented from time to
time, this “
Agreement
”)
is entered into as of November 26, 2008 (the “
Agreement Date
”), by and
among
Micron Semiconductor
B.V.
, a private limited company organized under the laws of The
Netherlands
(the
“
Borrower
”),
Micron Technology, Inc.
, a
corporation organized under the laws of the State of Delaware, U.S.A. (the
“
Guarantor
”), and
Nan Ya Plastics Corporation
, a
company incorporated under the laws of the Republic of China (the “
Lender
”).
RECITALS
A. WHEREAS
, on October 11,
2008, Qimonda AG, a company incorporated under the laws of Germany (“
Qimonda
”), Qimonda Holding
B.V., a private limited company organized under the laws of The Netherlands, the
Borrower and the Guarantor entered into a Share Purchase Agreement, a copy of
which is attached hereto as
Exhibit A
(the “
Share Purchase Agreement
”),
pursuant to which, Qimonda and its Affiliates will sell to the Borrower, a
Subsidiary of the Guarantor, 1,184,088,059 shares of common stock of Inotera
Memories, Inc., a company limited by shares under the laws of the Republic of
China (the “
Company
”),
owned of record by Qimonda and/or its Affiliates (as such shares may be
adjusted, increased or decreased as a result of a stock split, reverse stock
split or reclassification, the “
Shares
”).
B. WHEREAS
, Nanya Technology
Corporation, a company incorporated under the laws of the Republic of China
(“
NTC
”), has committed
to, either individually or through one or more of its affiliates, provide a
two-year loan to the Borrower in support of the proposed acquisition per a
Commitment Letter dated October 11, 2008 (such letter as amended or
supplemented, the “
Commitment
Letter
”).
C. WHEREAS
, in partial
fulfillment of NTC’s obligation under the Commitment Letter, the Lender, as an
Affiliate of NTC, hereby agrees to extend a loan facility to the Borrower and
the Borrower hereby agrees to borrow the same from the Lender, and NTC and the
Guarantor are concurrently with the execution of this Agreement supplementing
the Commitment Letter to reflect NTC’s continuing commitment to provide [***] a
one-year loan upon the maturity of the loan contemplated hereby.
D. WHEREAS
,
the Guarantor is willing
to guarantee all of the Borrower's obligations hereunder, and the Borrower will,
and the Guarantor will cause its Subsidiary who owns part of the Shares to,
pledge in favor of the Lender all of the Shares as security to secure the due
and punctual performance of all of the Borrower's obligations
hereunder.
E. WHEREAS
, the Lender shall,
subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, be and remain the holder
of the Loan and agrees that the Loan is intended to satisfy the requirements of
Section 881(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code and Section 1.871-14 of the
Treasury Regulations.
NOW, THEREFORE
, for good and
valuable consideration, the receipt and adequacy of which are hereby
acknowledged, the parties hereto agree as follows:
1.
DEFINITION
.
1.1
Defined
Terms
.
“
Affiliate
” means, with respect
to any specified Person, any other Person that, directly or indirectly,
including through one or more intermediaries, controls, is controlled by, or is
under common control with such specified Person.
“
Agreement
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.
“
Agreement Date
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.
“
Applicable Law
” means any
applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances, orders, codes,
arbitration awards, judgments, decrees or other legal requirements of any
Governmental Entity.
“
Borrower
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.
“
Business Day
” means a day that
is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banking institutions
in the ROC are authorized or required by Applicable Law to be
closed.
“
Collateral
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 5.1 of this Agreement.
“
Confidential Information
”
shall have the meaning set forth in Section 10.16(a) of this
Agreement.
“
Commitment Letter
” shall have
the meaning set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Company
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Control
” (whether or not
capitalized) means the power or authority, whether exercised or not, to direct
the business, management and policies of a Person, directly or indirectly,
whether through the ownership of voting securities, by contract or otherwise,
which power or authority shall conclusively be presumed to exist upon possession
of beneficial ownership or power to direct the vote of more than fifty percent
(50%) of the votes entitled to be cast at a meeting of the members, shareholders
or other equity holders of such Person or power to control the composition of a
majority of the board of directors or like governing body of such Person; and
the terms “
controlling
”
and “
controlled
” have
meanings correlative to the foregoing.
“
Drawdown Date
” means the date
on which the Lender makes available and releases the Loan to the
Borrower.
“
Event of Default
” means any of
the events described in Section 9.1 of this Agreement.
“
GAAP
” means generally accepted
accounting principles, consistently applied for all periods at
issue.
“
Governmental Entity
” means any
governmental authority or entity, including any agency, board, bureau,
commission, court, municipality, department, subdivision or instrumentality
thereof, or any arbitrator or arbitration panel.
“
Guarantee
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 4.1 of this Agreement.
“
Guarantor
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.
“
Guarantor SEC Filings
” means
the reports, forms and other filings that have been made by the Guarantor with
the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
“
Internal Revenue Code
” means
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and the rules and regulations
promulgated thereunder.
“
Interest Period
” means three
(3) months.
“
Lender
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.
“
Loa
n
” shall have the meaning set
forth in Section 2.1(a) of this Agreement.
“
Loan Documentation
” means this
Agreement and the Pledge Agreement.
“
Material Adverse Effect
” means
a material adverse effect on (a) the business, operations, property, or
condition (financial or otherwise) of the Guarantor and its Subsidiaries taken
as a whole; (b) the ability of the Borrower or the Guarantor to perform its
obligations under the Loan Documentation to which it is a party; or (c) the
legality, validity or enforceability of the Loan Documentation or the rights or
remedies of the Lender under any of the Loan Documentation.
“
Maturity Date
” has the meaning
set forth in Section 2.2(a) of this Agreement.
“
Micron Technology Asia
Pacific
” means Micron Technology Asia Pacific, Inc., an Idaho
corporation.
“
Month
” means a period starting
on one day in a calendar month and ending on the numerically corresponding day
in the next calendar month, except that:
(a) subject
to paragraph (c) below, if the numerically corresponding day is not a Business
Day, that period shall end on the next Business Day in that calendar month in
which that period is to end if there is one, or if there is not, on the
immediately preceding Business Day;
(b) if
there is no numerically corresponding day in the calendar month in which that
period is to end, that period shall end on the last Business Day in that
calendar month; and
(c) if
an Interest Period begins on the last Business Day of a calendar month, that
Interest Period shall end on the last Business Day in the calendar month in
which that Interest Period is to end.
The above
rules will apply only to the last Month of any period.
“
New Lender
”
shall have the meaning
set forth in Section 2.2(b) of this Agreement.
“
New Loan
”
shall have the meaning
set forth in Section 2.2(b) of this Agreement.
“
New Loan Documentation
”
shall have the meaning
set forth in Section 2.2(c) of this Agreement.
“
Non-Attributable Event
” has
the meaning set forth in Section 2.2(d) of this Agreement.
“
Novation Agreement
” has the
meaning set forth in Section 2.2(b) of this Agreement.
“
NTC
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Original Financial Statements
”
means the audited consolidated balance sheets, and related statements of
operations, cash flow and shareholder’s equity, in each case, of the Guarantor
and its Subsidiaries for the fiscal year ended August 28, 2008.
“
Permitted Liens
” means (a)
liens for taxes not yet delinquent or liens for taxes being contested in good
faith and by appropriate proceedings for which adequate reserves have been
established to the extent required by U.S. GAAP; (b) liens in respect of
property or assets imposed by law which were incurred in the ordinary course of
business, which are not delinquent or remain payable without penalty or which
are being contested in good faith and by appropriate proceedings; and (c) liens
in favor of the Lender;
provided
that
, in the case of
a lien described in the foregoing clause (a) or (b), such lien does not have
priority over the liens granted to the Lender under the Pledge
Agreement.
“
Person
” means any natural
person, corporation, joint stock company, limited liability company,
association, partnership, firm, joint venture, organization, business, trust,
estate or any other entity or organization of any kind or
character.
“
Ple
dge
” shall have the meaning
set forth in Section 5.1 of this Agreement.
“
Pledge Agreement
” shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 5.1 of this Agreement.
“
Pledg
or
” shall have the meaning set
forth in Section 5.1 of this Agreement.
“
Potential Event of Default
”
means any event or circumstance that with the giving of notice or the passage of
time (or both) would constitute an Event of Default.
“
Qimonda
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
ROC
” means the Republic of
China.
“
Share Purchase Agreement
”
shall have the meaning set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Shares
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the Recitals of this Agreement.
“
Subsidiary
” means with
respect to any specified Person, any other Person that, directly or indirectly,
including through one or more intermediaries, is controlled by such specified
Person.
“
T
DCC
” means the
Taiwan Depository & Clearing Corporation.
“
T
axes
” includes any tax, levy,
duty, charge, impost, fee, deduction or withholding of any nature now or
hereafter imposed, levied, collected, withheld or assessed by any taxing or
other authority and includes any interest, penalty or other charge payable or
claimed in respect thereof.
“
Term
”
shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 10.4 of this Agreement.
“
TTLA
” means the Technology
Transfer and License Agreement for 68-50NM Process Nodes, made and entered into
as of April 21, 2008, by and between the Guarantor and NTC, as amended, amended
and restated, modified or otherwise supplemented from time to time.
[***] shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 9.5 of this Agreement.
“
2
nd
Closing
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 2.4 of the Share Purchase Agreement.
“
2
nd
Close
Shares
” shall have the meaning
set forth in Section 2.4 of the Share Purchase Agreement.
1.2
Certain Interpretive
Matters
.
(a)
Unless
the context requires otherwise, (i) all references to Sections, Articles or
Exhibits are to Sections, Articles or Exhibits of or to this Agreement, (ii)
each accounting term not otherwise defined in this Agreement has the meaning
commonly applied to it in accordance with ROC GAAP, (iii) words in the singular
include the plural and vice versa, (iv) the term “
including
” means “including
without limitation,” and (v) the terms “
herein
,” “
he
reof
,” “
hereunder
” and words of
similar import shall mean references to this Agreement as a whole and not to any
individual section or portion hereof. Unless otherwise denoted, all
references to “
$
” or
dollar amounts will be to lawful currency of the United States of
America. All references to “
day
” or “
days
” mean calendar
days.
(b)
No
provision of this Agreement will be interpreted in favor of, or against, any
party hereto by reason of the extent to which (i) such party or its counsel
participated in the drafting thereof, or (ii) such provision is inconsistent
with any prior draft of this Agreement or such provision.
2.
TERMS OF
LOAN
AND REPAYMENT
.
2.1
Provision of
Loan
.
(a)
Subject
to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, the Lender shall make available a
loan facility to the Borrower in the principal amount of two hundred million
U.S. dollars ($200,000,000) (the “
Loan
”) and the Borrower agrees
to borrow the Loan.
(b)
Subject
to the Borrower's satisfaction or the Lender’s waiver of the conditions set
forth in Article 6 of this Agreement, the Lender shall make available and
release the entire principal amount of the Loan to the Borrower on the Drawdown
Date (which shall be a Business Day) by wire transfer to the account designated
by the Borrower, the details of which is set forth in a writing delivered by the
Borrower to the Lender.
2.2
Maturity
of the
Loan
.
(a)
The
Borrower shall repay the Loan in full on the first anniversary of the Drawdown
Date (the “
Maturity
Date
”), unless the Loan is accelerated pursuant to this
Agreement.
(b)
Unless
otherwise directed by the Borrower by written notice to the Lender no later than
fifteen (15) Business Days prior to the Maturity Date, the Lender [***]
(the “
New Lender
”) to
make available to the Borrower a loan in the principal amount of two hundred
million U.S. dollars ($200,000,000) (the “
New Loan
”) on the Maturity
Date. The New Loan may be effected by either (i) the assignment by
the Lender of its rights and obligations under the existing Loan Documentation
to the New Lender and, concurrently therewith, the entry into by the New Lender,
the Borrower and the Guarantor of a novation agreement substituting the New
Lender for the Lender and extending the Maturity Date of the Loan to the second
anniversary of the Drawdown Date (the “
Novation Agreement
”) or (ii)
the advance of funds to (or on behalf of) the Borrower and the entry into the
New Loan Documentation.
(c)
In
connection with the New Loan: (i) in the case of Section 2.2(b)(i), the Borrower
and the Guarantor shall enter into the Novation Agreement, (ii) in the case of
Section 2.2(b)(ii), the New Lender, the Borrower, the Guarantor and Micron
Technology Asia Pacific shall enter into loan documentation containing terms and
conditions substantially the same as this Agreement and the Pledge Agreement
(the “
New Loan
Documentation
”);
provided
that
the terms and
conditions of the New Loan Documentation shall be no less favorable to the
Borrower, the Guarantor or Micron Technology Asia Pacific than the Loan
Documentation and the New Loan Documentation shall not contain the
representations and warranties set forth in Sections 7.4, 7.5 or
7.8. The obligation of the New Lender to provide the New Loan shall
be subject to: (i) the creation and perfection of a first-priority pledge on the
same Collateral in favor of the New Lender; and (ii) no Event of Default has
occurred and is continuing (other than a Non-Attributable Event). At
least sixty (60) days prior to the Maturity Date, the Lender will identify the
New Lender to the Borrower and provide proposed drafts of the Novation Agreement
or the New Loan Documentation, as applicable. The New Loan shall be
used exclusively for repayment of the Loan and shall be remitted directly to the
bank account designated by the Lender.
(d)
The
Borrower’s failure to obtain the New Loan and to repay the Loan upon the
maturity of the Loan due to cause(s) not attributable to the Borrower, the
Guarantor or Micron Technology Asia Pacific (a “
Non-Attributable Event
”) shall
not be deemed as an Event of Default under Section 9.1(a) of this Agreement, it
being understood that the term Non-Attributable Event includes the failure of
the New Lender to provide the New Loan so long
as the
Borrower has used commercially reasonable efforts to negotiate and enter into
the New Loan Documentation with the New Lender. If a Non-Attributable
Event occurs, during the period between the occurrence of such Non-Attributable
Event and the date the proceeds of the New Loan are disbursed on behalf of the
Borrower to the Lender’s designated bank account, (i) the Lender will not
exercise any of its rights or remedies under Section 9.2, the Loan Documentation
or otherwise, (ii) no assignment shall be made as set forth in Section 10.3,
(iii) no setoff contemplated by Section 10.3 shall be made, and (iv) the past
due interest rate under Section 3.4 shall not apply.
2.3
Use of
Proceeds
. All proceeds of the Loan shall be exclusively used
to finance the purchase of the 2
nd
Close
Shares and to pay related fees and expenses.
2.4
Repayment Me
chanics
. All
repayments hereunder shall be made by wire transfer of such amounts in
immediately available funds denominated in U.S. dollars to the Lender, at such
place and to such account as the Lender shall designate in a written notice to
the Borrower. Payments shall be credited first to costs and expenses
due and payable hereunder (including the costs incurred under Sections 9.3),
then to the accrued interest then due and payable and the remainder applied to
principal. The Loan may be prepaid, without penalty or premium, in
whole or in part from time to time,
provided
that
:
(a)
Notice:
the Borrower shall have given the Lender not less than three (3) Business Days’
(or such shorter period as may be agreed between the Borrower and the Lender)
prior written notice specifying the amount to be prepaid and the date of
prepayment; and
(b)
Interest:
the Borrower shall concurrently pay accrued and unpaid interest on the full
amount of the Loan to be prepaid on the date of such prepayment.
2.5
Taxes
.
(a)
All
payments to be made by the Borrower or the Guarantor to the Lender under the
Loan Documentation shall be made free and clear of any deduction or withholding
on account of any Taxes. If the Borrower, the Guarantor or any other
person is required by any law or regulation to make any such deduction or
withholding, the Borrower or the Guarantor (as applicable) shall (i) pay such
deducted or withheld amount to the applicable tax authorities and, promptly upon
the Lender’s request, deliver to the Lender the certificate or receipt
evidencing such payment and (ii) pay such additional amount as will ensure that
the Lender receives and is entitled to retain, free and clear of any such
deduction or withholding, the full amount which it would have received if no
such deduction or withholding had been required. Without limiting the
foregoing, if the Lender or any other person on the Lender's behalf is required
by any law or regulation to make a payment on account of any such withholding
Tax or incurs any liability in respect thereof, the Borrower or the Guarantor
(as applicable) shall, within ten (10) Business Days after demand by the Lender
(which demand shall provide a calculation in reasonable detail of such payment),
indemnify the Lender against such payment or liability and any interest, penalty
or expense payable or incurred in connection therewith. The
obligations of the Borrower and the Guarantor under this Section 2.5(a) are
subject to (i) the Lender executing any applicable tax withholding forms (Form
W-8BEN or its equivalent or any other
form
prescribed by law as a basis for claiming exemption from or reduction in
withholding tax) as reasonably requested by the Borrower, Guarantor or the
United States Internal Revenue Service for United States taxation purposes,
together with such supplementary documentation necessary to allow the Borrower
to determine whether the withholding or deduction is required to be made, and
(ii) the representation and covenant contemplated by Section 10.13 being true
and complied with. The Lender agrees to use its commercially reasonable efforts,
at the cost and expense of the Borrower and/or Guarantor, to otherwise assist
the Borrower and/or the Guarantor to obtain the exemption status for any such
deduction or withholding. Nothing in this Section 2.5 shall require
the Borrower or the Guarantor to make any payment on or indemnify the Lender for
any Taxes imposed on or measured by the Lender’s overall net income (however
denominated) and franchise Taxes imposed on the Lender under applicable ROC
laws.
(b)
If
the Lender determines that it has received a refund of, or reduction in its
liability for, any Taxes as a result of amounts paid or withheld by the Borrower
and/or the Guarantor pursuant to this Section 2.5, the Lender shall pay over
such refund or reduction to the Borrower and/or the Guarantor (but only to the
extent of the amounts paid or withheld by the Borrower and/or the Guarantor
under this Section 2.5 with respect to the Taxes giving rise to such refund or
reduction), net of all out-of-pocket expenses of the Lender and without interest
(other than any interest paid by the relevant governmental authority with
respect to such refund or reduction),
provided
that
the Borrower
and/or the Guarantor, upon the request of the Lender, agrees to repay the amount
paid over to the Borrower and/or the Guarantor to the Lender in the event the
Lender is required to repay such refund or reduction to such Governmental
Entity. This Section 2.5 shall not be construed to require the Lender
to make available its tax returns (or any other information relating to its
Taxes that it deems confidential) to the Borrower and/or the Guarantor or any
other person.
3.
INTEREST.
3.1
Calculation of
Interest
. The rate of interest on the Loan for each Interest
Period shall be the percentage rate per annum, which is the aggregate of the
applicable three-month LIBOR and a margin of two percent (2%), rounded up to the
nearest fourth decimal point. For the purpose of this Section 3.1,
LIBOR shall mean (a) the British Bankers’ Association’s London Interbank Offered
Rate for U.S. dollars for a tenor equal to (or most comparable to) the Interest
Period displayed on the Reuters Screen Page 3750 at 11:00 a.m. (Taipei time) on
the date which is two (2) Business Days prior to the commencement of the
applicable Interest Period or (b) if the rate specified in clause (a) is not
available for any reason, the offer rate for U.S. dollars for a tenor equal to
(or most comparable to) the Interest Period displayed on Reuters Screen Page
TAIFX3 at 11:00 a.m. (Taipei time) on the date which is two (2) Business Days
prior to the commencement of the applicable Interest Period.
3.2
Interest
Period
. The initial Interest Period shall commence on the
Drawdown Date, with each successive Interest Period commencing on the last day
of the prior Interest Period.
3.3
Payment of
Interest
. The Borrower shall pay accrued interest in arrears
on the Loan on the last day of each Interest Period, and the amount of interest
shall be computed on the
basis of
the actual number of days elapsed (including the first day but excluding the
last day of such Interest Period) and a year of three hundred and sixty (360)
days.
3.4
Past Due
Rate
. If the Borrower fails to pay any amount payable by it
under the Loan on its due date, past due interest shall accrue on such unpaid
amount at the rate of 10% per annum from the due date up to the date of actual
payment of the unpaid amount (both before and after judgment). The Borrower
shall pay past due interest (if unpaid) accruing on an unpaid sum at the end of
each Interest Period applicable to that unpaid sum or on demand of the
Lender.
4.
GUARANTEE.
4.1
Guarantee
. The
Guarantor hereby fully and unconditionally guarantees the due and punctual
payment of all amounts payable by the Borrower under this Agreement (the “
Guaran
tee
”), in each case when and
as the same shall become due and payable, and, in each case, in accordance with
the terms of this Agreement. The Guarantor hereby expressly waives
its right to require the Lender to pursue or exhaust its legal or equitable
remedies against the Borrower prior to exercising its rights hereunder against
the Guarantor.
4.2
Joint and Several
Liability
. The Guarantor hereby agrees that its obligations
hereunder shall be as if it were the principal debtor and not merely surety, and
shall be absolute and unconditional, irrespective of, and unaffected by, any
invalidity, irregularity or unenforceability of the Loan Documentation, any
failure to enforce the provisions of the Loan Documentation, any waiver,
modification or indulgence granted to the Borrower with respect thereto by
the Lender, or any other circumstance that may otherwise constitute a legal or
equitable discharge of a surety or guarantor. Except as otherwise
expressly provided in the Loan Documentation, the Guarantor hereby waives
diligence, presentment, demand of payment, filing of claims with a court in the
event of merger or bankruptcy of the Borrower, any right to require a proceeding
first against the Borrower or the Collateral, protest or notice with respect to
any indebtedness evidenced thereby or hereby and all demands whatsoever, and
covenants that the Guarantee of the Guarantor will not be discharged with
respect to the Loan Documentation except by payment in full of all amounts owing
in respect thereof. If at any time any payment under the Loan
Documentation is rescinded or must be otherwise restored or returned upon the
insolvency, bankruptcy or reorganization of the Borrower, the Guarantor's
obligations hereunder with respect to such payment shall be reinstated as of the
date of such recession, restoration or return as though such payment had become
due but had not been made at such time.
5.
PLEDGE
AND SECURITY INTEREST.
5.1
Pledge of the
Shares
.
(a)
Without
prejudice to and in addition to Lender’s right toward the Guarantor under
Article 4 of this Agreement, as security for the performance in full of the
obligations of the Borrower and the Guarantor under this Agreement, the
Borrower, Micron Technology Asia Pacific (each, a “
Pledgor
” and collectively, the
“
Pledgors
”) and the
Lender shall enter into a share pledge agreement in the form and substance
attached hereto as
Exhibit B
(the “
Pledge Agreement
”) and the
Pledgors shall create a first priority security interest
maximum
amount pledge in an amount not to exceed two hundred fifty million U.S. dollars
($250,000,000) in favor of the Lender (the “
Pledge
”), in all of the right,
title and interest of the Pledgors in and to (i) all of the Shares, and (ii) all
rights and privileges of the Pledgors, whether now owned or hereafter acquired,
with respect to the Shares, all proceeds, income and profits thereof and all
property received in exchange or substitution therefore (items (i) and (ii)
collectively, the “
Collateral
”).
(b)
As soon
as practical but in no event later than the next Business Day when the TDCC
completes the entries of the 2nd Close Shares in the Borrower's custodian bank’s
depository account, the Pledgors shall, or shall cause their respective
custodian bank to, immediately apply for the book-entry pledge of the Shares and
perfect the Pledge on the same day such Pledge creation application is
filed.
6.
CONDITIONS
PRECEDENT.
The
Lender shall only be obligated to provide the Loan when each of the following
conditions has been satisfied:
(a)
The
Lender shall have received this Agreement duly executed and delivered by the
Borrower and the Guarantor.
(b)
The
Pledgors shall have become the legal record and beneficial owner of and shall
have good and marketable title to its respective portion of the Shares, and the
acquisition of the Shares shall have been approved by the Investment
Commission of the ROC Ministry of Economic Affairs pursuant to the ROC Statute
for Investment by Foreign Nationals.
(c)
The
Lender shall have received the Pledge Agreement, duly executed and delivered by
the Pledgors, granting to the Lender, for its benefit, a security interest in
the Collateral described therein together with such financing and assignment
documents as may be provided in the Pledge Agreement and evidence reasonably
satisfactory to the Lender with respect to the Lender’s first priority security
interest in the Collateral.
(d)
The
Lender shall have received certified copies of all action taken by the Borrower
and/or the Guarantor authorizing the execution, delivery and performance of the
Loan Documentation.
(e)
The
creation and perfection of the Pledge in a timely manner as set forth in Section
5.1 of this Agreement shall have been completed, which might be evidenced by any
notices and acknowledgements required to perfect or give effect to the security
created under the Loan Documentation, including, but not limited to, a
securities passbook/statement produced by the securities agent of the Lender
evidencing the creation of the Pledge.
(f)
No Event
of Default or Potential Event of Default shall have occurred and be
continuing.
7.
REPRESENTATIONS AND
WARRANTIES
.
Each of
the Borrower and the Guarantor represents and warrants, jointly and severally,
to the Lender that
each of the
representations, warranties and statements contained in the following Sections
of this Article 7 is true and correct as of the Agreement Date.
7.1
Organization; Good Standing
and Qualification
. The Borrower is a private limited liability
company duly incorporated and validly existing under the laws of The
Netherlands. The Guarantor is a corporation duly incorporated and validly
existing under the laws of the State of Delaware. Each of the
Borrower and the Guarantor has all requisite corporate power and authority to
own, lease and operate its properties and assets that it currently owns, leases
or operates and to carry on its business as now conducted and as presently
proposed to be conducted.
7.2
Authorization
. All
corporate action on the part of the Borrower and the Guarantor, their respective
officers, directors and stockholders necessary for the authorization, execution
and delivery of the Loan Documentation to which it is a party and the
performance of all obligations of the Borrower and the Guarantor hereunder has
been taken. Each of the Loan Documentation to which it is a party
constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Borrower and the
Guarantor, as the case may be, enforceable against the Borrower and the
Guarantor in accordance with its terms, except to the extent that the
enforceability thereof may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency,
moratorium, and other laws affecting creditor’s rights generally and by
equitable principles (regardless of whether enforcement is sought in equity or
at law).
7.3
Governmental
Consents
. Other than (a) foreign investment approval from the
Investment Commission of the ROC Ministry of Economic Affairs and (b)
anti-competition approvals under Applicable Law, which are required for the
2
nd
Closing, no consent, approval, order or authorization of, or registration,
qualification, designation, declaration or filing with, any Governmental Entity
on the part of the Borrower or the Guarantor is required in connection with the
consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Loan Documentation except
as have been made or obtained (it being understood that no representation or
warranty is being made as to any such consents, approvals, orders,
authorizations, registrations, qualifications, designations or filings which may
be required in connection with the exercise by Lender of any of its rights and
remedies against the Collateral).
7.4
Financial
Statements
.
(a)
The
Original Financial Statements were prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP
consistently applied save to the extent expressly disclosed in such Original
Financial Statements.
(b)
The
Original Financial Statements and each other set of financial statements
delivered by the Borrower and the Guarantor pursuant to Section 8.3 of this
Agreement fairly present in all material respects the consolidated financial
condition and results
of
operations of the Guarantor and its Subsidiaries as at the dates or for the
periods specified therein.
(c)
Except as
disclosed in the Guarantor SEC Filings, there has been no material adverse
change in the condition (financial or otherwise), assets or business of the
Guarantor and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, since the date of the Original
Financial Statements.
7.5
No Proceedings Pending or
Threatened
. Except for any litigation, arbitration or
administrative proceedings disclosed in the Guarantor SEC Filings, no
litigation, arbitration or administrative proceedings of or before any court,
arbitral body or agency, is pending or, to the Borrower’s and/or the Guarantor’s
knowledge, threatened in writing against the Borrower or the Guarantor which
could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.
7.6
Non-conflict With Other
Obligations
. The entry into and performance by the Borrower
and/or the Guarantor of the Loan Documentation to which it is a party, and the
consummation by them of the transactions contemplated thereby, do not and will
not conflict with or result in a breach of, as the case may be:
(a)
any law
or regulation applicable to it;
(b)
its
constitutional documents;
(c)
any
material agreement or instrument binding upon it or any of its assets;
and
(d)
any of
its borrowing limits or powers or any power exercisable by its directors in
connection therewith;
except,
in each case where such conflict or breach would not reasonably be expected to
have a Material Adverse Effect.
7.7
No
Default
. No Event of Default is continuing or would reasonably
be expected to result from the making of the Loan.
7.8
No Unpaid
Taxes
. Each of the Borrower or the Guarantor has, to the
extent required by Applicable Law, timely filed all material tax returns that
are required to have been filed by it and has paid all material taxes, fees and
other charges properly imposed on it by any relevant governmental authority,
except such taxes, fees or other changes that are being contested in good faith
by appropriate proceedings and for which adequate reserves are maintained on the
Borrower’s and/or Guarantor’s books to the extent required by U.S.
GAAP.
7.9
No
Winding-up
. Each of the Borrower and the Guarantor has
not taken any corporate action, nor have any other steps been taken or
legal proceedings been started or threatened in writing against it, for its
winding-up, dissolution or administration or for the appointment of a receiver,
administrator, administrative receiver, trustee or similar offices of it or of
any or all of its assets or revenues.
7.10
Ownership of the
Shares
. Subject to the completion of the transfer of the
Shares pursuant to the Share Purchase Agreement, each Pledgor is the record and
beneficial owner of the Shares held by it, which are free and clear of any lien,
security interest, charge, encumbrance or claim (other than Permitted Liens) and
each Pledgor has the power and capacity to execute, deliver and perform the Loan
Documentation to which it is a party and to create the Pledge in favor of the
Lender;
provided
that
neither the
Borrower, the Guarantor nor any Pledgor shall be responsible for any defect in
title of the Shares that results, directly or indirectly, from a bankruptcy or
other insolvency with respect to any of Qimonda or its Affiliates.
7.11
Effective
Pledge
. The provisions of the Pledge Agreement and
registration of the Pledge with the TDCC will be effective to create in favor of
the Lender a valid, binding and enforceable security interest in all of each
Pledgor’s right, title and interest of the Collateral, and constitute a fully
perfected first priority pledge in all right, title and interest of such Pledgor
in such collateral, superior in right to any liens which any third Person may
have against such collateral or interests therein;
provided
that
neither the
Borrower, the Guarantor nor any Pledgor shall be responsible for any defect with
respect to the Pledge that results, directly or indirectly, from a bankruptcy or
other insolvency with respect to any of Qimonda or its Affiliates.
8.
COVENANTS.
So long
as any amount under the Loan Documentation is outstanding, the Borrower and the
Guarantor hereby jointly and severally agree to:
8.1
Authorizations
. Obtain
when required, make and keep in full force and effect all authorizations from
and registrations with any Governmental Entity and other Persons that may be
required to enable
the Borrower and the
Guarantor
to own their respective assets and carry on their respective
business from time to time being conducted, except where the failure to so
obtain or keep in effect would not materially impair such party’s ability to
perform such party’s obligations under the Loan Documentation to which such
party is a party, and to perform their respective obligations under any Loan
Documentation to which
the Borrower or the
Guarantor, as applicable,
is a party and to ensure the legality,
validity, and enforceability of such Loan Documentation.
8.2
Necessary
Acts
. Upon request by the Lender, do or procure the doing of
all such acts and execute or procure the execution of all such documents as the
Lender may reasonably consider necessary for giving full effect to the Loan
Documentation or securing to the Lender the full benefits of all rights, powers
and remedies conferred upon the Lender in the Loan Documentation.
8.3
Financial Statements and
Other Information
. With respect to the Guarantor, deliver to
the Lender the following in English: (a) copies of the Guarantor’s Annual Report
on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q promptly after any such report is
filed by the Guarantor with the United States Securities and Exchange
Commission; and (b) copies of all documents or other information sent by the
Guarantor to its stockholders generally. All financial statements
delivered by the Guarantor pursuant to this Section 8.3 shall be prepared under
U.S. GAAP. Any report, document or information contemplated by the
foregoing sentence that is
available
on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s website shall be deemed to have
been delivered by the Guarantor to the Lender.
8.4
Notification of
Defaults
. Promptly notify the Lender upon the Chief Executive
Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer, the Treasurer or
General Counsel of the Guarantor obtaining knowledge of the occurrence of any
default or Event of Default hereunder or of any default under the Pledge
Agreement or the U.S.$85 million loan agreement between the Guarantor and the
Company.
8.5
Inspection
. Grant
the Lender, its representatives, agents and/or advisors, the right to reasonable
access to inspect the facilities and books of the Borrower and the
Guarantor. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this
Agreement, neither the Borrower nor the Guarantor will be required to disclose,
permit the inspection or examination of, any document, information or other
matter that (i) constitutes non-financial trade secrets or non-financial
proprietary information, (ii) in respect of which disclosure to the Lender
(or its designated representative) is then prohibited by Applicable Law or any
agreement binding on the Borrower, the Guarantor or any of their Subsidiaries or
(iii) is subject to attorney-client or similar privilege or constitutes
attorney work product.
8.6
C
ompliance with
Laws
. Procure that each of the Borrower and the Guarantor
shall comply in all material respects with all laws to which such party may be
subject, if failure so to comply would materially impair such party’s ability to
perform such party’s obligations under the Loan Documentation to which such
party is a party.
8.7
Environmental
Com
pliance
.
Comply in all material respects with all applicable environmental laws,
obtain and maintain any environmental permits necessary to the Borrower’s or the
Guarantor’s business and take all reasonable steps in anticipation of known or
expected future changes to or obligations under environmental law or any
environmental permits, in each case where the failure to do so could reasonably
be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.
8.8
Taxes
. Pay
and discharge all material taxes, assessments and governmental charges or levies
whatsoever imposed on
the Borrower
or the Guarantor
or on its income or profits or on any of the property of
the Borrower or the
Guarantor
prior to the date on which penalties attach thereto, and timely
file all returns relating thereto, except to the extent that any such tax,
assessment, governmental charge, levy or claim is being contested in good faith
and by appropriate proceedings and for which adequate segregated reserves have
been established therefore to the extent required by U.S. GAAP or where the
failure to so pay, discharge or file would not materially impair such party’s
ability to perform such party’s obligations under the Loan Documentation to
which such party is a party.
8.9
Maintenance of
Insurance
. Maintain or procure to be maintained with reputable
insurers insurances on and in relation to its business and assets:
(a)
against
those risks customarily insured against by prudent companies carrying on a
similar business; and
(b)
against
those risks required by Applicable Law.
8.10
Maintenance of
Property
. Procure that each of
the Borrower and the
Guarantor
will maintain and preserve in good working order (ordinary wear
and tear excepted) all of the assets necessary to the conduct of its business
from time to time, except where the failure to do so would not materially impair
such party’s ability to perform such party’s obligations under the Loan
Documentation to which such party is a party.
9.
EVENTS OF
DEFAULT
.
9.1
Events of
Default
. The occurrence and continuance of any of the
following shall constitute an
Event of Default
under this
Agreement:
(a)
the
Borrower’s or Guarantor’s failure to make any payment of principal, interest or
any other amount payable hereunder when due under the Loan Documentation and
such failure continues unremedied for three (3) Business Days in the case of
payments of principal or five (5) Business Days in the case of interest or any
such other amount;
(b)
the Borrower
’
s or Guarantor
’
s failure to
duly and
punctually
perform its material obliga
tions or covenants
under
the Loan
Documentation and such failure continues for 30 days after the Lender provides
written notice thereof to the Borrower and the Guarantor;
(c)
any
representation, warranty or statement made or deemed to be made by the Borrower
or the Guarantor in the Loan Documentation is or proves to have been incorrect
or misleading in any material respect when made;
(d)
the
filing of a petition by or against the Borrower or the Guarantor under any
provision of any law relating to bankruptcy, insolvency or other relief for
debtors; and in the case of any such petition filed against the Borrower or the
Guarantor, such petition remains unstayed or undismissed for a period of sixty
(60) days; or appointment of a receiver, trustee, custodian or liquidator of or
for all or any part of the assets or property of the Borrower or the Guarantor;
or the insolvency of the Borrower or the Guarantor; or the making of a general
assignment for the benefit of creditors by the Borrower or the Guarantor;
(e)
any Loan
Documentation, once executed and delivered, ceases to be in full force and
effect or ceases to be effective to create the security interest;
and
(f)
any
actual or asserted invalidity or unenforceability by the Borrower or the
Guarantor of the Guarantee or the Pledge.
9.2
Remedies
. Upon
the occurrence and during the continuance of any Event of Default, the Lender,
at its option, may: (i) by notice to the Borrower and the Guarantor,
declare the unpaid principal amount of the Loan, all interest accrued and unpaid
thereon and all other amounts payable hereunder to be immediately due and
payable, whereupon the unpaid principal amount of the Loan, all such interest
and all such other amounts shall become immediately due and payable, without
presentment, demand, protest or further notice of any kind,
provided
that
if an event
described in Section 9.1(d) above shall occur without the giving of any such
notice and
(ii) upon
the acceleration of the Loan, exercise its rights and remedies under the Pledge
Agreement.
9.3
Costs
. The
Borrower and the Guarantor agree to pay on demand all of the losses, costs and
expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees and disbursements) that the
Lender incurs in connection with enforcement of the Loan Documentation, the
protection or preservation of the Lender's rights under the Loan Documentation
or collection of amounts due under the Loan Documentation, whether by judicial
proceeding or otherwise. Such costs and expenses include those
incurred in connection with any refinancing, or any bankruptcy, insolvency,
liquidation or similar proceedings.
9.4
Waivers
. Except
as otherwise set forth herein or in the Loan Documentation, the Borrower and the
Guarantor hereby waive diligence, demand, presentment, protest or notice of any
kind in connection with the exercise by the Lender of its rights under the Loan
Documentation. The Borrower and the Guarantor agree to make all
payments under the Loan Documentation without setoff (except as may be requested
by the Lender) or deduction and regardless of any counterclaim or
defense.
9.5
[***]
Notwithstanding
anything to the contrary contained in the Loan Documentation, the Borrower, the
Guarantor and the Lender acknowledge that if the Borrower, the
Guarantor and/or Micron Technology Asia Pacific is required [***]
shall not give rise to a basis for a claim of breach of a representation,
non-compliance or default or Event of Default under the Loan
Documentation. If [***] occurs, neither the Borrower nor the
Guarantor nor Micron Technology Asia Pacific shall have an obligation to provide
any additional collateral to the Lender and Lender’s interest in the Shares
shall be limited to the interest, if any, the Borrower or Micron Technology Asia
Pacific has in the Shares as a result of [***].
10.
GEN
ERAL PROVISIONS
.
10.1
Notices
. All
notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be
deemed duly given upon (a) transmitter’s confirmation of a receipt of a
facsimile transmission, (b) confirmed delivery by a standard overnight or
recognized international carrier or when delivered by hand, or (c) delivery in
person, addressed at the following addresses (or at such other address for a
party as shall be specified by like notice):
(a)
if to
Borrower, to:
Micron
Semiconductor B.V.
8000
South Federal Way
Boise,
Idaho 83716-9632
Fax: (208)
363-1309
Attention: General
Counsel
With a
copy to:
Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000
South Federal Way
Boise,
Idaho 83716-9632
Fax: (208)
368-4095
Attention:
Treasurer
With a
copy to:
Wilson
Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, P.C.
650 Page
Mill Road
Palo
Alto, California 94304
Fax: (650)
493-6811
Attention: John
A. Fore, Esq.
(b)
if to
Guarantor, to:
Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000
South Federal Way
Boise,
Idaho 83716-9632
Fax: (208)
363-1309
Attention: General
Counsel
With a
copy to:
Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000
South Federal Way
Boise,
Idaho 83716-9632
Fax: (208)
368-4095
Attention:
Treasurer
With a
copy to:
Wilson
Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, P.C.
650 Page
Mill Road
Palo
Alto, California 94304
Fax: (650)
493-6811
Attention: John
A. Fore, Esq.
(c)
if to
Lender, to:
Nan
Ya Plastics Corporation
3F, 201
Tun Hua N. Road
Taipei
105, Taiwan, ROC
Fax:
886.2.27178533
Attention: President
Office
With a
copy (which shall not constitute notice) to:
Nanya
Technology Corporation
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park 669
Fuhsing 3
RD. Kueishan
Taoyuan,
Taiwan ROC
Fax:
886.3.396.2226
Attention:
Legal Department
10.2
Waiver
. The
failure at any time of a party hereto to require performance by the other party
or parties of any responsibility or obligation required by this Agreement shall
in no way affect the first party’s right to require such performance at any time
thereafter, nor shall the waiver by a party hereto of a breach of any provision
of this Agreement by the other party or parties constitute a waiver of any other
breach of the same or any other provision nor constitute a waiver of the
responsibility or obligation itself.
10.3
Assignment
. This
Agreement or any right or obligation hereunder, is not assignable, delegable or
otherwise transferable by any party, either voluntarily, by operation of law, or
otherwise, without the prior written consent of the other parties (which consent
may be withheld in its sole discretion);
provided
that
the Lender may
assign its rights and obligations hereunder as contemplated by Section 2.2;
p
rovided
further
that
after the
repayment in full of the U.S.$85 million loan to the Company from the Borrower,
the Lender may, by sending a written notice to the Borrower and the Guarantor at
least three (3) Business Days prior to the effective date of any such
assignment, assign any or all of its rights to payment of the Loan from the
Borrower and/or the Guarantor hereunder to NTC when the Borrower or the
Guarantor’s payment obligations under the Loan Documentation is
due. Upon the assignment to NTC, NTC shall have the right to offset
its payment obligations payable under the TTLA against any right or claim so
assigned to NTC; provided that NTC may make any such offset only with respect to
amounts that are past due under the Loan Documentation. Any such
purported assignment or transfer not in accordance with this Section 10.3 shall
be null and void. Subject to the foregoing, this Agreement shall bind
and inure to the benefit of the parties and their successors and
assigns. The transfer of any right or obligation hereunder by the
Lender shall be effected only by the surrender of the Loan, and either the
reissuance by the Lender of the Loan to a new borrower or the issuance by the
Lender of a new loan instrument to a new borrower;
provided
that
, in the event of
an assignment contemplated by Section 2.2, the parties shall execute the
Novation Agreement and, if requested by the Borrower, reexecute this Loan
Agreement with the only changes being substituting the New Lender and extending
the Maturity Date. The Lender represents to the Borrower that, except
as otherwise permitted by this Section 10.3, it is and will remain the holder of
the Loan. This provision is intended to satisfy the requirements of
Section 881(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code and Section 1.871-14 of the
Treasury Regulations.
10.4
Term.
The
term of the Agreement shall commence from the date hereof and end on the date
upon which all the Borrower's and the Guarantor's obligations and liabilities
under the Loan Documentation, including, without limitation, the repayments
of the Loan and the interest, have been duly performed (the “
Term
”).
10.5
Amendment
. This
Agreement may not be amended or modified without the written consent of all
parties hereto.
10.6
Third Party
Rights
. Nothing in this Agreement, whether express or implied,
is intended or shall be construed to confer, directly or indirectly, upon or
give to any Person, other than the parties hereto and NTC, any legal or
equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any
covenant, condition or other provision contained herein.
10.7
Governing
Law
. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in
accordance with the laws of the ROC, without giving effect to its conflict of
laws principles.
10.8
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Agreement shall be brought in the Taipei District Court, located in Taipei,
Taiwan
,
and each of the
parties hereto hereby consents and submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of such
court (and of the appropriate appellate courts therefrom) in any such suit,
action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by
Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying
of the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding in any such court or that
any such suit, action or proceeding which is brought in any such court has been
brought in an inconvenient forum.
10.9
Headings
. The
headings of the Articles and Sections in this Agreement are provided for
convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part
hereof.
10.10
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement, together with the Exhibits hereto
and the agreements and instruments referred to herein, constitute the entire
agreement of the parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof and
supersede all prior agreements and understandings, oral and written, among the
parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof.
10.11
Taxes.
Except
as otherwise set forth in this Agreement, all Taxes incurred or imposed in
connection with this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereby shall be
paid by the party subject to such Tax.
10.12
Cost and
Expenses
. The Borrower and Guarantor agree to pay promptly on
demand the expenses and fees incurred by the Lender that are charged by the
securities agent of the Lender in connection with the creation and perfection of
the Pledge;
provided
,
however
,
that
neither the
Borrower nor the Guarantor shall be liable for any expense or fees associated
with the creation and perfection of a pledge on the Collateral in favor of the
New Lender. Except as otherwise set forth herein or in the Loan
Documentation, the Borrower and the Lender shall be responsible for their own
out-of pocket expenses incurred by them in the preparation, negotiation and
performance of the Loan Documentation (including, but not limited to, legal fees
and service fees to professional advisors).
10.13
Lender Represe
ntation and
Covenant
. The Lender hereby represents and warrants that it is
not a ten percent (10%) shareholder (as that term is defined in Section
871(h)(3)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code) of the Guarantor on the Agreement
date and hereby
agrees
that it will not become a ten percent (10%) shareholder of the Guarantor during
the Term of the Loan.
10.14
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Agreement be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Agreement shall remain in
full force and effect in all other respects. Should any provision of
this Agreement be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Law or
interpretations thereof, or should this Agreement fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the parties hereto shall negotiate in good faith appropriate
modifications to this Agreement to reflect those changes that are required by
Applicable Law.
10.15
Counterparts
. This
Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed
an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
10.16
Confidential
Information
.
(a)
The
parties hereby acknowledge that the terms and conditions of the Loan
Documentation and the information requested to be disclosed herein which is not
available to the public shall be considered confidential information
(collectively, the “
Confidential Information
”),
and the parties agree that the term Confidential Information includes (i) on the
part of the Borrower and the Guarantor, any information received from the Lender
or NTC under, pursuant to or in connection with the Loan Documentation or
the transactions contemplated thereby, and (ii) on the part of the Lender, any
information received from the Borrower, the Guarantor or Micron Technology Asia
Pacific under, pursuant to or in connection with the Loan Documentation or the
transactions contemplated thereby. The parties shall not disclose any
Confidential Information to any third party except in accordance with the
provisions of this Section 10.16. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the
term "Confidential Information" shall not include information that (i) is or
becomes published or otherwise generally available to the public through no
fault or omission of the applicable party or any of its Affiliates, employees,
lenders, accountants or attorneys, (ii) was available to the applicable party on
a non-confidential basis prior to its disclosure to such party pursuant to the
Loan Documentation or (iii) becomes available to the applicable on a
non-confidential basis from a source other than the other parties.
(b)
Notwithstanding
the foregoing, any of the parties may disclose any of the Confidential
Information to its Affiliates, employees, lenders, accountants and attorneys, in
each case only where such Persons have the need to know and so long as such
Persons agree to keep the information confidential in accordance with this
Section 10.16.
(c)
In the
event that any of
the
parties
is requested or becomes legally compelled (including without
limitation, including by the Securities and Futures Bureau, Financial
Supervisory Commission, Executive Yuan, ROC, the Taiwan Stock Exchange or the
U.S. Securities Exchange Commission) to disclose the Confidential Information,
such party,
shall
provide the other parties with prompt written notice of that fact before such
disclosure is made and furnish for disclosure only that portion of the
information which is legally required.
(d)
Each of
the Lender, the Borrower and the Guarantor agrees that it will provide the other
parties with drafts of any documents, press releases or other filings in which
it is required to disclose the Confidential Information at least five (5)
business days or such other period as required by law, whichever is shorter,
prior to the filing or disclosure thereof, and that it will make any changes to
such materials reasonably requested by the other parties to the extent permitted
by Applicable Law. If confidential treatment is requested by any of
the other parties, the party seeking disclosure of the Confidential Information
agrees to file a request on behalf of such other party and shall use its
commercially reasonable efforts in responding to any comments by any such stock
exchange or securities regulatory body or authority to cause such confidential
treatment to be granted.
(e)
Notwithstanding
Section 10.4 provides otherwise, the obligations of this Section 10.16 with
respect to any Confidential Information or with respect to any discussions or
agreements between the parties shall survive and continue for five (5) years
from the date of this Agreement.
(f)
The
Lender understands and agrees that the Guarantor will file the Loan
Documentation, as well as a summary of the Loan Documentation, with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission (or any other Governmental Entity or
regulatory body or stock exchange) and such filings will not be subject to the
restrictions and procedures set forth in this Section 10.16.
[Signature
Page Follows]
The
parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be executed and delivered as of the
date first written above.
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
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By:
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/s/ D.
Mark
Durcan
|
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Name:
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D.
Mark Durcan
|
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Title:
|
President
and Chief Operating Officer
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[SIGNATURE
PAGE TO LOAN AGREEMENT BETWEEN MICRON TECHNOLOGY INC., MICRON SEMICONDUCTOR B.V.
AND NAN YA PLASTICS CORPORATION]
The
parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be executed and delivered as of the
date first written above.
MICRON
SEMICONDUCTOR B.V.
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By:
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/s/ Thomas L. Laws, Jr.
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Name:
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Thomas
L. Laws, Jr.
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Title:
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Managing
Director A
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By:
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/s/ S.
Boermans / /s/ A.M.L.
Kuijpers
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Name:
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S.
Boermans / A.M.L.
Kuijpers
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Title:
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Trust
International Management (T.I.M.) B.V.
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[SIGNATURE
PAGE TO LOAN AGREEMENT BETWEEN MICRON TECHNOLOGY INC., MICRON SEMICONDUCTOR B.V.
AND NAN YA PLASTICS CORPORATION]
The
parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be executed and delivered as of the
date first written above.
NAN
YA PLASTICS CORPORATION
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By:
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/s/ C. J. Wu
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Name:
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C.
J. Wu
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Title:
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Chairman
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[SIGNATURE
PAGE TO LOAN AGREEMENT BETWEEN MICRON TECHNOLOGY INC., MICRON SEMICONDUCTOR B.V.
AND NAN YA PLASTICS CORPORATION]
EXHIBIT
10.67
LOAN
AGREEMENT
This Loan
Agreement (
as amended, restated, modified or
otherwise supplemented from time to time,
this “
Agreement
”) is entered into as
of
November
26, 2008 (the “
Agreement Date
”), by and
between
Micron Technology, Inc.
, a
corporation organized under the
laws
of
the
State of Delaware, U.S.A. (the
“
Borrower
”), and
Inotera Memories, Inc.
,
a company incorporated under the laws of the Republic of China (the “
Lender
”).
RECITALS
A. WHEREAS
, the Lender has
committed to provide financing to the Borrower for general corporate purposes
per a Commitment Letter dated October 11, 2008 (such letter along with any
supplement thereto, the “
Commitment
Letter
”).
B. WHEREAS
, to fulfill the
Lender’s obligations under the Commitment Letter, the Lender
hereby
agrees, subject to the terms and
conditions set forth herein, to extend a short-term loan facility to the
Borrower and the Borrower
hereby
agrees to
borrow the same from the Lender, subject to the terms and conditions set forth
herein.
C
. WHEREAS
, as a condition set
forth in the Commitment Letter, the consummation of the 2
nd
Closing
(as defined below) under the Share Purchase Agreement (as defined below) is
a condition precedent to the Lender’s performance of its obligation of extending
the Loan (as defined below).
D. WHEREAS
, the Lender shall, subject to the terms of this
Agreement, be and remain the holder of the Loan and agrees that the Loan is
intended to satisfy the requirements of Section 881(c)(2) of the Internal
Revenue Code and Section 1.871-14 of the Trea
sury Regulations.
NOW, THEREFORE
, for good and
valuable consideration, the receipt and adequacy of which are hereby
acknowledged, the parties hereto agree as follows:
1.
DEFINITIONS
.
1.1
Defined
Terms
.
“
Account Receivable
” means all
present and future rights, title, remedies and claims which the Borrower has or
may have from time to time with respect to the quarterly license fees
set forth on Sche
dule 4 to
the TTLA that become due after the
Agreement Date
.
“
Agreement
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.
“
Agreement Date
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.
“
Applicable Law
” means any
applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances, orders, codes,
arbitration awards, judgments, decrees or other legal requirements of any
Governmental Entity.
“
Borrower
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.
“
Business Day
” means a day
that is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banking
institutions in the ROC are authorized or required by Applicable Law to be
closed.
“
Confidential
Information
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section
10.14
(a) of
this Agreement.
“
Commitment Letter
” shall have
the meaning set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Control
” (whether or not
capitalized) means the power or authority, whether exercised or not, to direct
the business, management and policies of a Person, directly or indirectly,
whether through the ownership of voting securities, by contract or otherwise,
which power or authority shall conclusively be presumed to exist upon
possession of beneficial ownership or power to direct the vote of more than
fifty percent (50%) of the votes entitled to be cast at a meeting of the
members, shareholders or other equity holders of such Person or power to control
the composition of a majority of the board of directors or like governing body
of such Person; and the terms “
controlling
” and “
controlled
” have meanings
correlative to the foregoing.
“
Drawdown Date
” means the date
on which the Lender transfers the
proceeds
of the Loan to the Borrower.
“
Event of Default
” means
any of the events described in
Section 9.1
of this Agreement.
“
GAAP
” means generally accepted
accounting principles, consistently applied for all periods at
issue.
“
Govern
mental Entity
” means any
governmental authority or entity, including any agency, board, bureau,
commission, court, municipality, department, subdivision or instrumentality
thereof, or any arbitrator or arbitration panel.
“
Internal Revenue Code
”
means the
I
nternal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended,
and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
“
Interest Period
” means three
(3) months.
“
Lender
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble of this Agreement.
“
Loa
n
” shall have the meaning set
forth in Section 2.1(a) of this Agreement.
“
Loa
n Documentation
” means this
Agreement and the Pledge Agreement.
“
Month
” means a period starting
on one day in a calendar month and ending on the numerically corresponding day
in the next calendar month, except that:
(a) subject
to paragraph (c) below, if the numerically corresponding day is not a Business
Day, that period shall end on the next Business Day in that calendar month in
which that period is to end if there is one, or if there is not, on the
immediately preceding Business Day;
(b) if
there is no numerically corresponding day in the calendar month in which that
period is to end, that period shall end on the last Business Day in that
calendar month; and
(c) if
an Interest Period begins on the last Business Day of a calendar month, that
Interest Period shall end on the last Business Day in the calendar month in
which that Interest Period is to end.
The above
rules will apply only to the last Month of any period.
“
NTC
” means Nanya Technology
Corporation, a company incorporated under the laws of the ROC.
“
Permitted Liens
” means (a)
liens for taxes not yet delinquent or liens for taxes being contested in good
faith and by appropriate proceedings for which adequate reserves have been
established to the extent required by U.S. GAAP; (b) liens in respect of
property or assets imposed by law which were incurred in the ordinary course of
business, which are not delinquent or remain payable without penalty or which
are being contested in good faith and by appropriate proceedings; and (c) liens
in favor of the Lender;
provided
that
, in the case of
a lien described in the foregoing clause (a) or (b), such lien does not have
priority over the liens granted to the Lender under the Pledge
Agreement.
“
Person
” means any natural
person, corporation, joint stock company, limited liability company,
association, partnership, firm, joint venture, organization, business, trust,
estate or any other entity or organization of any kind or
character.
“
Pledge
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 5.1 of this Agreement.
“
Pledge Agreement
” shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 5.1 of this Agreement.
“
Pledged Account Receivable
”
shall have the meaning set forth in Section 5.1 of this Agreement.
“
Potential Event of Default”
means any event or circumstance that with the giving of notice or the passage of
time (or both) would constitute an Event of Default.
“
ROC
”
means the Republic of China.
“
Share Purchase Agreement
”
means the Share Purchase Agreement
,
dated October 11, 2008, entered into by and among
the Borrower, the Micron Semiconductor B.V.,
Qimonda AG
and
Qimonda Holding B.V.
for the sale and purchase of certain shares in the Lender.
“
Subsidiary
” means with
respect to any specified Person, any other Person that, directly or indirectly,
including through one or more intermediaries, is controlled by such specified
Person.
“
Tax”
includes any tax, levy,
duty, charge, impost, fee, deduction or withholding of any nature now or
hereafter imposed, levied, collected, withheld or assessed by any taxing or
other authority and includes any interest, penalty or other charge payable or
claimed in respect thereof.
“
Term
” shall have the meaning
set forth in Section 10.4 of this Agreement.
“
TTLA
” means the Technology
Transfer and License Agreement
for
68-50NM Process Nodes, made and entered into
as
of April 21,
2008,
by and between the
Borrower
and NTC
, as amended, amended and restated, modified or
otherwise supplemented from time to time
.
“
2
nd
Closing
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 2.4 of the Share Purchase Agreement.
1.2
Certain Interpretive
Matters
.
(a)
Unless
the context requires otherwise, (i) all references to Sections, Articles or
Exhibits are to Sections, Articles or Exhibits of or to this Agreement,
(ii) each accounting term not otherwise defined in this Agreement has the
meaning commonly applied to it in accordance with ROC GAAP, (iii) words in the
singular include the plural and vice versa, (iv) the term “
including
” means “including
without limitation,” and (v) the terms “
herein
,” “
hereof
,” “
hereunder
” and words of
similar import shall mean references to this Agreement as a whole and not to any
individual section or portion hereof. Unless otherwise denoted, all
references to “
$
” or
dollar amounts will be to lawful currency of the United States of
America. All references to “
day
” or “
days
” mean calendar
days.
(b)
No
provision of this Agreement will be interpreted in favor of, or against, any
party hereto by reason of the extent to which (i) such party or its counsel
participated in the drafting thereof, or (ii) such provision is inconsistent
with any prior draft of this Agreement or such provision.
2.
TERMS OF LOAN AND
REPAYMENT
.
2.1
Provision of
Loan
.
(a)
Subject
to the terms and conditions of this Agreement,
immediately following the 2
nd
Closing,
the Lender shall make available a loan
facility to the Borrower and the Borrower agrees to borrow in the principal
amount of eighty five million U.S. dollars ($85,000,000) (the “
Loan
”).
(b)
Subject
to the Borrower's satisfaction or the Lender’s waiver of the conditions set
forth in Section 2.1(c) and Article 6 of this Agreement, the Lender shall make
the entire principal amount of the Loan available to the Borrower on the
Drawdown Date (which shall be a Business Day) by wire transfer to the account
designated by the Borrower in a written drawing notice in form substantially as
Exhibit
A
hereto.
(c)
Conditions of
Drawing
. The drawing of the Loan is also subject to the
following conditions:
(i)
Delivery
of a drawing notice is made by the Borrower not later than 12:00 noon (Taipei
time) on second (2nd) Business Day before the scheduled Drawdown Date (or at
such time as the Lender may approve); and
(ii)
On or
prior to the Drawdown Date, the Lender shall have received the evidence of
consummation of the 2
nd
Closing.
2.2
Maturity of the
L
oan
. The
Borrower shall repay the Loan in full on the last day of the period of six (6)
months commencing from the Drawdown Date, unless the Loan is accelerated
pursuant to this Agreement.
2.3
Use of
Proceeds
. All proceeds of the Loan shall be used for general
corporate purposes.
2.4
Repayment
Mechanics
. All repayments hereunder shall be made by wire
transfer of such amounts in immediately available funds denominated in U.S.
dollars to the Lender, at such place and to such account as the Lender shall
designate in a written notice to the Borrower. Payments shall be
credited first to costs and expenses due and payable hereunder (including the
costs incurred under Sections 9.3), then to the accrued interest then due and
payable and the remainder applied to principal. The Loan may be
prepaid, without penalty or premium, in whole or in part from time to time,
provided
that
:
(a)
Notice:
the Borrower shall have given the Lender not less than three (3) Business Days’
(or such shorter period as may be agreed between the Borrower and the Lender)
prior written notice specifying the amount to be prepaid and the date of
prepayment; and
(b)
Interest:
the Borrower shall concurrently pay accrued and unpaid interest on the full
amount of the Loan to be prepaid on the date of such prepayment.
2.5
Taxes
. (a) All
payments to be made by the Borrower to the Lender under the Loan Documentation
shall be made free and clear of any deduction or withholding on account of any
Taxes. If the Borrower or any other person is required by any law or
regulation to make any such deduction or withholding, the Borrower shall (i) pay
such deducted or withheld amount to the applicable tax authorities and, promptly
upon the Lender’s request, deliver to the Lender the certificate or receipt
evidencing such payment and (ii) pay such additional amount as will ensure that
the Lender receives and is entitled to retain, free and clear of any such
deduction or withholding, the full amount which it would have received if no
such deduction or withholding had been required. Without limiting the
foregoing, if the Lender or any other person on the Lender's behalf is required
by any law or regulation to make a payment on account of any such withholding
Tax or incurs any liability in respect thereof, the Borrower shall, within ten
(10) Business Days after demand by the Lender (which demand shall provide a
calculation in reasonable detail of such payment), indemnify the Lender against
such payment or liability and any interest, penalty or expense payable or
incurred in connection therewith. The obligations of the Borrower
under this Section 2.5(a) are subject to (i) the Lender executing any applicable
tax withholding forms (Form W-8BEN or its equivalent or any other form
prescribed by law as a basis for claiming exemption from or reduction in
withholding tax) as reasonably requested by the Borrower or the United States
Internal Revenue Service for United States taxation purposes,
together
with such supplementary documentation necessary to allow the Borrower to
determine whether the withholding or deduction is required to be made and (ii)
the representation and covenant contemplated by Section 10.13 being true and
complied with. The Lender agrees to use its commercially reasonable
efforts, at the cost and expense of the Borrower, to otherwise assist the
Borrower to obtain the exemption status for any such deduction or
withholding. Nothing in this Section 2.5 shall require the Borrower
to make any payment on or indemnify the Lender for any Taxes imposed on or
measured by the Lender’s overall net income (however denominated) and franchise
Taxes imposed on the Lender under applicable ROC laws
.
(b) If
the Lender determines that it has received a refund of, or reduction in its
liability for, any Taxes as a result of amounts paid or withheld by the Borrower
pursuant to this Section 2.5, the Lender shall pay over such refund or reduction
to the Borrower (but only to the extent of the amounts paid or withheld by the
Borrower under this Section 2.5 with respect to the Taxes giving rise to such
refund or reduction), net of all out-of-pocket expenses of the Lender and
without interest (other than any interest paid by the relevant governmental
authority with respect to such refund or reduction),
provided
that
the Borrower,
upon the request of the Lender, agrees to repay the amount paid over to the
Borrower to the Lender in the event the Lender is required to repay such refund
or reduction to such Governmental Entity. This Section 2.5 shall not
be construed to require the Lender to make available its tax returns (or any
other information relating to its Taxes that it deems confidential) to the
Borrower or any other person.
3.
INTEREST
3.1
Calculation of
Interest
. The rate of interest on the Loan for each Interest
Period shall be the percentage rate per annum, which is the aggregate of the
applicable three-month LIBOR and a margin of two percent (2%), rounded up to the
nearest fourth decimal point. For the purpose of this Section 3.1,
LIBOR shall mean (a) the British Bankers’ Association’s London Interbank Offered
Rate for U.S. dollars for a tenor equal to (or most comparable to) the Interest
Period displayed on the Reuters Screen Page 3750 at 11:00 a.m. (Taipei time) on
the date which is two (2) Business Days prior to the commencement of the
applicable Interest Period or (b) if the rate specified in clause (a) is not
available for any reason, the offer rate for U.S. dollars for a tenor equal to
(or most comparable to) the Interest Period displayed on Reuters Screen Page
TAIFX3 at 11:00 a.m. (Taipei time) on the date which is two (2) Business Days
prior to the commencement of the applicable Interest Period.
3.2
Interest
Period
. The
initial
Interest Period
shall commence
on
the Drawdown Date
, with each successive Interest
Period commencing on the
last
day of the
prior
Interest Period
.
3.3
Payment of
Interest
. The Borrower shall pay accrued interest in arrears
on the Loan on the last day of each Interest Period, and the amount of interest
shall be computed on the basis of
the actual
number of days elapsed
(including the first day but excluding the
last day of such Interest Period) and a year of three hundred and sixty (360)
days.
3.4
Past Due
Rate
. If the Borrower fails to pay any amount payable by it
under the Loan on its due date, past due interest shall accrue on such unpaid
amount at the rate of 10% per annum from the due date up to the date of actual
payment of the unpaid amount (both before and after
judgment). The
Borrower shall pay past due interest (if unpaid) accruing on an unpaid sum at
the end of each Interest Period applicable to that unpaid sum or on demand of
the Lender.
4.
RESERVED
5.
PLEDGE
AND SECURITY INTEREST.
5.1
Pledge of the Account
Receivable
. Without prejudice to the Lender’s right toward the
Borrower under this Agreement, as security for the performance in full of the
obligations of the Borrower under this Agreement, the Borrower and the Lender
shall enter into an account receivable pledge agreement in the form and
substance attached hereto as
Exhibit
B
(the “
Pledge Agreeme
nt
”) and the Borrower shall
create a first priority security interest, subject to Permitted Liens, of a
pledge in favor of the Lender (the “
Pledge
”), in the rights, title
and interests in and to (i) all of the Account Receivable, and (ii) all rights
and privileges of the Borrower with respect to the Account Receivable, all
proceeds, income and profits thereof and all property received in addition
thereto, in exchange or substitution therefore (items (i) and (ii) collectively,
the “
Pledged Account
Receivable
”).
6.
CONDITIONS
PRECEDENT.
The
Lender shall only be obligated to provide the Loan
when
each of the following conditions has been
satisfied:
(a)
T
he
Lender shall have received this Agreement duly executed
and delivered by the Borrower.
(b)
All
representations and warranties made by the Borrower in this Agreement shall be
true and correct in all material respects with reference to the facts and
circumstances then subsisting.
(c)
The
Lender shall have received the Pledge Agreement, duly executed and delivered by
the Borrower, granting to the Lender, for its benefit, a security interest in
the Pledged Account Receivable described therein together with such financing
and assignment documents as provided in the Pledge Agreement and evidence
satisfactory to the Lender with respect to the Lender’s first priority security
interest in the Pledged Account Receivable.
(d)
The
Lender shall have received certified copies of all action taken by the
Borrower authorizing the execution, delivery and performance of the Loan
Documentation.
(e)
Completion
of creation and perfection of the Pledge, which shall be evidenced by any
notices and acknowledgements required to perfect or give effect to the security
created under the Loan Documentation, including, but not limited to, the written
notification issued by the
Borrower
to NTC
and the written acknowledgment issued by NTC, both in the form as set out in the
Pledge Agreement.
(f)
No Event
of Default or Potential Event of Default shall have occurred and be
continuing.
(g)
The
requirements set out in Section 2.1(b) and (c) are fully complied
with.
7.
REPRESENTATIONS AND
WARRANTIES
.
The Borrower represents
and warrants to the Lender that
each of the
representations, warranties and statements contained in the following Sections
of this Article 7 is true and correct as of the Agreement Date.
7.1
Organizat
ion; Good Standing and
Qualification
. The Borrower is a corporation duly incorporated and
validly existing under the laws of the State of Delaware. The Borrower has
all requisite corporate power and authority to own, lease and operate its
properties and assets that it currently owns, leases or operates and to carry on
its business as now conducted and as presently proposed to be
conducted.
7.2
Authorization
. All
corporate action on the part of the Borrower
,
its
officers, directors and stockholders necessary for the authorization,
execution and delivery of the Loan Documentation and the performance of all
obligations of the Borrower hereunder has been taken. Each of the
Loan Documentation constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the
Borrower
,
enforceable against the Borrower
in accordance with its terms
, except to the extent
that the enforceability thereof may be limited by applicable bankruptcy,
insolvency, moratorium, and other laws affecting creditor
’
s rights generally
and by equitable princip
les (regardless of
whether enforcement is sought in equity or at law)
.
7.3
Governmental
Consents
.
Other than (a) foreign
investment approval from the Investment Commission of the ROC Ministry of
Economic Affairs and (b) anti-competition approvals under Applic
able Law, no
consent, approval, order or
authorization of, or registration, qualification, designation, declaration or
filing with, any Governmental Entity on the part of the Borrower is required in
connection with the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Loan
Documentation
exce
pt as have been made or obtained
(it being understood that no representation
or warranty is being made as to any such consents, approvals, orders,
authorizations, registrations, qualifications, designations or filings which may
be required in connection with the exercise by Lender of any of its rights and
remedies against the Collateral).
7.4
Ownership of the Account
Receivable
. The Borrower is the sole legal and beneficial
owner of the Account Receivable, which is free and clear of any set-off, lien,
security interest, charge, encumbrance or claim, other than Permitted
Liens, and the Borrower has the
corporate
power and capacity to execute, deliver
and perform the Loan Documentation and to create the Pledge in favor of the
Lender.
7.5
Effective
Pledge
. The implementation of provision of Article 5 of this
Agreement and provisions of
the Pledge
Agreement
and the
delivery of
requisite notices to NTC
will be effective to
create in favor of the Lender a valid, binding and enforceable security interest
in all
of the Borrower
’
s
rights,
title and interests
in
the Pledged Account
Receivable, and constitute a fully perfected first and prior security interest,
lien, in all right, title and interest of the
Borrower
in such collateral, superior in right to
any liens which any third Person may have against such collateral or interests
therein.
8.
COVENANTS.
So long
as any amount under the Loan Documentation is outstanding, the Borrower
hereby agree
s
to
:
8.1
Necessary
Acts
. Upon request by the Lender, do or procure the doing of
all such acts and execute or procure the execution of all such documents as the
Lender may reasonably consider necessary for giving full effect to the Loan
Documentation or securing to the Lender the full benefits of all rights, powers
and remedies conferred upon the Lender in the Loan Documentation
.
8.2
Notification of
Defaults
. Promptly notify the Lender upon the Chief Executive
Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer, the Treasurer or
General Counsel of the Borrower obtaining knowledge of the occurrence of any
default or Event of Default hereunder.
9.
EVENTS OF
DEFAULT
.
9.1
Events of
Default
. The occurrence and continuance of any of the
following shall constitute an
Event of Default
under this
Agreement:
(a)
the
Borrower’s failure to make any payment of principal, interest or any other
amount payable hereunder when due under the Loan Documentation and such failure
continues unremedied for three (3) Business Days in the case of payments of
principal or five (5) Business Days in the case of interest or any such other
amount;
(b)
the Borrower
’
s
failure to perform
any of
its
material
obligations
or covenants under
the Loan Documentation, in the case only of a failure
which is capable of remedy and is not to pay money, such failure is not
cured within thirty (30) days (or such longer period as the Lender may
approve) after receipt of written notice from the Lender requiring it to do
so;
(c)
any
representation, warranty or statement made or deemed to be made by the Borrower
in the Loan Documentation is or proves to have been incorrect or misleading in
any material respect when made;
(d)
the
filing of a petition by or against the Borrower under any provision of any law
relating to bankruptcy, insolvency or other relief for debtors
, and in the
case
of any such petition filed against the Borrower, such petition remains unstayed
or undismissed for a period of
60
days
; or
appointment of a receiver, trustee, custodian or liquidator of or for all or any
part of the assets or property of the Borrower; or the insolvency of the
Borrower; or the making of a general assignment for the benefit of creditors by
the Borrower; or
(e)
any Loan
Documentation, once executed and delivered, ceases to be in full force and
effect or ceases to be effective to create the security interest;
and
(f)
any
actual or asserted invalidity or unenforceability
by
the
Borrower
of
the Pledge.
9.2
Remedies
. Upon
the occurrence
and during the continuance
of any Event of Default, the Lender, at its option, may: (i)
by notice to the Borrower, declare the unpaid principal amount of the Loan, all
interest accrued and unpaid
thereon
and all
other amounts payable hereunder to be immediately due and payable, whereupon the
unpaid principal amount of the Loan, all such interest and all such other
amounts shall become immediately due and payable, without presentment, demand,
protest or further notice of any kind,
provided
that
if an event
described in Section 9.1(d) above shall occur, without the giving of any such
notice,
(ii)
upon
acceleration of the Lo
an,
exercise
its rights under the Pledge Agreement, and (iii) upon acceleration of the Loan
and other than with respect to the Collateral (as defined in the Pledge
Agreement), exercise any or all of the rights and remedies available to the
Lender under Applicable Law.
9.3
Costs
. The
Borrower agrees to pay on demand all of the losses, costs and expenses
(including reasonable attorneys' fees and disbursements) that the Lender incurs
in connection with enforcement of the Loan Documentation, the protection or
preservation of the Lender's rights under the Loan Documentation or collection
of amounts due under the Loan Documentation, whether by judicial proceeding or
otherwise. Such costs and expenses include those incurred in
connection with any refinancing, or any bankruptcy, insolvency, liquidation or
similar proceedings.
9.4
Waivers
.
Except as otherwise set forth
herein or in the Loan Documentation, the
Borrower
hereby waives diligence, demand, presentment, protest or notice of any
kind
in connection with the Lender
exercising its rights and remedies upon the
occurrence and during the continuance of an Event of
Default. The
Borrower agree
s
to make all payments under the Loan
Documentation without setoff (except as may be requested by the Lender) or
deduction and regardless of any counterclaim or defense.
10.
GENERAL
PROVISIONS
.
10.1
Notices
. All
notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be
deemed duly given upon (a) transmitter’s confirmation of a receipt of a
facsimile transmission, (b) confirmed delivery by a standard overnight or
recognized international carrier or when delivered by hand, or (c) delivery in
person, addressed at the following addresses (or at such other address for a
party as shall be specified by like notice):
(a)
if
to
the
Borrower, to:
Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000 South Federal Way
Boise, Idaho 83716-9632
Fax: (208) 363-1309
Attention:
General Counsel
With a
copy to:
Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000 South Federal Way
Boise, Idaho 83716-9632
Fax: (208) 368-4095
Attention:
Treasurer
With a
copy to:
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati,
P.C.
650 Page Mill Road
Palo Alto,
California 94304
Fax:
(650) 493-6811
Attention:
John A. Fore, Esq.
(b)
if to
Lender, to:
Inotera
Memories Inc.
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park
667,
Fuhsing 3
rd
Road
Kueishan,
Taoyuan
Taiwan,
R.O.C.
Fax: 886-3-327-2988
Ext. 3385
Attention: General
Counsel
10.2
W
aiver
. The
failure at any time of a party hereto to require performance by the other party
or parties of any responsibility or obligation required by this Agreement shall
in no way affect the first party’s right to require such performance at any time
thereafter, nor shall the waiver by a party hereto of a breach of any provision
of this Agreement by the other party or parties constitute a waiver of any other
breach of the same or any other provision nor constitute a waiver of the
responsibility or obligation itself.
10.3
Assignment
. This
Agreement or any right or obligation hereunder, is not assignable, delegable or
otherwise transferable by any party, either voluntarily, by operation of law, or
otherwise, without the prior written consent of the other parties (which consent
may be withheld in its sole discretion). Any such purported assignment or
transfer not in accordance with this Section 10.3 shall be null and
void. Subject to the foregoing, this Agreement shall bind and inure
to the benefit of the parties and their successors and assigns
.
The transfer of any right or obligation
hereunder by the Lender shall be effected only by the surrender of the Loan, and
either the reissuance by the Lender of the Loan to a new borrower or the
issuance by the Lender of a new loan instrument to a new
borrower. The Lender represents to the Borrower that, except as
otherwise permitted by this Section 10.3, it is and will remain the holder of
the Loan. This provision is intended to satisfy the requirements of
Section 881(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code and Section 1.871-14 of the
Treasury Regulations.
10.4
Term
. The
terms of the Agreement shall commence from the Agreement Date and end on the
date upon which all the Borrower's obligations and liabilities under this
Agreement have been irrevocably performed or discharged in full (the “
Term
”).
10.5
Amendment
. This
Agreement may not be amended or modified without the written consent of all
parties hereto.
10.6
Third Party
Rights
. Nothing in this Agreement, whether express or implied,
is intended or shall be construed to confer, directly or indirectly, upon or
give to any Person, other than the parties hereto, any legal or equitable right,
remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any covenant, condition
or other provision contained herein.
10.7
Governing
Law
. This
Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the
ROC, without giving effect to its conflict of laws principles.
10.8
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Agreement shall be brought in the Taipei District Court, located in Taipei,
Taiwan
,
and each of the
parties hereto hereby consents and submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of such
court (and of the appropriate appellate courts therefrom) in any such suit,
action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by
Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying
of the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding in any such court or that
any such suit, action or proceeding which is brought in any such court has been
brought in an inconvenient forum.
10.9
Headings
. The
headings of the Articles and Sections in this Agreement are provided for
convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part
hereof.
10.10
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement, together with the Exhibits hereto
and the agreements and instruments referred to herein, constitute the entire
agreement of the parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof and
supersede all prior agreements and understandings, oral and written, among the
parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof.
10.11
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Agreement be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Agreement shall remain in
full force and effect in all other respects. Should any provision of
this Agreement be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Law or
interpretations thereof, or should this Agreement fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the parties hereto shall negotiate in good faith appropriate
modifications to this Agreement to reflect those changes that are required
by Applicable Law.
10.12
Counterparts
. This
Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed
an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
10.13
Lender R
epresentation and Covenant. The Lender hereby represents
and warrants that it is not a ten percent (10%) shareholder (as that term is
defined in Section 871(h)(3)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code) of the Borrower on
the Agreement Date and hereby agrees tha
t
it will not
become a ten percent (10%) shareholder during the Term of the Loan
.
10.14
Confidential
Information
.
(a)
The
parties hereby acknowledge that the terms and conditions of the Loan
Documentation and the information requested to be disclosed herein which is not
available to the public shall be considered confidential information
(collectively, the “
Confidential Information
”),
and the parties agree that the term Confidential Information includes (i) on the
part of the Borrower, any information received from the Lender under, pursuant
to or in connection with the Loan Documentation or the transactions contemplated
thereby, and (ii) on the part of the Lender, any information received from the
Borrower under, pursuant to or in connection with the Loan Documentation or the
transactions contemplated thereby. The parties shall not disclose any
Confidential Information to any third party except in accordance with the
provisions of this Section 10.14. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the
term "Confidential Information" shall not include information that (i) is or
becomes published or otherwise generally available to the public through no
fault or omission of the applicable party or any of its Affiliates, employees,
lenders, accountants or attorneys, (ii) was available to the applicable party on
a non-confidential basis prior to its disclosure to such party pursuant to the
Loan Documentation or (iii) becomes available to the applicable on a
non-confidential basis from a source other than the other parties.
(b)
Notwithstanding
the foregoing, any of the parties may disclose any of the Confidential
Information to its Affiliates, employees, lenders, accountants and attorneys, in
each case only where such Persons have the need to know and so long as such
Persons agree to keep the information confidential in accordance with this
Section 10.14.
(c)
In the
event that any of
the
parties
is requested or becomes legally compelled (including without
limitation, including by the Securities and Futures Bureau, Financial
Supervisory Commission, Executive Yuan, ROC, the Taiwan Stock Exchange or the
U.S. Securities Exchange Commission) to disclose the Confidential Information,
such party, shall provide the other parties with prompt written notice of that
fact before such disclosure is made and furnish for disclosure only that portion
of the information which is legally required.
(d)
Each of
the Lender and the Borrower agrees that it will provide the other parties with
drafts of any documents, press releases or other filings in which it is required
to disclose the Confidential Information at least five (5) business days or such
other period as required by law, whichever is shorter, prior to the filing or
disclosure thereof, and that it will make any changes to such materials
reasonably requested by the other parties to the extent permitted by Applicable
Law. If confidential treatment is requested by any of the other
parties, the party seeking disclosure of the Confidential Information agrees to
file a request on behalf of such other party and shall use its commercially
reasonable efforts in responding to any comments by any such stock exchange or
securities regulatory body or authority to cause such confidential treatment to
be granted.
(e)
Notwithstanding
Section 10.4 provides otherwise, the obligations of this Section 10.14 with
respect to any Confidential Information or with respect to any discussions or
agreements between the parties shall survive and continue for five (5) years
from the date of this Agreement.
(f)
The
Lender understands and agrees that the Borrower will file the Loan
Documentation, as well as a summary of the Loan Documentation, with the U.S.
Securities and
Exchange
Commission (or any other Governmental Entity or regulatory body or stock
exchange) and such filings will not be subject to the restrictions and
procedures set forth in this Section 10.14.
[Signature
Page Follows]
The
parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be executed and delivered as of the
date first written above.
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
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By:
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/s/ D. Mark
Durcan
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Name:
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D.
Mark Durcan
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Title:
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President
and Chief Operating Officer
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[SIGNATURE
PAGE TO LOAN AGREEMENT BETWEEN MICRON TECHNOLOGY, INC. AND INOTERA MEMORIES,
INC.]
The
parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be executed and delivered as of the
date first written above.
INOTERA
MEMORIES, INC.
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By:
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/s/ Charles
Kau
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Name:
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Charles
Kau
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Title:
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President
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[SIGNATURE
PAGE TO LOAN AGREEMENT BETWEEN MICRON TECHNOLOGY, INC. AND INOTERA MEMORIES,
INC.]
EXHIBIT
10.68
TRANSITION
AGREEMENT
This
Transition Agreement (this “
Agreement
”), dated as
of October 11, 2008 (the “
Effective Date
”), is
made by and among Nanya Technology Corporation, a company incorporated under the
laws of the Republic of China (“
NTC
”), Qimonda AG, a
company incorporated under the laws of Germany (“
Qimonda
”), Inotera
Memories, Inc., a joint venture company limited by shares under the laws of the
Republic of China (the “
Company
”), Micron
Technology, Inc., a company incorporated under the laws of Delaware (“
Micron
” and, together
with NTC, Qimonda and the Company, the “
Parties
” and each a
“
Party
”). Capitalized
terms used but not defined herein shall have the meanings ascribed to such terms
in the Share Purchase Agreement (as defined below).
RECITALS
A. The
Company was established by NTC and Infineon Technologies AG, a predecessor in
interest to Qimonda (“
Infineon
”), pursuant
to that certain Joint Venture Agreement, dated November 13, 2002 (such
agreement, as amended by the first through fifth amendments thereto, the Letter
of Undertaking dated December 3, 2003 and the Letter of Agreement re Assignment
dated July 28, 2006, the “
JV
Agreement
”).
B. In
connection with the entry into the JV Agreement and the operation of the
Company, NTC, Infineon and the Company entered into certain agreements,
including (i) the Joint Product Development and Product Swap Agreement between
NTC and Infineon, as predecessor in interest to Qimonda, dated November 17, 2003
(including two Amendments and Letter Agreement re Assignment dated July 31,
2006), (ii) the Technical Information Exchange Agreement between NTC and Qimonda
dated September 24, 2007, (iii) the (110nm) License and (90/70 nm) Technical
Cooperation Agreement for DRAM Process Technology between NTC and Infineon, as
predecessor in interest to Qimonda, dated November 13, 2002 (including fourteen
Amendments, two Engineering Sample Agreements and Letter Agreement re Assignment
dated July 31, 2006), (iv) the 60nm Technical Cooperation Agreement between NTC
and Infineon, as predecessor in interest to Qimonda, for DRAM Process
Technology dated September 29, 2005 (including three Amendments of Letter
Agreement re Assignment dated July 31, 2006), (v) the Product Purchase and
Capacity Reservation Agreement among NTC, Infineon, as predecessor in interest
to Qimonda, and the Company dated July 15, 2003 (including three Amendments and
one Supplement), (vi) the Know How Transfer Agreement among NTC, Infineon, as
predecessor in interest to Qimonda, and the Company initially dated November 13,
2002 (including two Amendments) and (vii) the Service Agreement between NTC and
the Company dated July 15, 2003 (the “
Ancillary JV
Agreements
”).
C. In
accordance with the terms of the JV Agreement, Infineon assigned all of its
rights and, with certain exceptions, its obligations under the JV Agreement and
the Ancillary JV Agreements to Qimonda in connection with the transfer by
Infineon of all of its shareholdings in the Company to Qimonda.
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D. On
the date hereof, Qimonda and Micron have entered into a Share Purchase
Agreement, to which this Agreement is attached as Exhibit A (the “
Share Purchase
Agreement
”), pursuant to which, subject to the terms and conditions of
the Share Purchase Agreement, Qimonda and its Affiliates will be selling to
Micron or its nominees all of the issued and outstanding shares of common stock
of the Company owned of record by Qimonda and its Affiliates (other than shares
held by Qimonda and its Affiliates as foreign institutional investors under
applicable ROC law).
E. In
connection with and conditioned upon the transfer of the 2nd Close Shares,
effective as of the 2
nd
Closing, the JV Agreement and the Ancillary JV Agreements will terminate,
subject to the survival of certain provisions agreed upon by the
parties.
F. It
is a condition to the 2
nd
Closing
that Micron and NTC will enter into a new joint venture agreement with respect
to the Company (the “
New JV Agreement
”),
and that Micron, NTC and/or the Company will enter into certain related
agreements and modify certain existing agreements in connection therewith (the
“
New JV Ancillary
Agreements
”).
G. On
the date hereof, Micron, Micron Semiconductor B.V. and NTC have entered into a
Memorandum of Understanding (the “
New JV MOU
”), which
sets forth the current expectations of the parties with respect to principal
terms of the New JV Agreement and the New JV Ancillary Agreements.
H. It
is a condition to the 1
st
Closing
that the Buyer Parent and the Seller Parent will enter into a cross license
agreement mutually agreeable to the parties (the “
Patent Cross
License
”), which shall become effective immediately upon the 2
nd
Closing;
I. Concurrently
with the execution and delivery hereof, and as an inducement for the Parties to
enter into this Agreement:
1. Micron
and Qimonda have entered into that certain Technology License Agreement, in the
form attached to the Share Purchase Agreement as Exhibit B (the “
Micron/Qimonda TLA
”),
which shall become effective immediately upon the later of (A) the 1
st
Closing
and (B) the receipt of the 2
nd
Close
FCO Approval;
2. Infineon
and Micron have entered into that certain Technology License Agreement, in the
form attached to the Share Purchase Agreement as Exhibit C (the “
Infineon/Micron
TLA
”), which shall become effective immediately upon the later of (A) the
1
st
Closing and (B) the receipt of the 2
nd
Close
FCO Approval;
3. the
Company and Micron have entered into that certain Patent and Technology License
Agreement, in the form attached hereto as Exhibit D (the “
Company/Micron
PTLA
”), which shall become effective immediately upon the later of (A)
the 1
st
Closing
and (B) the receipt of the 2
nd
Close
FCO Approval;
4. that
certain Technology Transfer Agreement for 68-50nm Process Nodes, in the form
attached to the Share Purchase Agreement as Exhibit E (the “
TTA
”), which shall
become effective immediately upon the 2
nd
Closing;
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5. NTC
and Qimonda have entered into that certain Termination Agreement, in the form
attached to the Share Purchase Agreement as Exhibit F (the “
NTC/Qimonda Termination
Agreement
”), dated as of the date hereof, which shall become effective
immediately upon the 2
nd
Closing;
6. NTC,
Qimonda and the Company have entered into that certain Release Agreement, in the
form attached to the Share Purchase Agreement as Exhibit G (the “
Release Agreement
”),
dated as of the date hereof, which shall become effective upon the 2
nd
Closing; and
7. Qimonda
and the Company have entered into that certain Supply Agreement, in the form
attached to the Share Purchase Agreement as Exhibit H (the “
Supply Agreement
”),
which shall become effective immediately upon the 2
nd
Closing.
J. The
Parties desire to provide for certain agreements and undertakings with respect
to, among other things, the operation and conduct of the business of the Company
from the Effective Date until the 2
nd
Closing
Date, the transition of Qimonda’s share ownership in the Company to Micron
pursuant to the Share Purchase Agreement, the implementation of the terms of and
the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Acquisition Total
Documents, and the transition to the New JV Agreement and the New JV Ancillary
Agreements.
AGREEMENT
In
consideration of the mutual covenants contained herein and other good and
valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby
acknowledged, the Parties hereto, intending to be legally bound, hereby agree as
follows:
1.
Agreements and
Covenants
.
1.1.
Access
. Between
the date of this Agreement and the 2
nd
Closing
Date, NTC and Qimonda shall not vote the shares they hold in the Company or
otherwise exert their influence on the Company to prevent the Company from
making, and the Company agrees to make, the office, facilities, machinery and
equipment, inventories, assets, properties, books of account and records of the
Company available at reasonable times and upon reasonable prior notice for
examination and inspection by NTC, Qimonda and Micron and their
respective representatives, advisors and agents to the extent such
access is necessary (i) for purposes of confirmatory due diligence and (ii) as
the Company shall have determined is in the best interests of the Company;
provided
,
however
, any such
Party’s inspections and examinations at the Company’s facility shall not
unreasonably disrupt the normal operations of the Company.
1.2.
Voting of
Shares
. Between the date of this Agreement and the 2
nd
Closing
Date, except as expressly contemplated by this Agreement or, in the case of
Qimonda, the Share Purchase Agreement, or otherwise agreed to in writing by
Micron, neither Qimonda nor NTC shall:
a. vote
any Company securities in favor of the amendment of, or otherwise permit the
Company to amend, the Company’s Articles of Incorporation;
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b. resolve
on any increase in the paid-in capital of the Company;
c. vote
to approve or otherwise permit the declaration, setting aside or payment of any
dividend or other distribution on or in respect of the Common Stock or other
shares of the Company;
d. vote
any shares of Company securities in favor of the amendment of any Acquisition
Total Document or any agreement listed in Section 3.10 of the Sellers’
Disclosure Letter; or
e. enter
into any voting agreements or voting trusts, grant any proxies, or otherwise
grant or transfer voting rights with respect to any securities of the
Company.
1.3.
Pre-Closing
Covenants
. From and after the date hereof and until the 2nd
Closing, unless Micron shall have given its prior written consent for the
Company to do otherwise, the Company shall not take, and neither NTC nor Qimonda
shall exert their influence, through the voting of Company securities or
otherwise, to cause the Company to take, any of the following actions (provided,
however, that nothing in this Agreement shall require any member of the Board of
Directors of the Company to violate his or her duties to the Company under
applicable corporate or other Laws):
a. operate
the business of the Company other than in the ordinary and usual course of
normal day to day operations of such business as conducted prior to the date
hereof (the “
Ordinary
Course of Business
”) or fail to maintain all of the facilities, assets
and properties of the Company in their condition as of the date hereof, normal
wear and tear excepted;
b. eliminate
or reduce the insurance coverage of the Company’s facilities, assets, properties
or interests;
c. (i)
disrupt the Company’s business organizations, (ii) terminate the services of the
Company’s present employees and other service providers, or (iii) terminate the
Company’s present relationships with its material vendors, suppliers and
customers and other Persons having business relationships with it;
d. (i)
solicit, encourage, cooperate with or facilitate (by way of furnishing
information or otherwise) any inquiries or proposals (other than the transaction
contemplated hereby) for the acquisition of the stock, assets or business of the
Company or (ii) acquire any material assets, properties or interests other than
in the Ordinary Course of Business;
e. merge
or consolidate with any other Person, amend or modify its organizational
documents or effect any issuance of securities, stock split, reverse stock split
or reclassification;
f. enter
into, or become obligated under, any material Contract;
g. terminate
or change, amend or otherwise modify any material Contract;
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h. take
any action to implement, or decide to implement in the future, any material
technology or process not in use by the Company on the date hereof;
i. incur
or guarantee any indebtedness or suffer or permit the creation of any Lien
outside the Ordinary Course of Business upon any facilities, assets, properties
or interests of the Company;
j. retain
or hire any new senior management employee, increase or otherwise change the
rate or nature of compensation and benefits (including wages, salaries and
bonuses and benefits under pension profit sharing, deferred compensation and
other employee benefit plans and programs) which is paid or payable to any
employee of the Company or enter into or amend any employment, consulting or
similar Contract, in each case outside the Ordinary Course of
Business;
k. release,
settle or compromise any material claim, or waive any material right, of the
Company or settle or compromise any pending or threatened material claim against
the Company; and
l. agree
to take any action which would breach or violate any of clauses a.
through k. of this Section 1.3.
1.4.
Transition Period
Assistance
. During the period commencing on the Effective Date
and concluding on the 2nd Closing Date (the “
Transition Period
”),
NTC, Qimonda and the Company shall provide their full cooperation to ensure an
effective and timely transition in preparation for the 2
nd
Closing.
1.5.
Employees
. Qimonda
agrees to continue to make available to the Company during the Transition
Period, any of its employees or former employees seconded to the Company on the
same terms and conditions as they are currently made available to the Company in
order to permit reasonable replacement and an efficient transition, provided
that such employees shall be subject to such reasonable rules and restrictions
as may be established by NTC and the
Company. Qimonda
shall withdraw all such employees on the 2
nd
Closing
Date. Qimonda shall be responsible for any and all employee benefits,
severance and termination costs and expenses relating to the withdrawal of any
such employees on the Closing Date.
1.6.
Micron Board
Seats
. NTC, the Company and, prior to the 2
nd
Closing, Qimonda agree to take all actions as may be necessary, and NTC and,
prior to the 2
nd
Closing, Qimonda shall cause the members of the Board of Directors of
the Company appointed by each of them to vote and take such other actions as may
be necessary, to call a meeting of the shareholders of the Company to be held as
promptly as possible following the anticipated 2
nd
Closing
for purposes of electing the nominees appointed by Micron to the Board of
Directors and supervisors of the Company as contemplated by the New JV
Agreement, and in the event the 2
nd
Closing
is delayed for any reason beyond such anticipated 2
nd
Closing, to take such steps as are necessary to postpone or adjourn the meeting
from time to time so that it occurs as promptly as possible following the new
anticipated 2
nd
Closing. In the alternative, to the extent necessary to ensure such
meeting occurs as promptly as practicable following the 2
nd
Closing, if reasonably feasible to do so, such meeting shall be called for the
purpose of full re-election of all directors of the Board and the
supervisors.
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1.7.
Implementation of
Acquisition Total Agreements and New JV Arrangements
. The
Company, NTC, Micron and, prior to the 2
nd
Closing, Qimonda agree to take all actions as may be reasonably necessary, and
NTC and, prior to the 2
nd
Closing, Qimonda shall cause the members of the Board of Directors of the
Company appointed by each of them to vote and take such other actions as may be
reasonably necessary, to implement the terms of and consummate the transactions
contemplated by (i) the Acquisition Total Agreements, including the transition
to Micron’s technology pursuant to the TTA following the 2
nd
Closing, and (ii) the New JV Agreement and the New JV Ancillary
Agreements.
1.8.
Supply
Agreement
. The Company and Qimonda agree that they will not
amend or terminate the Supply Agreement, or waive the performance of or fail to
enforce any provision thereof, without the prior written consent of
Micron.
1.9.
Micron Financing Information
Assistance
. The Company and NTC will use all reasonable
efforts to provide to Micron upon request all cooperation reasonably requested
by Micron in connection with the arrangement of any financing proposed by Micron
in connection with the transactions contemplated by the Share Purchase
Agreement, including (i) participation in a reasonable number of meetings,
presentations, road shows, due diligence sessions and sessions with rating
agencies, (ii) assisting with the preparation of materials for rating agency
presentations, offering documents, private placement memoranda, bank information
memoranda, prospectuses, business projections and similar documents required in
connection with the such financing, and (iii) similar matters.
1.10.
Financial
Information
. The Company will use its reasonable efforts to
cooperate with Micron and provide to Micron upon request (x) all financial
information necessary for Micron to account for its investment in the 1st Close
Shares and the 2
nd
Close
Shares, and (y) any other information and cooperation regarding the Company as
Micron shall reasonably request in order to aid in financial statement
preparation and the reporting requirements of Micron as a United States
reporting company.
1.11.
Third Party Consents
.
From and after the date hereof and prior to the 2nd Closing Date, and in
furtherance of the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, by each
of the other Acquisition Total Documents, the New JV Agreement and the Ancillary
JV Agreements, the Company shall use its reasonable efforts to obtain such
consents and waivers, to enter into such amendments, and to provide such
notices, and each other Party shall provide such cooperation as is reasonably
requested by the Company, with respect to (a) the US$260,000,000 Five-Year
Syndicate Term Loan Agreement, dated as of January 14, 2004, by and among the
Company, as Borrower, and the other parties thereto, (b) the US$672,000,000 and
NT$5,700,000,000 Five-Year Syndicate Term Loan Agreement, dated as of October
14, 2004, by and among the Company, as Borrower, and the other parties thereto,
(c) US$400,000,000 and NT$27,000,000,000 Five-Year Syndicated Term Loan
Agreement, dated as of March 5, 2007, by and among the Company, as Borrower, and
the other parties thereto, as is reasonably necessary to avoid a default or
event of default, or any such incipient or prospective default or event of
default, under of any of the foregoing term loan agreements and under any of the
Company’s outstanding public bonds as a result, directly or indirectly, of such
transactions.
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1.12.
Further
Assurances
. Subject to the terms and conditions herein
provided, each of the Parties hereto agrees to use its reasonable efforts to
take or cause to be taken all reasonable action and to do or cause to be done
all things reasonably necessary, proper or advisable under applicable laws and
regulations to consummate and make effective the transactions contemplated by
this Agreement, including executing any additional instruments necessary to
consummate the transactions contemplated hereby. If at any time after
the date hereof any further reasonable action is necessary to carry out the
purposes of this Agreement, the proper officers and directors of each party
hereto shall take all such action.
2.
Miscellaneous
.
2.1.
Termination
. This
Agreement shall terminate automatically in the event (A) the Share Purchase
Agreement terminates pursuant to Section 9.1(a) thereof, (B) the obligations of
Micron and Qimonda to consummate the 2
nd
Closing
terminate pursuant to Section 9.1(b) thereof or (C) the 2
nd
Closing
has not occurred by February 28, 2009.
2.2.
Notices
. Any
notice or other communication required or permitted hereunder shall be in
writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given (a) on the day of delivery
if delivered in person, or if delivered by facsimile upon confirmation of
receipt, (b) on the first Business Day following the date of dispatch if
delivered by a nationally recognized express courier service, or (c) on the
tenth Business Day following the date of mailing if delivered by registered or
certified mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid. All
notices hereunder shall be delivered as set forth below, or pursuant to such
other instructions as may be designated by notice given in accordance with this
Section 2.2 by the Party to receive such notice:
If to
NTC, to:
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park, 669, Fuhsing 3rd Road,
Kueishan,
Taoyuan, Taiwan, R.O.C.
Attn: Legal
& IP Division
Fax: +886-3-3962226
If to
Qimonda, to:
Qimonda
AG
Gustav-Heinemann-Ring
123
81739
Munich
Germany
Attention: Legal
Department
Facsimile: (49-89)
60088-442450
with
copies to:
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Cleary
Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP
Main
Tower
Neue
Mainzer Strasse 52
60311
Frankfurt am Main
Germany
Attention: Ward
A. Greenberg
Facsimile: (49-69)
97103-199
If to the
Company, to:
Hwa-ya
Technology Park, 667, Fuhsing 3rd Road,
Kueishan,
Taoyuan, Taiwan, R.O.C
Attn: Legal
Department
Fax: +886
3 327 2988 ext 3385
If to
Micron, to:
8000
South Federal Way
Boise,
Idaho 83716-9632
Attn:
General Counsel
Facsimile:
(208) 363-1309
with a
copy to:
Wilson
Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, Professional Corporation
650 Page
Mill Road
Palo
Alto, CA 94304
Attention: John
A. Fore
Facsimile: (650)
493-6811
2.3.
Successors and
Assigns
. This Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the
benefit of the Parties hereto and their respective successors, heirs, and
assigns. Nothing in this Agreement, express or implied, is intended
to confer upon any person or entity other than the Parties hereto, or their
successors or permitted assigns, any rights or remedies under or by reason of
this Agreement.
2.4.
Amendments
. This
Agreement may be amended, superseded, canceled, renewed or extended, and the
terms hereof may be waived, only by a written instrument signed by each of the
Parties or, in the case of a waiver, by the Party waiving
compliance. No delay on the part of any party in exercising any
right, power or privilege hereunder shall operate as a waiver thereof, nor shall
any waiver on the part of any party of any such right, power or privilege, nor
any single or partial exercise of any such right, power or privilege, preclude
any further exercise thereof or the exercise of any other such right, power or
privilege.
2.5.
Governing
Law
. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in
accordance with the laws of the State of New York (without giving effect to
principles of conflicts of laws).
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2.6.
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement and any other collateral agreements
executed in connection with the consummation of the transactions contemplated
hereby contains the sole and entire agreement and understanding of the Parties
with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersedes all prior negotiations
and understandings of any kind with respect to the subject matter
hereof.
2.7.
Headings;
Construction
. The various captions of this Agreement are for
reference only and shall not be considered or referred to in resolving questions
of interpretation of this Agreement. The Parties acknowledge and
agree that (a) each Party and its counsel reviewed and negotiated the terms and
provisions of this Agreement and have contributed to its revision, (b) the rule
of construction to the effect that any ambiguities are resolved against the
drafting party shall not be employed in the interpretation of this Agreement,
and (c) the terms and provisions of this Agreement shall be construed fairly as
to all Parties, regardless of which Party was generally responsible for the
preparation of this Agreement.
2.8.
Specific
Performance
. The Parties hereto agree that if any of the
provisions of this Agreement are not performed in accordance with their specific
terms or are otherwise breached, irreparable damage would occur, no adequate
remedy at law would exist and damages would be difficult to determine, and that
the Parties shall be entitled to specific performance of the terms hereof, in
addition to any other remedy at law or equity.
2.9.
Savings
Clause
. If any provision of this Agreement is held to be
illegal, invalid or unenforceable under any present of future law, statute, rule
or regulation, such provision shall be fully severable and this Agreement shall
be construed and enforced as if such illegal, invalid or unenforceable provision
had never comprised a part hereof. The remaining provisions of this
Agreement shall remain in full force and effect and shall not be affected by the
illegal, invalid or unenforceable provision or by its severance
herefrom. Furthermore, the Parties shall use reasonable efforts to
negotiate and include in this Agreement, in lieu of such illegal, invalid or
unenforceable provision, a legal, valid and enforceable provision as similar in
terms to such illegal, invalid or unenforceable provision as may be
possible.
2.10.
Language
. This
Agreement shall be prepared in the English language, and the English language
version shall be official. No translation into German, Chinese or any
other language shall be taken into consideration in the interpretation of this
Agreement.
2.11.
Counterparts; Delivery by
Fax or E-mail
. This Agreement may be executed by the Parties
hereto in separate counterparts, each of which when so executed and delivered
shall be an original, but all such counterparts together shall constitute one
and the same instrument. Each counterpart may consist of a number of
copies hereof each signed by less than all, but together signed by all, of the
Parties hereto. Delivery of an executed counterpart of this Agreement
by facsimile or electronic mail transmission shall be equally as effective as
delivery of an executed hard copy of the same. Any Party doing so
shall also deliver an executed hard copy of same, but the failure by such Party
to deliver an executed hard copy shall not affect the validity, enforceability
and binding effect of this Agreement.
[Signature
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IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties have caused this Transition Agreement to be
executed on the date first above written.
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NANYA
TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
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By:
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/s/ Jih
Lien
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Name:
Jih Lien
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Title:
President
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QIMONDA
AG
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By:
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/s/ Kin Wah
Loh
|
|
|
Name:
Kin Wah Loh
|
|
|
Title:
Chief Executive Officer
|
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Nicole
Lau
|
|
|
Name:
Nicole Lau
|
|
|
Title:
Vice President and Corporate Legal
Counsel
|
|
|
|
|
|
INOTERA
MEMORIES, INC.
|
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Joseph
Hsieh
|
|
|
Name:
Joseph Hsieh
|
|
|
Title:
Supervisor
|
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Jessica
Chin
|
|
|
Name:
Jessica Chin
|
|
|
Title:
Supervisor
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
|
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ D. Mark
Durcan
|
|
|
Name:
D. Mark Durcan
|
|
|
Title:
President and Chief Operating Officer
|
|
|
|
(Signature
Page of Transition Agreement)
EXHIBIT
10.69
NTC/MICRON
CONFIDENTIAL
MICRON
GUARANTY AGREEMENT
This GUARANTY
(this “
Guaranty
”) is
made and entered into as of the 26th day of November, 2008, by Micron
Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“
Guarantor
”), in favor of Nanya
Technology Corporation
Nanya Technology Corporation
[Translation from Chinese],
a company incorporated under the laws
of the ROC (“
Beneficiary
” or “
NTC
”). Capitalized
terms used in this Guaranty shall have the respective meanings ascribed to such
terms in Article I of this Guaranty or as otherwise provided in Section
1.2. All capitalized terms used in this Guaranty but not otherwise
defined, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in the Joint Venture
Agreement, of even date herewith, between Micron Semiconductor B.V., a private
limited liability company organized under the laws of the Netherlands (“
MNL
”) and Beneficiary (the
“
Joint Venture
Agreement
”).
RECITALS
A. Beneficiary
and Infineon Technologies AG, a company incorporated under the laws of Germany
(“
Infineon
”), have
previously formed Inotera Memories, Inc.
Inotera Memories Inc.
[Translation from Chinese]
,
a company incorporated under the laws
of the ROC (the “
Joint Venture
Company
”).
B. Infineon
subsequently assigned to Qimonda AG, a company incorporated under the laws of
Germany (hereinafter “
Qimonda
”), all of Infineon’s
Shares in the Joint Venture Company.
C. In
accordance with that certain Share Purchase Agreement, dated October 11, 2008,
by and between MNL and Qimonda, MNL is acquiring Shares in the Joint Venture
Company from Qimonda.
D. MNL
and Beneficiary are entering into the Joint Venture Agreement to set forth
certain agreements regarding the ownership, governance and operation of the
Joint Venture Company.
E. Guarantor
is the direct or indirect owner of all the equity securities of MNL, and
Guarantor will, as a consequence, benefit from the consummation of the
transactions contemplated by the Joint Venture Agreement.
F. Beneficiary
is not willing to enter into the Joint Venture Agreement unless Guarantor agrees
to be bound by the terms of this Guaranty.
G. In
order to induce Beneficiary to enter into the Joint Venture Agreement, Guarantor
has agreed to execute and deliver to Beneficiary this Guaranty.
NOW
THEREFORE, for good and valuable consideration, including the inducement of
Beneficiary to consummate the transactions contemplated by the Joint Venture
Agreement, and other consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are
hereby acknowledged, the Parties hereby agree as follows:
ARTICLE
I. DEFINITIONS
Section
1.1
Defined
Terms
. For purposes of this Guaranty, the following terms will
have the following meanings when used herein with initial capital
letters:
“
Applicable Law
” means any
applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances, orders, codes,
arbitration awards, judgments, decrees or other legal requirements of any
Governmental Entity.
“
Beneficiary
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble of this Guaranty.
“
Guarantor
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble of this Guaranty.
“
Guaranty
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble of this Guaranty.
“
Guaranty Obligations
” shall
have the meaning set forth in
Section
2.1 of this Guaranty.
“
Infineon
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the Recitals.
“
Joint Venture Agreement
” shall
have the meaning set forth in the preamble of this Guaranty.
“
Joint Venture Company
” shall
have the meaning set forth in the Recitals.
“
MNL
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble of this Guaranty.
“
NTC
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble of this Guaranty.
“
Party
” means Guarantor or
Beneficiary individually, and “
Parties
” means Guarantor and
Beneficiary collectively.
“
Person
” means any natural
person, corporation, joint stock company, limited liability company,
association, partnership, firm, joint venture, organization, business, trust,
estate or any other entity or organization of any kind or
character.
“
Qimonda
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the Recitals.
“
ROC
” or “
Taiwan
” means the Republic of
China.
Section
1.2
Certain Interpretative
Matters
.
(a)
Unless
the context requires otherwise, (1) all references to Sections, Articles or
Recitals are to Sections, Articles or Recitals of this Guaranty, (2) words in
the singular include the plural and vice versa, (3) the term “
including
” means “including
without limitation,” and (4) the terms “
herein
,” “
hereof
,” “
hereunder
” and words of
similar import shall mean references to this Guaranty as a whole and not to any
individual section or portion hereof. All references to “
day
” or “
days
” mean calendar
days.
(b)
No
provision of this Guaranty will be interpreted in favor of, or against, either
Party by reason of the extent to which (1) such Party or its counsel
participated in the drafting thereof, or (2) such provision is inconsistent with
any prior draft of this Guaranty or such provision.
ARTICLE
II. GUARANTY
Section
2.1
Guaranty
Obligations
. Subject to the terms and conditions set forth in
this Guaranty, Guarantor hereby irrevocably and unconditionally guarantees the
prompt performance by MNL of its obligations under the Joint Venture Agreement
(the “
Guaranty
Obligations
”).
Section
2.2
Nature of
Guaranty
. Insofar as the payment by MNL of any sums of money
to the Joint Venture Company or the Beneficiary is involved, this Guaranty is a
guarantee of payment and not of collection. Should the Joint Venture
Company or the Beneficiary be obligated by any bankruptcy or other law to repay
to MNL, Guarantor, or any trustee, receiver or other representative of either of
them, any amounts previously paid, this Guaranty will be reinstated to the
amount of such repayments.
Section
2.3
Independent
Obligations
. Except as specifically provided for in this
Guaranty, the obligations of Guarantor under this Guaranty are independent of
the obligations of MNL under the Joint Venture Agreement. Upon any
default by MNL in the performance of the Guaranty Obligations, Beneficiary may
immediately proceed against Guarantor hereunder without bringing action against
or joining MNL.
Section
2.4
Defenses to
Enforcement
. It will not be a defense to the enforcement of
this Guaranty that MNL’s execution and delivery of the Joint Venture Agreement
was unauthorized or otherwise invalid, or that any of MNL’s obligations
thereunder are otherwise unenforceable. Guarantor intends this
Guaranty to apply in respect of the obligations of MNL that would arise under
the Joint Venture Agreement if all of the provisions thereof were enforceable
against MNL in accordance with their terms.
Section
2.5
Action with Respect to the
Guaranty Obligations
. Guarantor agrees that the obligations of
Guarantor hereunder are unconditional and irrevocable under the circumstances
set forth in the Joint Venture Agreement, subject to the terms and conditions of
this Guaranty, and will not be impaired, released, terminated, discharged or
otherwise affected except by performance thereof in full. Without
limiting the generality of the foregoing, such obligations of Guarantor will not
be affected by any of the following:
(a)
any
modification or amendment of, or addition or supplement to, the Joint Venture
Agreement agreed to in writing by Guarantor or MNL, unless also agreed to in
writing by Beneficiary;
(b)
any
exercise or non-exercise of any right, power or remedy under, or in respect of,
the Joint Venture Agreement;
(c)
any
waiver, consent, release, extension, indulgence or other action, inaction or
omission under, or in respect of, the Joint Venture Agreement, unless also
agreed to in writing by Beneficiary;
(d)
any
insolvency, bankruptcy or similar proceeding involving or affecting MNL or any
liquidation or dissolution of MNL; or
(e)
any
failure of MNL to comply with any of the terms or conditions of the Joint
Venture Agreement.
Section
2.6
Delays;
Waivers
. No delay by Beneficiary in exercising any right,
power or privilege under this Guaranty or failure to exercise the same will
constitute a waiver or otherwise affect such right, power or privilege, nor will
any single or partial exercise thereof preclude any other or further exercise
thereof or the exercise of any other right, power or privilege. No
notice to or demand on Guarantor will be deemed to be a waiver of (a) any
obligation of MNL or (b) any right of Beneficiary to take any further
action or exercise any rights under this Guaranty or the Joint Venture
Agreement.
Section
2.7
Defenses
. Notwithstanding
the foregoing, nothing in this Guaranty will restrict Guarantor from raising the
defense of prior payment or performance by MNL of the obligations which
Guarantor may be called upon to pay or perform under this Guaranty or the
defense (other than a defense referred to in Section 2.4
of this
Guaranty) that there is no obligation on the part of MNL with respect to the
matter claimed to be in default under the Joint Venture Agreement.
Section
2.8
Representations and
Warranties
. Guarantor hereby represents and warrants to
Beneficiary that:
(a)
Guarantor
shall follow and abide by the restriction on unilateral purchases of the Shares
of Joint Venture Company under Section 3.3 of the Joint Venture
Agreement;
(b)
Guarantor
owns, directly or indirectly, all of the equity securities of MNL;
(c)
Guarantor
has the authority, capacity and power to execute and deliver this Guaranty and
to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby;
(d)
this
Guaranty constitutes the valid and binding obligation of Guarantor and is
enforceable against Guarantor in accordance with its terms; and
(e)
neither
the execution and delivery by Guarantor of this Guaranty nor the performance by
Guarantor of the transactions contemplated hereby will violate, conflict with or
constitute a default under (1) any Applicable Law or other law to which
either Guarantor or any of its assets is subject, or (2) any contract to
which Guarantor is a party or is bound, except where such conflict, violation,
default, termination, cancellation or acceleration would not materially impair
the ability of Guarantor to perform its obligations under this
Guaranty.
ARTICLE
III. MISCELLANEOUS
Section
3.1
Entire
Agreement
. This Guaranty constitutes the entire agreement of
the Parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersedes all prior
agreements and undertakings, written and oral, between the Parties with respect
to the subject matter hereof.
Section
3.2
Notices
. All
notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be
deemed given upon (a) transmitter’s confirmation of a receipt of a facsimile
transmission, (b) confirmation of delivery by a standard overnight or recognized
international carrier, or (c) delivery in person, addressed at the following
addresses (or at such other address for a Party as shall be specified by like
notice):
(1)
if to
Beneficiary:
Nanya
Technology Corporation
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park 669
Fuhsing 3
RD. Kueishan
Taoyuan,
Taiwan, ROC
Attn: Legal department
Facsimile:
886-3-396-2226
(2)
if to
Guarantor:
Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000 S.
Federal Way
Mail Stop
1-507
Boise, ID
83716
Attn:
General Counsel
Facsimile:
(208) 368-4537
Section
3.3
Amendments and
Waivers
.
(a)
Any
provision of this Guaranty may be amended or waived if, but only if, such
amendment or waiver is in writing and is signed, in the case of an amendment, by
the Parties, or in the case of a waiver, by the Party against whom the waiver is
to be effective.
(b)
The
failure at any time of a Party to require performance by the other Party of any
responsibility or obligation required by this Guaranty shall in no way affect a
Party’s right to require such performance at any time thereafter, nor shall the
waiver by a Party of a breach of any provision of this Guaranty by the other
Party constitute a waiver of any other breach of the same or any other provision
nor constitute a waiver of the responsibility or obligation
itself. The rights and remedies herein provided will be cumulative
and not exclusive of any rights or remedies provided by law.
Section
3.4
Choice of
Law
. This Guaranty shall be construed and enforced in
accordance with and governed by the laws of the ROC, without giving effect to
the principles of conflict of laws thereof.
Section
3.5
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Guaranty shall be brought in a court located in the Taipei District Court,
Taiwan and each of the Parties hereby consents and submits to the exclusive
jurisdiction of such court (and of the appropriate appellate courts therefrom)
in any such suit, action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the fullest
extent permitted by Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or hereafter
have to the
laying of
the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding in any such court or that any
such suit, action or proceeding which is brought in any such court has been
brought in an inconvenient forum.
Section
3.6
Counterparts
. This
Guaranty may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be an
original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
Section
3.7
Headings
. The
headings of the Articles and Sections in this Guaranty are provided for
convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part
hereof.
Section
3.8
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Guaranty be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Guaranty shall remain in
full force and effect in all other respects. Should any provision of
this Guaranty be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Law or
interpretations thereof, or should this Guaranty fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Guaranty shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the Parties shall negotiate in good faith appropriate modifications to
this Guaranty to reflect those changes that are required by Applicable
Law.
[SIGNATURE
PAGES FOLLOW]
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, this Guaranty has been executed and delivered as of the date
first written above.
|
NANYA
TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Jih
Lien
|
|
|
Jih
Lien
|
|
|
President
|
THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE MICRON GUARANTY AGREEMENT
ENTERED
INTO BY AND BETWEEN NTC AND MICRON
|
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ D. Mark
Durcan
|
|
|
D.
Mark Durcan
|
|
|
President
and Chief Operating
Officer
|
THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE MICRON GUARANTY AGREEMENT
ENTERED
INTO BY AND BETWEEN NTC AND MICRON
EXHIBIT
10.70
SHARE
PURCHASE AGREEMENT
by
and among
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
as
the Buyer Parent,
MICRON
SEMICONDUCTOR B.V.,
as
the Buyer,
QIMONDA
AG
as
the Seller Parent
and
QIMONDA
HOLDING B.V.,
as
the Seller Sub
_______________________________________
Dated
as of October 11, 2008
_______________________________________
TABLE
OF CONTENTS
|
Page
|
ARTICLE
I DEFINITIONS
|
3
|
1.1
|
Defined
Terms
|
3
|
1.2
|
Interpretation
|
7
|
ARTICLE
II PURCHASE AND SALE OF SHARES; PURCHASE PRICE
|
8
|
2.1
|
1st
Closing; Sale and Purchase of 1st Close Shares
|
8
|
2.2
|
1st
Closing Date
|
8
|
2.3
|
Deliveries
at 1st Closing
|
9
|
2.4
|
2nd
Closing; Sale and Purchase of 2nd Close Shares
|
9
|
2.5
|
2nd
Closing Date
|
10
|
2.6
|
Deliveries
at 2nd Closing
|
10
|
ARTICLE
III REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF THE SELLERS
|
10
|
3.1
|
Title
to the Shares
|
10
|
3.2
|
Due
Incorporation
|
11
|
3.3
|
Sellers
Right, Power and Authority
|
11
|
3.4
|
Enforceability
|
11
|
3.5
|
No
Consents Required
|
12
|
3.6
|
Due
Organization of the Company
|
12
|
3.7
|
Capitalization
|
12
|
3.8
|
Subsidiaries
|
13
|
3.9
|
Financial
Statements
|
13
|
3.10
|
Contracts
and Relationships
|
13
|
3.11
|
Legal
Proceedings; Orders
|
14
|
3.12
|
Brokers
|
14
|
3.13
|
Insolvency;
Stand Alone Viability
|
14
|
3.14
|
Company
Assets and Revenue
|
14
|
3.15
|
Disclosure
|
14
|
ARTICLE
IV REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF THE BUYER PARENT AND THE
BUYER
|
15
|
4.1
|
Due
Incorporation and Authority
|
15
|
4.2
|
Buyer
Right, Power and Authority
|
15
|
4.3
|
Enforceability
|
15
|
4.4
|
No
Consents Required
|
15
|
4.5
|
Financing
|
16
|
ARTICLE
V COVENANTS AND AGREEMENTS
|
16
|
5.1
|
Voting
of Shares
|
16
|
5.2
|
Conduct
of Business
|
16
|
TABLE
OF CONTENTS
(Continued)
5.3
|
No
Transfer of the Shares
|
18
|
5.4
|
Expenses
|
18
|
5.5
|
Publicity
|
18
|
5.6
|
Required
Consents
|
18
|
5.7
|
Change
in Membership of Company Board
|
20
|
5.8
|
Sellers
Non-Solicit
|
20
|
5.9
|
Further
Assurances
|
20
|
5.10
|
Buyer
Financing.
|
21
|
5.11
|
New
JV Agreements; Patent Cross License.
|
21
|
5.12
|
Notification
|
21
|
5.13
|
Buyer
Parent Financing Information Assistance
|
21
|
5.14
|
Sale
of FINI Shares
|
22
|
ARTICLE
VI CONDITIONS PRECEDENT TO THE OBLIGATION OF THE PARTIES TO
CLOSE
|
22
|
6.1
|
1st
Closing Conditions to All Parties’ Obligations
|
22
|
6.2
|
1st
Closing Conditions to the Buyer Parent and the Buyer’s
Obligations
|
23
|
6.3
|
1st
Closing Conditions to the Sellers’ Obligations
|
24
|
6.4
|
2nd
Closing Conditions to All Parties’ Obligations
|
24
|
6.5
|
2nd
Closing Conditions to the Buyer Parent and the Buyer’s
Obligations
|
25
|
6.6
|
2nd
Closing Conditions to the Sellers’ Obligations
|
27
|
ARTICLE
VII SURVIVAL
|
28
|
ARTICLE
VIII INDEMNIFICATION
|
28
|
8.1
|
Obligation
of the Sellers to Indemnify
|
28
|
8.2
|
Obligation
of the Buyer Parent to Indemnify
|
29
|
8.3
|
Indemnification
Procedure
|
29
|
8.4
|
Measure
of and Limitations upon Indemnification
|
30
|
8.5
|
Exclusivity
of Indemnity
|
30
|
ARTICLE
IX TERMINATION OF AGREEMENT
|
30
|
9.1
|
Termination
|
30
|
9.2
|
Survival
After Termination
|
32
|
ARTICLE
X MISCELLANEOUS
|
32
|
10.1
|
Governing
Law; Venue
|
32
|
10.2
|
Notices
|
33
|
10.3
|
Entire
Agreement
|
34
|
10.4
|
Waivers
and Amendments
|
34
|
10.5
|
Binding
Effect; Assignment
|
34
|
10.6
|
Construction
|
34
|
10.7
|
Severability
of Provisions
|
35
|
10.8
|
Counterparts;
Delivery by Fax or E mail
|
35
|
10.9
|
Transfer
Taxes
|
35
|
10.10
|
Language
|
35
|
10.11
|
No
Third Party Beneficiaries
|
35
|
EXHIBITS
Exhibit
A Transition
Agreement
Exhibit
B Buyer/Seller
TLA
Exhibit
C Infineon/Buyer
TLA
Exhibit
D Company/Buyer
PTLA
Exhibit
E Company/Buyer
TTA
Exhibit
F Nanya/Seller
Termination Agreement
Exhibit
G Release
Agreement
Exhibit
H Supply
Agreement
SCHEDULES
Schedule
1 Seller
Shares
Schedule
2 1st
Close Shares; Sellers’ Payment Schedule and
2nd Close Shares; Sellers’ Payment Schedule
Schedule
3.6(a) Articles
of Incorporation
Schedule
3.6(b) Companies
Register Extract
SHARE PURCHASE
AGREEMENT
Share
Purchase Agreement, dated October 11, 2008 (this “
Agreement
”),
by and among Micron Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “
Buyer
Parent
”), Micron Semiconductor B.V., a private limited company organized
under the Laws of the Netherlands and a Subsidiary of the Buyer Parent (the
“
Buyer
”),
Qimonda AG, a German stock corporation (
Aktiengesellschaft
) with its
seat in Munich, registered in the commercial register at the local court of
Munich under HRB 152545 (the “
Seller
Parent
”) and Qimonda Holding B.V., a private limited company organized
under the Laws of the Netherlands and a Subsidiary of the Seller Parent (the
“
Seller
Sub
” and, each of the Seller Sub and the Seller Parent, individually, a
“
Seller
”
and the Seller Sub, together with the Seller Parent, the “
Sellers
”).
WHEREAS,
Inotera Memories, Inc., a company limited by shares under the Laws of the ROC
(the “
Company
”)
was established by Nanya Technology Corporation, a company limited by shares
legally established under the Laws of the ROC (“
Nanya
”)
and Infineon Technologies AG, a company legally established under the Laws of
Germany (“
Infineon
”),
pursuant to that certain Joint Venture Agreement, dated November 13, 2002 (such
agreement, as amended by the first through fifth amendments thereto through the
date hereof, the Letter of Undertaking dated December 3, 2003 and the Letter of
Agreement re Assignment dated July 28, 2006, the “
JV
Agreement
”);
WHEREAS,
in connection with the entry into the JV Agreement and the operation of the
Company, Nanya, Infineon and the Company entered into certain agreements,
including (i) the Joint Product Development and Product Swap Agreement between
Nanya and Infineon, as predecessor in interest to the Seller Parent, dated
November 17, 2003 (including two Amendments and Letter Agreement re Assignment
dated July 31, 2006), (ii) the Technical Information Exchange Agreement between
Nanya and the Seller Parent dated September 24, 2007, (iii) the (110nm) License
and (90/70 nm) Technical Cooperation Agreement for DRAM Process Technology
between Nanya and Infineon, as predecessor in interest to the Seller
Parent, dated November 13, 2002 (including fourteen Amendments, two
Engineering Sample Agreements and Letter Agreement re Assignment dated July 31,
2006), (iv) the 60nm Technical Cooperation Agreement between Nanya and Infineon,
as predecessor in interest to the Seller Parent, for DRAM Process Technology
dated September 29, 2005 (including three Amendments of Letter Agreement re
Assignment dated July 31, 2006), (v) the Product Purchase and Capacity
Reservation Agreement among Nanya, Infineon, as predecessor in interest to the
Seller Parent, and the Company dated July 15, 2003 (including three Amendments
and one Supplement), (vi) the Know How Transfer Agreement among Nanya, Infineon,
as predecessor in interest to the Seller Parent, and the Company initially dated
November 13, 2002 (including two Amendments) and (vii) the Service Agreement
between Nanya and the Company dated July 15, 2003 (the “
Ancillary
JV Agreements
”);
WHEREAS,
in accordance with the terms of the JV Agreement, Infineon assigned all of its
rights and, with certain exceptions, its obligations under the JV Agreement and
the Ancillary JV Agreements to the Seller Parent in connection with the transfer
by Infineon of all of its shareholdings in the Company to the Seller
Parent;
WHEREAS,
the Sellers are the owners of the number of shares of common stock (“
Common
Stock
”) of the Company, set forth on
Schedule 1
hereto (as
such shares may be adjusted, increased or decreased as a result of a stock
split, reverse stock split or reclassification, the “
Seller
Shares
”), representing approximately 35.61% of the issued and outstanding
shares of Common Stock and 100% of the shares of Common Stock owned by the
Sellers and their Subsidiaries;
WHEREAS,
of the Seller Shares, 4,483,800 shares (as such shares may be adjusted,
increased or decreased as a result of a stock split, reverse stock split or
reclassification, the “
FINI
Shares
”) are held by the Sellers as foreign institutional investors under
applicable ROC law and 1,184,088,059 shares (as such shares may be adjusted,
increased or decreased as a result of a stock split, reverse stock split or
reclassification, the “
Shares
”)
were acquired by the Sellers under the Statute for Investment by Foreign
Nationals of the ROC pursuant to foreign investment approved status granted by
the Investment Commission, Ministry of Economic Affairs, ROC;
WHEREAS,
the Sellers desire to sell the Shares to the Buyer (the “
Share
Purchase
”) and to deliver to the Buyer the proceeds from Seller Parent’s
disposal of the FINI Shares in exchange for the Consideration, in each case in
accordance with the terms of this Agreement;
WHEREAS,
in connection with and conditioned upon the transfer of the 2nd Close Shares,
effective as of the 2nd Closing, the JV Agreement and the Ancillary JV
Agreements will terminate, subject to the survival of certain provisions agreed
upon by the parties;
WHEREAS,
it is a condition to the 2nd Closing that the Buyer Parent and Nanya will enter
into a new joint venture agreement with respect to the Company (the “
New JV
Agreement
”), and that the Buyer Parent, Nanya and/or the Company will
enter into certain related agreements and modify certain existing agreements in
connection therewith (the “
New JV
Ancillary Agreements
”);
WHEREAS,
on the date hereof, the Buyer Parent, the Buyer and Nanya have entered into a
Memorandum of Understanding (the “
New JV
MOU
”), a copy of which has been provided to the Seller Parent, which sets
forth the current expectations of the parties with respect to the principal
terms of the New JV Agreement and the New JV Ancillary Agreements;
WHEREAS,
it is a condition to the 1st Closing that the Buyer Parent and the Seller Parent
will enter into a patent cross license agreement mutually agreeable to the
parties (the “
Patent
Cross License
”), which shall become effectively immediately upon the 2nd
Closing;
WHEREAS,
concurrently with the execution and delivery hereof, and as an inducement for
the parties to enter into this Agreement:
1. the
Buyer Parent, the Seller Parent, Nanya and the Company have entered into that
certain Transition Agreement, in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit A
(the “
Transition
Agreement
”), which shall become effective immediately upon the 1st
Closing;
2. the
Buyer Parent and the Seller Parent have entered into that certain Technology
License Agreement, in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit B
(the “
Buyer/Seller
TLA
”),
which shall become effective immediately upon the later of (A) the 1st Closing
and (B) the receipt of the 2nd Close FCO Approval;
3. Infineon
and the Buyer Parent have entered into that certain Technology License
Agreement, in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit C
(the “
Infineon/Buyer
TLA
”), which shall become effective immediately upon the later of (A) the
1st Closing and (B) the receipt of the 2nd Close FCO Approval;
4. the
Company and the Buyer Parent have entered into that certain Patent and
Technology License Agreement, in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit D
(the “
Company/Buyer
PTLA
”) which shall become effective immediately upon the later of (A) the
1st Closing and (B) the receipt of the 2nd Close FCO Approval;
5. the
Company and the Buyer Parent have entered into that certain Technology Transfer
Agreement for 68-50nm Process Nodes, in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit E
(the “
Company/Buyer
TTA
”), which shall become effective immediately upon the 2nd
Closing;
6. Nanya
and the Seller Parent have entered into that certain Termination Agreement, in
the form attached hereto as
Exhibit F
(the “
Nanya/Seller
Termination Agreement
”), dated as of the date hereof, which shall become
effective immediately upon the 2nd Closing;
7. Nanya,
Seller Parent and the Company have entered into that certain Release Agreement,
in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit G
(the “
Release
Agreement
”), dated as of the date hereof, which shall become effective
upon the 2nd Closing; and
8. the
Seller Parent and the Company have entered into that certain Supply Agreement,
in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit H
(the “
Supply
Agreement
”), which shall become effective immediately upon the 2nd
Closing; and
WHEREAS,
the parties desire to make certain representations, warranties and agreements in
connection with the Share Purchase;
NOW,
THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants, representations, warranties
and agreements entered into herein, and intending to be legally bound hereby,
the parties agree as follows:
ARTICLE
I
DEFINITIONS
1.1
Defined
Terms
.
(a)
For all
purposes of this Agreement, the following terms shall have the respective
meanings set forth in this Section 1.1:
“
1st
Close FIA
Approval
” means the foreign investment approval by the Investment
Commission for the transfer of at least the 1st Close Shares from the Sellers to
the Buyer contemplated hereby.
“
2nd
Close FIA
Approval
” means the foreign investment approval by the Investment
Commission for the transfer of the 2nd Close Shares (or, as the case may be, all
of the Shares) from the Sellers to the Buyer contemplated hereby.
“
Acquisition
Documents
” means this Agreement, the Transition Agreement, the Patent
Cross License and the Buyer/Seller TLA.
“
Acquisition
Other Documents
” means the Infineon/Buyer TLA, the Company/Buyer PTLA,
the Company/Buyer TTA, the Nanya/Seller Termination Agreement, the Supply
Agreement and the Release Agreement.
“
Acquisition
Total Documents
” means the Acquisition Documents and the Acquisition
Other Documents.
“
Affiliate
”
means, with respect to any Person, any other Person controlling, controlled by
or under common control with such Person. The term “control”
(including, with correlative meaning, the terms “controlled by” and “under
common control with”), as applied to any Person, means the possession, directly
or indirectly, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the management
and policies of such Person, whether through the ownership of voting securities,
by contract or otherwise.
“
Articles
of Incorporation
” means the 11th Revised Articles of Incorporation of the
Company, dated June 26, 2008.
“
Business
Day
” means a day other than Saturday, Sunday or any day on which banks
located in New York, New York, Taipei, Taiwan or Munich, Germany are authorized
or obligated by Law to close.
“
Contracts
”
means all agreements, contracts, indentures, deeds, and other legally binding
instruments of any kind, oral or written.
“
Data
Room
” means the electronic data room established through Intralinks and
available for review by the Buyer Parent and its representatives on or prior to
the Business Day prior to the date of this Agreement.
“
FCO
”
means the German Federal
Cartel Office (
Bundeskartellamt
).
“
Governmental
Body
” means any court, tribunal, authority, ministry, commission, or
other governmental or quasi-governmental regulatory or adjudicative body or
authority of any kind.
“
Investment
Commission
” means the Investment Commission of the Ministry of Economic
Affairs of the ROC.
“
Knowledge
”
of the Sellers means the actual knowledge of any of the members of the
Management Board (
Vorstand
) of the Seller
Parent and any of the following individuals: Daniel Wong, Frank Tillner, Klaus
Fleischmann and Jessica Chin.
“
Laws
”
means laws, statutes, rules of the common law, regulations, rules, codes,
ordinances, or other legal requirements of any Governmental Body.
“
Lien
”
means any lien, mortgage, deed of trust, pledge, hypothecation, right of others,
claim, security interest, encumbrance, lease, sublease, license, interest,
option, charge, easement, servitude, proxy, voting trust or agreement or other
restriction or limitation of any nature whatsoever.
“
Material
Adverse Effect
” means any change, effect, event, circumstance or
development, individually or in the aggregate, that is or would reasonably be
expected to (i) be materially adverse to the business, assets, properties,
financial condition or results of operations of the Company and its
Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, (ii) have a material adverse effect on the
ability of the Sellers to perform any of their obligations under this Agreement,
or (iii) have a material adverse effect on the Buyer’s rights in and to the
Shares or upon the Buyer’s ability to exercise rights as a shareholder of the
Company after the 1st Closing or the 2nd Closing;
provided
that no
change, effect, event, circumstance or development, individually or in the
aggregate, resulting from any of the following shall be deemed to be or
constitute a “Material Adverse Effect” or taken into account when determining
whether a “Material Adverse Effect” has occurred or would reasonably be expected
to occur: (A) general economic conditions (or changes therein) in the industry
in which the Company operates, to the extent that such conditions do not have a
substantially disproportionate impact on the Company, relative to other
companies operating in the same industry in which the Company operates, (B)
reduction in production by the Company directly related to the implementation of
the transactions contemplated by the Company/Buyer TTA and (C) the effect of the
provisions of any of the Acquisition Total Documents that become effective prior
to the 2ndClosing.
“
Orders
”
means orders, judgments, injunctions, awards, decrees or writs of a Governmental
Body.
“
Person
”
means any individual, corporation, partnership, limited liability company,
limited liability partnership, firm, joint venture, association, joint-stock
company, trust, unincorporated organization, Governmental Body or other
entity.
“
Proceeding
”
shall mean any action, arbitration, audit, hearing, investigation, litigation or
suit (whether civil, criminal, administrative, investigative or informal)
commenced, brought, conducted or heard by or before, or otherwise involving, any
Governmental Body or arbitrator.
“
ROC
”
means the Republic of China.
“
Subsidiary
”
means, in relation to any Person, any corporation or other entity of which the
securities or other ownership interests having ordinary voting power to elect a
majority of the board of directors or other Persons performing similar functions
are owned directly or indirectly by such Person.
(b)
The
following capitalized terms are defined in the following Sections of this
Agreement:
Term
|
Section
|
1st
Closing
|
2.1(b)
|
1st
Close Cash Consideration
|
2.1(a)
|
1st
Close
Shares
|
2.1(a)
|
1st
Close Acquisition
Documents
|
6.2(h)
|
1st
Closing
Date
|
2.2
|
1st
Share
Purchase
|
2.1(a)
|
2nd
Close FCO
Approval
|
6.4(a)
|
2nd
Closing
|
2.4(a)
|
2nd
Close
Shares
|
2.4(a)
|
2nd
Closing Cash
Consideration
|
2.4(a)
|
2nd
Closing
Date
|
2.5
|
2nd
Share
Purchase
|
2.6
|
Agreement
|
Preamble
|
Antitrust
Authorities
|
5.6(b)
|
Ancillary
JV
Agreements
|
Recitals
|
Audited
Financial
Statements
|
3.9
|
Buyer
|
Preamble
|
Buyer
Parent
|
Preamble
|
Buyer/Seller
TLA
|
Recitals
|
Claim
Notice
|
8.3(a)
|
Closing
Location
|
2.1(b)
|
Closing
Time
|
2.1(b)
|
Commitment
Letters
|
4.5
|
Common
Stock
|
Recitals
|
Company
|
Recitals
|
Company/Buyer
PTLA
|
Recitals
|
Company/Buyer
TTA
|
Recitals
|
Company
Financial
Statements
|
3.9
|
Consideration
|
2.4(a)
|
Equity
Interests
|
3.1
|
Financing
|
5.13
|
FINI
Shares
|
Recitals
|
GAAP
|
3.9
|
GWB
|
6.1(a)
|
Indemnified
Party
|
8.3(a)
|
Indemnifying
Party
|
8.3(a)
|
Infineon
|
Recitals
|
Infineon/Buyer
TLA
|
Recitals
|
JV
Agreement
|
Recitals
|
Limited
Reps
|
8.4(a)
|
Losses
|
8.1
|
Most
Recent Balance Sheet
Date
|
3.9
|
Nanya
|
Recitals
|
Nanya
Waiver
|
3.1
|
Nanya/Seller
Termination
Agreement
|
Recitals
|
New
JV
Agreement
|
Recitals
|
New
JV Ancillary
Agreements
|
Recitals
|
New
JV
MOU
|
Recitals
|
Non-Solicitation
Period
|
5.8
|
Opinion
|
6.2(e)
|
Ordinary
Course of
Business
|
5.2(a)
|
Outside
Date
|
9.1(b)
|
Patent
Cross
License
|
Recitals
|
Release
Agreement
|
Recitals
|
Seller
Parent/Inotera
Contracts
|
3.10
|
Seller
Parent
|
Preamble
|
Seller
Parent/Nanya
Contracts
|
3.10
|
Seller
Sub
|
Preamble
|
Seller
Shares
|
Recitals
|
Seller
(or
Sellers)
|
Preamble
|
Share
Purchase
|
Recitals
|
Shares
|
Recitals
|
Sellers’
Disclosure
Letter
|
Article
III
|
Share
Purchase
|
Recitals
|
Supply
Agreement
|
Recitals
|
Threshold
Amount
|
8.4(a)
|
Transfer
Taxes
|
10.9
|
Transition
Agreement
|
Recitals
|
Unaudited
Financial
Statements
|
3.9
|
1.2
Interpretation
.
All pronouns and any variations thereof refer to the masculine, feminine or
neuter, singular or plural, as the context may require. All terms
defined in this Agreement in their singular or plural forms have correlative
meanings when used herein in their plural or singular forms,
respectively. Unless otherwise expressly provided, the words
“include,” “includes” and “including” do not limit
the
preceding words or terms and shall be deemed to be followed by the words
“without limitation.” Any Law defined or referred to herein (or in
any agreement or instrument that is referred to herein) means such Law as it may
from time to time be amended, modified or supplemented, including by succession
of comparable successor statutes. All references in this Agreement to
Articles, Sections, Exhibits and Schedules shall be deemed references to such
parts of this Agreement, unless the context shall otherwise
require. All references in this Agreement to “$” shall mean to United
States Dollars. The Article and Section headings in this
Agreement are for reference only and shall not affect the interpretation of this
Agreement. Any reference to a date or time shall, unless otherwise
expressly provided, mean such date or time in Taipei, Taiwan.
ARTICLE
II
PURCHASE
AND SALE OF SHARES; PURCHASE PRICE
2.1
1st
Closing; Sale and Purchase
of 1st
Close
Shares
.
(a)
At the
1st Closing, upon the terms and subject to the conditions of this Agreement, the
Sellers shall sell, transfer, assign, convey and deliver (the “
1st
Share
Purchase
”) to the Buyer, free and clear of all Liens, and the Buyer shall
purchase from the Sellers, the number of Shares set forth opposite each Seller’s
name on
Schedule
2
hereto (the “
1st
Close
Shares
”) for aggregate consideration consisting of $200,000,000 in cash
(the “
1st
Close
Cash Consideration
”), with the amounts payable for the account of each
Seller set forth opposite its name on
Schedule 2
hereto. For purposes of the 1st Close FIA Approval application and
calculation of the ROC securities transaction tax, the parties hereto agree that
the 1st Close Cash Consideration shall be deemed to represent NT$ equivalent to
NT$6,460,000,000 at the exchange rate of US$1 to NT$32.30.
(b)
The
closing of the purchase and sale of the 1st Close Shares contemplated by Section
2.1(a) (the “
1st
Closing
”)
shall take place at the offices of Jones Day (Taipei), located at 6F, 2
Tun Hwa S. Road, Sec. 2 Taipei 106, Taiwan, R.O.C. (the “
Closing
Location
”), at 3:00 p.m. local time (the “
Closing
Time
”), on the second Business Day after the conditions to the 1st
Closing set forth in Article VI have been satisfied or (if permissible)
waived (except for those conditions to be satisfied at the 1st Closing, but
subject to the satisfaction or waiver thereof at the 1st Closing), or such other
time or date as the parties may mutually agree in writing; provided that that
the parties agree to use their reasonable best efforts to cause the 1st Closing
to occur on the first Business Day following the satisfaction and waiver of such
conditions to the 1st Closing.
2.2
1st
Closing
Date
.
The date upon which the 1st
Closing
occurs is referred to herein as the “
1st
Closing
Date
”, and the 1st
Closing
shall be deemed to have occurred at 12:01 a.m. (Taipei time) on the 1st
Closing
Date.
2.3
Deliveries at 1st
Closing
.
At the 1st Closing:
(a)
the
Seller Parent shall deliver a copy of an extract from the Company’s shareholders
register showing the Buyer as a shareholder of the Company holding the number of
the 1st Close Shares,
(b)
the
Sellers shall take such other actions as may be required under the Laws of the
ROC and other Laws to register the 1st Close Shares in the name of the Buyer,
and
(c)
the Buyer
shall deliver to the Sellers, by wire transfer of immediately available funds
pursuant to the instructions delivered by the Sellers to the Buyer Parent at
least two Business Days prior to the 1st Closing, an amount equal to (i) the 1st
Close Cash Consideration, less (ii) the applicable ROC securities transaction
tax (which tax shall be withheld by the Buyer and remitted by the Buyer to the
applicable taxing authority on behalf of the Sellers).
2.4
2nd
Closing; Sale and Purchase
of 2nd
Close
Shares
.
(a) At
the 2nd
Closing, upon the terms and subject to the conditions of this Agreement,
the Sellers shall sell, transfer, assign, convey and deliver (the “
2nd
Share
Purchase
”) to the Buyer, free and clear of all Liens, and the Buyer shall
purchase from the Sellers, the number of shares set forth opposite each Seller’s
name on
Schedule
2
hereto (the “
2nd
Close
Shares
”), for aggregate consideration consisting of $200,000,000 in cash
(the “
2nd
Closing
Cash Consideration
” and, together with the 1st Close Cash Consideration,
the “
Consideration
”),
with the amounts payable for the account of each Seller set forth opposite its
name on
Schedule
2
hereto. For the avoidance of doubt, the Consideration paid
by Buyer to the Sellers pursuant to the terms of this Agreement shall be
for the Shares and for the right to receive the proceeds from the sale of the
FINI Shares pursuant to Section 5.14 hereof, and no additional consideration
shall be paid or payable by Buyer in exchange for the proceeds from the
FINI Shares. For purposes of the 2nd Close FIA Approval application
(it being understood that the 2nd Close FIA Approval application is subsumed in
the 1st Close FIA Approval application) and calculation of the ROC securities
transaction tax, the parties hereto agree that the 2nd Closing Cash
Consideration shall be deemed to represent NT$ equivalent to NT$6,460,000,000 at
the exchange rate of US$1 to NT$32.30.
(b) The
closing of the purchase and sale of the 2nd Close Shares (the “
2nd
Closing
”)
shall take place at the Closing Location at the Closing Time, on the second
Business Day after the conditions to the 2nd Closing set forth in
Article VI have been satisfied or (if permissible) waived (except for those
conditions to be satisfied at the 2nd Closing, but subject to the satisfaction
or waiver
thereof
at the 2nd Closing), or such other time or date as the parties may mutually
agree in writing; provided that that the parties agree to use their reasonable
best efforts to cause the 2nd Closing to occur on the first Business Day
following the satisfaction and waiver of the conditions to the 2nd Closing;
provided further, however, that unless the Buyer has received the 2nd Close FIA
Approval, the 2nd Closing shall not occur prior to the 51st day following the
1st Closing Date.
2.5
2nd
Closing
Date
.
The date upon which the 2ndClosing occurs is referred to herein as the “
2nd
Closing
Date
”, and the 2nd Closing shall be deemed to have occurred at 12:01 a.m.
(Taipei time) on the 2nd Closing Date.
2.6
Deliveries at
2nd
Closing
.
At the 2ndClosing:
(a)
the
Sellers shall
(i)
deliver a
copy of an extract of the Company’s shareholders register showing the Buyer as a
shareholder of the Company holding the number of the 1st Close Shares and the
2nd Close Shares,
(ii)
take such
other actions as may be required under the Laws of the ROC and other Laws to
register the 2nd Close Shares in the name of the Buyer, and
(iii)
deliver
resignations from each member of the Board of Directors and Supervisors of the
Company that is a corporate representative or designee of any Seller with effect
as of the 2nd Closing, and
(b)
the Buyer
shall deliver to the Sellers, by wire transfer of immediately available funds
pursuant to the instructions delivered by the Sellers to the Buyer Parent at
least two Business Days prior to the 2nd Closing, an amount equal to (i) the 2nd
Closing Cash Consideration, less (ii) the applicable ROC securities transaction
tax (which tax shall be withheld by the Buyer and remitted by the Buyer to the
applicable taxing authority on behalf of the Sellers).
ARTICLE
III
REPRESENTATIONS
AND WARRANTIES OF THE SELLERS
The
Sellers represent and warrant as of each of (i) the date hereof, (ii) the 1st
Closing Date and (iii) the 2nd Closing Date that, except as set forth in the
disclosure letter delivered to the Buyer Parent concurrently herewith (the
“
Sellers’
Disclosure Letter
”):
3.1
Title to the
Shares
.
The Sellers have good and valid title to the Seller Shares, free and clear of
any and all Liens, and upon consummation of the Share Purchase contemplated
hereby, the Buyer will acquire from the Sellers good and marketable title to the
Shares, free and clear of any and all Liens. The rights of Nanya
arising as a result of the Share Purchase under the JV Agreement and the
Ancillary JV Agreements have been waived per that certain waiver agreement
between the Seller Parent and Nanya, a signed copy of which has been previously
provided to the Buyer Parent (the “
Nanya
Waiver
”). Other than the JV Agreement and the Acquisition
Total Documents, neither of the Sellers nor any of their Affiliates is a party
to any voting trust or voting agreement with respect to, or granted any proxy to
represent, the Seller Shares. The only shares of the Company owned by
the Sellers and their Subsidiaries are the Seller Shares. Upon the
full consummation of the Share Purchase contemplated hereby at the 2nd Closing
Date, neither of the Sellers nor any of their Affiliates will (i) directly
or indirectly own any shares of Common Stock (other than the FINI Shares) or
shares, options, warrants, calls, stock appreciation rights, or other rights or
commitments or any other agreements of any character relating to dividend rights
or to the sale, issuance or voting of, or the granting of rights to acquire, any
shares of capital stock or voting securities of the Company, or any securities
or obligations convertible into, exchangeable for or evidencing the right to
purchase any shares of capital stock or voting securities of the Company
(collectively “
Equity
Interests
”), or (ii) have the right or authority, contractual or
otherwise, to directly or indirectly direct or participate in the vote of any
share of Common Stock or Equity Interests in the Company or the business,
management and policies of the Company.
3.2
Due
Incorporation
.
The Seller Parent is a stock corporation duly incorporated, validly existing
under the Laws of Germany. The Seller Sub is a private limited
company duly organized under and validly existing under the Laws of The
Netherlands.
3.3
Sellers Right, Power and
Authority
. Each
of the Sellers has the full right, power and authority to enter into the
Acquisition Documents to which it is, or is intended to be, a party and all
other instruments contemplated by or related thereto, to transfer, convey and
sell the Shares to the Buyer in accordance with this Agreement (in the case of
the Sellers) and to perform its obligations under the Acquisition
Documents.
3.4
Enforceability
. Each
of the Sellers has duly executed and delivered this Agreement (and, as
applicable, at or prior to the 1st Closing, each of the Sellers will have duly
executed and delivered the other Acquisition Documents to which it is intended
to be a party), and this Agreement constitutes (and, as applicable, as of the
date of effectiveness of each of the other Acquisition Documents to which it is
intended to be a party will constitute) a legal, valid and binding obligation,
enforceable against each of the Sellers in accordance with its terms, except as
the same may be limited by bankruptcy,
insolvency,
reorganization, moratorium or other similar Laws affecting the enforcement of
creditors’ rights generally now or hereafter in effect, and by general equitable
principles.
3.5
No Consents
Required
. The
execution, delivery and performance by each of the Sellers of this Agreement,
and the execution, delivery and performance by each of the Sellers of the other
Acquisition Documents to which it is or is intended to be a party, do not and
will not (i) violate, in any material respect, any Law, (ii) other than the
clearances required from the applicable competition law authorities and the
foreign investment approval by the Investment Commission, require any
filing with, or any permit, consent or approval of, or the giving of any notice
to (including under any right of first refusal or similar provision), any Person
(including filings, consents or approvals required under any Contracts to which
the either of the Sellers, any of their Affiliates or the Company is a party or
is bound), (iii) result in a material violation or breach of, conflict
with, constitute (with or without due notice or lapse of time or both) a default
under, or give rise to any right of termination, cancellation or acceleration
of, any charter document of or any right or obligation of either of the Sellers,
any of its Affiliates or the Company or to a loss of any benefit to which either
of the Sellers, any of their Affiliates or the Company is entitled, or create or
trigger any right of any counterparty under any material Contract binding upon
the any Seller, any of its Affiliates or the Company, or (iv) result in the
creation or imposition of any Lien, (A) on any material asset of the
Company, (B) on any of the Shares, or (C) that could adversely affect
any of the Sellers or the Company’s ability to perform its obligations under any
of the Acquisition Total Documents in any material respect.
3.6
Due Organization of the
Company
.
The Company is a company-limited-by-shares duly incorporated and validly
existing under the Laws of the ROC and has all requisite corporate power and
authority to own, lease and operate its properties and to carry on its business
as now being conducted, except where the failure to have such power and
authority would not have a Material Adverse Effect. The Company’s
Articles of Incorporation as attached to this Agreement as
Schedule 3.6(a)
represent the current version of such Articles of Incorporation as of the date
of this Agreement. The Shares have been validly issued and are fully paid
up. All facts relating to the Company that can be registered in the
companies register of the ROC Ministry of Economic Affairs are actually
registered in such companies register.
Schedule 3.6(b)
contains a print-out from the companies register, up-to-date, complete and
correct as of the date hereof. There exist no agreements outside the Articles of
Incorporation, the JV Agreement and the Nanya/Seller Termination Agreement that
affect the governance and organization of the Company in any material
respect.
3.7
Capitalization
.
The authorized share capital of the Company consists of a total of 4,000,000,000
authorized Common Stock, par value NT$10 per share of which 3,337,512,000 are
issued and outstanding. The rights and privileges of the Common Stock
are as stated in the Company’s Articles of Incorporation. There are
no other authorized classes of equity interests of any type other than the
Common
Stock. The Company does not have and is not bound by any outstanding
subscriptions, options, warrants, calls, commitments, agreements or other
obligations of any character calling for the purchase or issuance of any Common
Stock or subscription rights or any equity security of the Company or any
securities representing the right to purchase or otherwise receive any Common
Stock or any other equity security of the Company other than (i) 100,000 options
(at 1,000 shares per option) granted pursuant to the Company’s “Rules of 2007
IMI Employee Stock Option Issuance and Subscription” in 2007 and (ii) 80,000
options (at 1,000 shares per option) granted pursuant to the Company’s “Rules of
2008 IMI Employee Stock Option Issuance and Subscription” in 2008. All 180,000
options granted and issued have not yet been vested or converted, and some may
have been forfeited because of termination of employment.
3.8
Subsidiaries
.
To the Sellers’ Knowledge, the Company has no Subsidiaries.
3.9
Financial
Statements
.
The (i) audited balance sheets of the Company as of December 31,
2007 and the audited statements of income, stockholders’ equity and
cash flows, for the fiscal year then ended, together with all related notes and
schedules thereto (collectively, the “
Audited
Financial Statements
”), accompanied by the audit report of KPMG,
independent auditors of the Company, and (ii) the
unaudited balance sheet of the Company as of June 30, 2008 (the
“
Most
Recent Balance Sheet Date
”) and the unaudited statements of
income, stockholders’ equity and cash flows for the six month period then ended
(the “
Unaudited
Financial Statements
” and, together with the Audited Financial
Statements, the “
Company
Financial Statements
”), fairly present in all material respects
the financial position of the Company as of the respective dates
thereof, and the results of the operations of the Company for the
periods covered thereby, in each case in accordance with generally accepted
accounting principles in the ROC (“
GAAP
”)
consistently applied during the periods involved, except as indicated in any
notes thereto (and except in the case of the Unaudited Financial Statements, for
the absence of footnotes and subject to year-end audit
adjustments).
3.10
Contracts and
Relationships
.
Section 3.10(a) of the Sellers’ Disclosure Letter lists, and the Sellers
have provided to the Buyer Parent in the Data Room true and complete copies of,
all Contracts between any Seller and any of its Subsidiaries (excluding the
Company) and the Company (the “
Seller
Parent/Inotera Contracts
”). Section 3.10(b) of the
Sellers’ Disclosure Letter lists, and the Sellers have provided to the Buyer
Parent in the Data Room true and complete copies of, all Contracts between any
Seller and any of its Subsidiaries (excluding the Company) and Nanya and any of
its Subsidiaries that relate to the Company (the “
Seller
Parent/Nanya Contracts
”). After the 2nd Closing Date, (i) the
relationships between the Seller and any of its Subsidiaries, on the one hand,
and the Company, on the other hand, will be governed exclusively by the
Acquisition Total Documents to which they are parties, and (ii) the Sellers and
their Subsidiaries will not be party to any other Contracts with respect to the
Company.
3.11
Legal Proceedings;
Orders
.
(a)
There is
no Proceeding that has been commenced by or against any Seller that challenges,
or that could reasonably be expected to have the effect of preventing, delaying,
or making illegal, any of the transactions contemplated hereby.
(b)
There is
no Order to which any Seller, or any of the assets owned by any Seller, is
subject that has or could reasonably be expected to have the effect of
preventing, delaying, or making illegal any of the transactions contemplated
hereby.
3.12
Brokers
.
Neither of the Sellers nor any of their Subsidiaries has paid or agreed to pay,
or received any claim with respect to, any brokerage commissions, finders’ fees
or similar compensation (it being understood that the foregoing does not include
the fees, commissions and expenses payable by Seller Parent to its financial
advisor with respect to the transactions contemplated hereby and any fees,
commissions and expenses payable in connection with the sale of the Seller
Shares, which fees, commissions and expenses shall be paid solely by the
Sellers) in connection with the transactions contemplated hereby.
3.13
Insolvency; Stand Alone
Viability
. The
Management Board of the Seller Parent has obtained external legal and
business advice regarding relevant insolvency considerations and has determined
that the Seller Parent is neither “illiquid” (
zahlungsunfähig
) nor
“over-indebted” (
überschuldet
) within the
meaning of the relevant sections of the German Insolvency Code (
Insolvenzordnung
), and no
third party has applied for the opening of insolvency proceedings (
Insolvenzverfahren
) with
respect to the Seller Parent.
3.14
Company Assets and
Revenue
. The
Company does not hold assets located in the United States having an aggregate
total value of over $63.1 million, and did not make aggregate sales in or into
the United States of over $63.1 million in its most recent fiscal year, within
the meaning of 16 C.F.R. 802.51 of the Rule promulgated under the
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, as amended.
3.15
Disclosure
. To
Sellers’ Knowledge, none of this Agreement, the Company Financial Statements,
the Sellers’ Disclosure Letter, any other Acquisition Document or any
certificate delivered in accordance with the terms of any such agreement or
document, contains any untrue statement of material fact, or omits any statement
of material fact necessary in order to make the statements contained herein or
therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not
misleading.
ARTICLE
IV
REPRESENTATIONS
AND WARRANTIES OF THE BUYER PARENT AND THE BUYER
The Buyer
Parent and the Buyer represent and warrant that as of each of (i) the date
hereof, (ii) the 1st Closing Date and (iii) the 2nd Closing Date
that:
4.1
Due Incorporation and
Authority
.
The Buyer Parent is a corporation duly organized, validly existing and in good
standing under the Laws of Delaware. The Buyer Parent has all
requisite corporate power and authority to own, lease and operate its properties
and to carry on its business as now being conducted. The Buyer is a
private limited company duly organized under and validly existing under the Laws
of The Netherlands. The Buyer has all requisite corporate power and
authority to own, lease and operate its properties and to carry on its business
as now being conducted.
4.2
Buyer Right, Power and
Authority
. Each
of the Buyer Parent and the Buyer has the full right, power and authority to
enter into the Acquisition Documents to which it is or is intended to be a party
and all other instruments contemplated by or related thereto and to perform its
obligations under the Acquisition Documents.
4.3
Enforceability
. Each
of the Buyer Parent and the Buyer has duly executed and delivered this
Agreement, and this Agreement constitutes (and, as applicable, as of the
effective date of each of the other Acquisition Documents to which it is
intended to be a party will constitute) a legal, valid and binding obligation,
enforceable against each of the Buyer Parent and the Buyer, as applicable, in
accordance with its terms, except as the same may be limited by bankruptcy,
insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other similar Laws affecting the
enforcement of creditors’ rights generally now or hereafter in effect, and by
general equitable principles.
4.4
No Consents
Required
. The
execution, delivery and performance by each of the Buyer Parent and the Buyer of
this Agreement, and the execution, delivery and performance of the other
Acquisition Documents to which they are to be a party, do not and will not
(i) violate, in any material respect, any Law, (ii) other than the
clearances required from the applicable competition law authorities and the
foreign investment approval by the Investment Commission, require any
material filing with, or any material permit, consent or approval of, or the
giving of any material notice to (including under any right of first refusal or
similar material provision), any Person (including material filings, consents or
approvals required under any material Contracts to which the Buyer Parent or the
Buyer, any of their Affiliates is a party or is bound), (iii) result in a
violation or breach of, or conflict with, any charter document of the Buyer
Parent or the Buyer.
4.5
Financing
. The
Buyer Parent has, as of the date hereof and as of the 1st Closing
Date, sufficient cash, available lines of credit or other sources of
immediately available funds to enable it to pay the 1st Close Cash
Consideration. The Buyer Parent also has, as of the date hereof and
as of the 1st Closing Date, commitment letters executed by the Buyer Parent, the
Buyer and prospective lenders regarding proposed financing sufficient to fund
the 2nd Closing Cash Consideration, copies of which has been provided to the
Seller Parent (the “
Commitment
Letters
”). As of the date hereof, the Commitment Letters have
not been revoked or amended.
ARTICLE
V
COVENANTS
AND AGREEMENTS
5.1
Voting of
Shares
.
Between the date of this Agreement and the 2nd
Closing
Date, except as contemplated by this Agreement or otherwise agreed to in writing
by the Buyer Parent, the Sellers shall not:
(a)
vote the
Seller Shares in favor of the amendment of, or otherwise permit the Company to
amend the Company’s Articles of Incorporation;
(b)
resolve
on any increase in the paid-in capital of the Company;
(c)
vote the
Seller Shares to approve or otherwise permit the declaration, setting aside or
payment of any dividend or other distribution on or in respect of the Common
Stock or other shares of the Company; or
(d)
vote the
Seller Shares in favor of the amendment of any Acquisition Total Document or any
agreement listed in Section 3.10 of the Sellers’ Disclosure Letter;
or
(e)
enter
into any voting agreement or voting trust, grant any proxy, or otherwise grant
or transfer any voting rights with respect to any of the Seller
Shares.
5.2
Conduct of
Business
. From
and after the date hereof and until the 2nd Closing, unless the Buyer Parent
shall have given its prior written consent to Seller Parent to do otherwise, the
Sellers shall not exert their influence, through the voting of Company
securities or otherwise, to cause the Company to take any of the following
actions (provided, however, that nothing in this Agreement shall require any
member of the Board of Directors of the Company to violate his or her duties to
the Company under applicable corporate or other Laws):
(a)
operate
the business of the Company other than in the ordinary and usual course of
normal day-to-day operations of such business as conducted prior to the date
hereof (the “
Ordinary
Course of Business
”) or fail to maintain all of the facilities, assets
and properties of the Company in their condition as of the date hereof, normal
wear and tear excepted;
(b)
eliminate
or reduce the insurance coverage of the Company’s facilities, assets, properties
or interests;
(c)
(i) disrupt
the Company’s business organizations, (ii) terminate the services of the
Company’s present employees and other service providers, or (iii) terminate
the Company’s present relationships with its material vendors, suppliers and
customers and other Persons having business relationships with it;
(d)
(i) solicit,
encourage, cooperate with or facilitate (by way of furnishing information or
otherwise) any inquiries or proposals (other than the transactions contemplated
hereby) for the acquisition of the stock, assets or business of the Company or
(ii) acquire any material assets, properties or interests other than in the
Ordinary Course of Business;
(e)
merge or
consolidate with any other Person, amend or modify its organizational documents
or effect any issuance of securities, stock split, reverse stock split or
reclassification;
(f)
enter
into, or become obligated under, any material Contract;
(g)
terminate
or change, amend or otherwise modify any material Contract;
(h)
take any
action to implement, or decide to implement in the future, any material
technology or process not in use by the Company on the date hereof;
(i)
incur or
guarantee any indebtedness or suffer or permit the creation of any Lien outside
the Ordinary Course of Business upon any facilities, assets, properties or
interests of the Company;
(j)
retain or
hire any new senior management employee, increase or otherwise change the rate
or nature of compensation and benefits (including wages, salaries and bonuses
and benefits under pension profit sharing, deferred compensation and other
employee benefit plans and programs) which is paid or payable to any employee of
the Company or enter into or amend any employment, consulting or similar
Contract, in each case outside the Ordinary Course of Business;
(k)
release,
settle or compromise any material claim, or waive any material right, of the
Company or settle or compromise any pending or threatened material claim against
the Company; and
(l)
agree to
take any action which would breach or violate clauses (a)-(k) of this
Section 5.2.
5.3
No Transfer of the
Shares
.
Between the date of this Agreement and the 2nd
Closing
Date, the Sellers shall not voluntarily or involuntarily offer, sell, grant any
option on or interest in, transfer any rights with respect to, create or permit
any Lien on or otherwise transfer (or make any exchange, gift, assignment or
pledge of) all or any part of its interest
in the Seller
Shares.
5.4
Expenses
.
Other than the filing fees in respect of the regulatory filings contemplated by
Section 5.6(a), which shall be shared equally by the Buyer Parent and the
Seller Parent, and except as otherwise specifically provided herein, each of the
Buyer Parent and the Buyer, on the one hand, and the Sellers, on the other hand,
shall bear their respective expenses incurred in connection with the
preparation, execution and performance of this Agreement and the transactions
contemplated hereby, including all fees and expenses of agents, representatives,
counsel, investment bankers and accountants.
5.5
Publicity
.
Promptly following the execution and delivery of this Agreement by each of its
parties, the Seller Parent and the Buyer Parent shall each issue a press release
in the forms previously agreed between them. Except as may be
required by Law or the rules and regulations of any exchange on which a party’s
securities are listed or quoted, the parties hereto agree that, between the date
hereof and the 2nd Closing Date, no further publicity release or announcement
concerning this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereby shall be made
without advance consultation between the Seller Parent and the Buyer Parent, and
(except to the extent that compliance with this requirement would result in a
violation of applicable Law or the rules or regulations of any exchange on which
a party’s securities are listed or quoted), prior to making such announcement,
the announcing party will deliver a draft of such announcement to the other
parties and shall give the other parties reasonable opportunity to comment
thereon.
5.6
Required
Consents
.
(a)
The Buyer
Parent and the Seller Parent shall take all reasonable steps necessary to cause
all filings that are required to be made with respect to the consummation of the
1st Share Purchase and the 2nd Share Purchase with all competent merger control
authorities and Governmental Bodies to be made as soon as practicable after the
date hereof, and (i) in respect of filings required for the 1st Closing, on or
prior to the later of (x) one (1) Business Day of the date hereof, and (y) one
(1) Business Day from the date that the Buyer Parent receives from Nanya all
information and
documentation
required to make such a filing and any required approvals from Nanya in respect
of making any joint filings;
and
(ii) in respect of filings required for the 2nd Closing, on or prior to the
later of (x) three (3) Business Days from the date hereof, and (y) one (1)
Business Day from the date that the Buyer Parent receives from Nanya all
information and
documentation
required to make such a filing and any required approvals from Nanya in respect
of making any joint filings. Such filings shall (unless otherwise
required by Law) be made by the Buyer Parent on behalf of all parties, but the
contents of such filings shall require prior written approval of the Seller
Parent, which shall not unreasonably be withheld or delayed.
(b)
In
connection with the efforts referenced in Section 5.6(a), each of the Buyer
Parent and the Seller Parent shall (i) use its reasonable efforts to
cooperate in all respects with the other in connection with any filing or
submission and in connection with any investigation or other inquiry, including
any Proceeding initiated by a private party, (ii) keep the other party
informed of any material communication received by such party from, or given by
such party to, the antitrust or competition law authorities of any jurisdiction
(collectively, the “
Antitrust
Authorities
”), or any other Governmental Body and of any material
communication received or given in connection with any Proceeding by a private
party, in each case regarding any of the transactions contemplated hereby, and
(iii) to the extent permissible by applicable Laws, permit the other party
or its external counsel to review any material communication given by it to, and
consult with each other in advance of any meeting or conference with, any
Antitrust Authority, or any such other Governmental Body or, in connection with
any Proceeding by a private party, with any other Person.
(c)
Each of
the Buyer Parent and the Seller Parent shall exercise reasonable efforts to
prevent the entry in any claim, action, suit, audit, assessment arbitration or
inquiry, or any Proceeding, by or before any Governmental Body by any Antitrust
Authority or any other Person of any Order which would prohibit, make unlawful
or delay the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this
Agreement.
(d)
Each of
the parties hereto shall cooperate in good faith with the Antitrust Authorities,
consent to the sharing of confidential information among Antitrust Authorities,
and undertake promptly any and all reasonable action required to complete
lawfully the transactions contemplated by this
Agreement. Notwithstanding the foregoing or any other provision of
this Agreement, no party shall be required to agree to (a) any license,
sale or other disposition or holding separate (through establishment of a trust
or otherwise) of any shares of its capital stock or of any of its businesses,
assets or properties, its Subsidiaries or Affiliates, (b) the imposition of
any limitation on the ability of the Buyer Parent, its Subsidiaries or
Affiliates or the Company to conduct their respective businesses or own any
capital stock or assets or to acquire, hold or exercise full rights of ownership
of their respective businesses and, in the case of the Buyer Parent and the
Buyer, the businesses of the Company, or (c) the imposition of any
impediment on the Buyer Parent, its Subsidiaries or Affiliates or the Company
under any Law governing competition, monopolies or restrictive trade
practices. Nothing herein shall require the Buyer Parent or the Buyer
to litigate with any Governmental Body.
(e)
Each of
the Sellers, the Buyer Parent and the Buyer shall exercise reasonable efforts to
obtain or make all other required consents and notices.
(f)
At all
times prior to the 2nd
Closing,
the parties hereto shall cooperate and coordinate with each other, as
appropriate, with respect to filings and notifications to Governmental
Bodies in
connection with obtaining or making the required consents and
notices. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Seller
Parent, on the one hand, and the Buyer Parent, on the other hand, shall make or
cause to be made available all information reasonably requested by the other
party to permit all necessary filings and notices to be made with or to
Governmental Bodies as promptly as practicable after the date
hereof. Each party shall promptly furnish or cause to be furnished
all information and documents reasonably required by the relevant Governmental
Bodies as may be appropriate in order to obtain or make any required consents
and notices.
5.7
Change in Membership of
Company Board
.
The Sellers shall cause their representatives, as well as representatives of any
Seller’s Affiliate, on the Board of Directors and Supervisors of the Company to
resign from their position with effect as of the end of the 2nd Closing Date.
Prior to the 2nd Closing, the Seller Parent agrees to take all actions as may be
necessary and shall cause the members of the Board of Directors of the Company
appointed by the Seller Parent to vote and take such other actions as may be
necessary, to call a meeting of the shareholders of the Company to be held as
promptly as possible following the anticipated 2nd Closing for purposes of
electing the nominees appointed by Buyer Parent to the Board of Directors and
supervisors of the Company as contemplated by the New JV Agreement, and in the
event the 2nd Closing is delayed for any reason beyond such anticipated 2nd
Closing, to take such steps as are necessary to postpone or adjourn the meeting
from time to time so that it occurs as promptly as possible following the new
anticipated 2nd Closing. In the alternative, to the extent necessary
to ensure such meeting occurs as promptly as practicable following the 2nd
Closing, if reasonably feasible to do so, such meeting shall be called for the
purpose of full re-election of all directors of the Board and the
supervisors.
5.8
Sellers Non-
Solicit
.
For a period of three (3) years from the 2nd Closing Date (the “
Non-Solicitation
Period
”), the Sellers shall not, and shall not permit any of the Sellers’
Affiliates or any representatives, advisors or agents of the Sellers or any of
its Affiliates to, directly or indirectly, contact, approach or solicit for the
purpose of offering employment to or hiring (whether as an employee, consultant,
agent, independent contractor or otherwise), or actually hire, any Person
employed by or seconded by any Person other than the Seller or any of the
Seller’s Affiliates to the Company at any time before the 2nd Closing Date or
employed by or seconded by any Person other than the Seller or any of the
Seller’s Affiliates to the Company during the Non-Solicitation Period, without
the prior written consent of the Buyer Parent. During the
Non-Solicitation Period, the Sellers shall not, and shall not permit any of the
Sellers’ Affiliates or any representatives, advisors or agents of the Sellers or
any of its Affiliates to, directly or indirectly, induce or attempt to induce
any Person that has a business relation with the Company to terminate or modify
that business relationship.
5.9
Further
Assurances
.
Subject to the terms and conditions herein provided, each of the parties hereto
agrees to use its reasonable efforts to take or cause to be taken all reasonable
action and to do or cause to be done
all
things reasonably necessary, proper or advisable under applicable Laws and
regulations to consummate and make effective the transactions contemplated by
this Agreement, including (a) contesting any Proceeding relating to the
transactions contemplated hereby and (b) executing any additional
instruments necessary to consummate the transactions contemplated
hereby. If at any time after the date hereof any further reasonable
action is necessary to carry out the purposes of this Agreement, the proper
officers and directors of each party hereto shall take all such necessary
action.
5.10
Buyer
Financing.
The Buyer
Parent shall use its reasonable efforts to take, or cause to be taken, such
actions and to do, or cause to be done, such things as are reasonably necessary,
proper or advisable to arrange and obtain financing on the terms and conditions
described in the Commitment Letters or alternate financing on terms and
conditions reasonably acceptable to the Buyer Parent.
5.11
New JV Agreements; Patent
Cross License.
(a)
The Buyer
Parent shall use its reasonable efforts to take, or cause to be taken, such
actions and to do, or cause to be done, such things as are reasonably necessary,
proper or advisable to negotiate and enter into the New JV Agreement and New JV
Ancillary Agreements on the terms and conditions contemplated by the New JV MOU
or such other terms and conditions as are reasonably acceptable to the Buyer
Parent.
(b)
The Buyer
Parent and the Seller Parent shall negotiate in good faith and use their
reasonable efforts to take, or cause to be taken, such actions and to do, or
cause to be done, such things as are reasonably necessary, proper or advisable
to negotiate and enter into the Patent Cross License on terms and conditions as
are reasonably acceptable to the parties.
5.12
Notification
. From
the date hereof, the Sellers shall promptly notify the Buyer Parent in writing
of any event, condition, fact or circumstance that would make the satisfaction
of any of the conditions set forth in Article VI hereof on the 1st Closing Date
or the 2nd Closing Date impossible or reasonably unlikely. Each such
notification shall include a certification of an officer of each Seller that
such notification is being delivered in accordance with this Section
5.12.
5.13
Buyer Parent Financing
Information Assistance
.
The Sellers will use all reasonable efforts to provide to the Buyer Parent upon
request, or to cause the Company to provide to the Buyer Parent upon request,
all cooperation reasonably requested by the Buyer Parent in connection with the
arrangement of any financing proposed by the Buyer Parent in connection with the
transactions contemplated hereby (a “
Financing
”),
including (i) participation in a reasonable number of meetings,
presentations, road shows, due diligence sessions and sessions with rating
agencies, and (ii) assisting with the preparation of materials for rating
agency presentations, offering documents, private placement memoranda, bank
information
memoranda,
prospectuses, business projections and similar documents required in connection
with the Financing.
5.14
Sale of FINI
Shares
. Promptly
after the 2nd Closing Date, the Seller Parent shall sell the FINI Shares on the
Taiwan Stock Exchange and shall remit the proceeds of such sale, net of
brokerage fees and commissions and taxes (if any), to the Buyer.
ARTICLE
VI
CONDITIONS
PRECEDENT TO THE OBLIGATION OF THE PARTIES TO CLOSE
6.1
1st
Closing Conditions to All
Parties’ Obligations
.
The obligation of the Buyer Parent, the Buyer and the Sellers to consummate the
1st Closing is subject to the fulfillment on or prior to the 1st Closing Date of
the following conditions:
(a)
German Merger
Control
. The FCO shall have cleared the purchase of at least
the 1st Close Shares by the Buyer. This condition shall be deemed satisfied if
the FCO (i) has declared that the concentration does not meet the requirements
for prohibition pursuant to Section 36(1) of the Act Against Restraints of
Competition (
Gesetz gegen
Wettbewerbsbeschränkungen
, the “
GWB
”)
(either unconditionally or subject to the fulfillment of certain conditions or
obligations) or (ii) the concentration is deemed to be cleared by the FCO
pursuant to Section 41(1) and 40(1) GWB.
(b)
Governmental Bodies
Approvals
. All required consents, approvals and authorizations
of all relevant Governmental Bodies necessary for the 1st Share Purchase, in
addition to the FCO clearance referred to in clause (a), shall have been
obtained and all required waiting periods required by such authorities shall
have expired, including the 1st Close FIA Approval. For the avoidance
of doubt, the parties are aware of no such consents, approvals or authorizations
other than the 1st Close FIA Approval.
(c)
No
Orders
. No temporary restraining Order, preliminary or
permanent injunction or other Order which restrains, prohibits, or renders this
Agreement or the consummation of the Share Purchase as contemplated by this
Agreement illegal shall be in effect. No Law shall have been
promulgated, enacted, entered, enforced or deemed applicable by a Governmental
Body, which (i) would make illegal the Share Purchase as contemplated by
this Agreement or (ii) has had or could reasonably be expected to have a
Material Adverse Effect.
(d)
Commitment
Letters
. The Commitment Letters shall not have been revoked or
shall have been superseded by an alternative commitment obtained pursuant to
Section 5.10.
(e)
Nanya Waiver
. The
Nanya Waiver shall not have been revoked or modified.
6.2
1st
Closing Conditions to the
Buyer Parent and the Buyer’s Obligations
.
The obligation of the Buyer Parent and the Buyer to consummate the 1st Closing
is subject to the following additional conditions, any of which may be waived by
the Buyer Parent in its sole discretion:
(a)
Representations of the
Sellers True
. The representations and warranties of the
Sellers set forth in Article III (disregarding all qualifications and
exceptions contained therein regarding materiality or a Material Adverse Effect)
shall have been true and correct when made and shall be true and correct as of
the 1st Closing as if made as of the 1st Closing (other than those
representations and warranties made as of a specific date, which shall be true
and correct as of such date), subject only to exceptions that would not,
individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.
(b)
Covenant
Compliance
. The Sellers shall have complied in all material
respects with their covenants set forth herein and in the other Acquisition
Documents.
(c)
Certificate of the
Sellers
. The Buyer Parent shall have received a certificate
from each Seller, validly executed by an authorized officer of each Seller, to
the effect that, as of the 1st Closing, the conditions specified in
Sections 6.2(a), 6.2(b), 6.2(d) and 6.2(g) have been
satisfied.
(d)
Solvency
. The
Management Board of the Seller Parent shall have obtained external legal and
business advice regarding relevant insolvency considerations and has determined
that the Seller Parent is neither “illiquid” (
zahlungsunfähig
) nor
“over-indebted” (
überschuldet
) within the
meaning of the relevant sections of the German Insolvency Code (
Insolvenzordnung
), and no
third party shall have applied for the opening of insolvency proceedings (
Insolvenzverfahren
) with
respect to the Seller Parent.
(e)
Fair Value
Opinion
. The Management Board of the Seller Parent shall have
received the opinion of Citigroup Global Markets Limited (the “
Opinion
”)
to the effect that, as of the date hereof, and based upon and subject to the
factors and assumptions set forth therein, (i) the 1st Close Cash Consideration
is fair with respect to the 1st Close Shares from a financial point of view to
the Sellers and (ii) the Consideration, when taken as a whole, is fair from a
financial point of view to the Sellers. A true and complete copy of
the Opinion shall have been delivered to the Buyer Parent, and such opinion
shall not have been amended or rescinded as of the 1st Closing
Date.
(f)
Pending
Proceedings
. No Proceeding shall be pending which could
reasonably be expected to restrain or prohibit the consummation of the Share
Purchase as contemplated by this Agreement.
(g)
Material Adverse
Effect
. There shall not have occurred a Material Adverse
Effect.
(h)
Acquisition
Documents
. Each of (i) the Transition Agreement, (ii) the
Buyer/Seller TLA, (iii) the Infineon/Buyer TLA, and (iv) the Company/Buyer PTLA
(collectively,
the
“
1st
Close
Acquisition Documents
”), shall be in full force and effect concurrent
with the 1st Closing.
(i)
TDCC Book-Entry Share
Transfer
. To enable Buyer’s designated securities agent to
file appropriate and complete application with the TDCC to effect book-entry
transfer of the 1st Close Shares, at least two (2) Business Days prior to the
1st Closing Date, the Sellers shall have delivered to Buyer’s designated
securities agent: (1) a share transfer application form duly completed and
chopped or signed, as appropriate, by each Seller for transfer of its portion of
the 1st Close Shares to the Buyer, (2) each Seller’s TDCC securities passbook
and relevant securities chop, (3) original filing record of the Sellers with the
ROC and Future Bureau for transfer of shares by the Seller Parent as a major
shareholder and director of the Company and by the Seller Sub as supervisor of
the Company, (4) the 1st Close FIA Approval letter issued by the Investment
Commission approving Sellers’ transfer of the 1st Close Shares to the Buyer, and
(5) any other instruments and documents necessary for the application to the
TDCC to effect book-entry transfer of the 1st Close Shares. Promptly after the
book-entry transfer of the 1st Close Shares has been completed, the Buyer shall
cause its designated securities agent to return the securities passbooks and
chops referred to in clause (2) above to the Sellers.
(j)
Patent Cross
License
. Each of the Buyer Parent and the Seller Parent shall
have entered into the Patent Cross License, which shall become effective upon
the 2nd Closing.
6.3
1st
Closing Conditions to the
Sellers’ Obligations
.
The obligation of the Sellers to consummate the 1st Closing is subject to the
following additional conditions, any of which may be waived by the Sellers in
their sole discretion:
(a)
Representations of the Buyer
Parent and the Buyer True
. The representations and warranties
of the Buyer Parent and the Buyer set forth in Article IV (disregarding all
qualifications and exceptions contained therein regarding materiality) shall
have been true and correct when made and shall be true and correct as of the 1st
Closing as if made as of the 1st Closing (other than those representations and
warranties made as of a specific date, which shall be true and correct as of
such date), subject only to exceptions that would not, individually or in the
aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the ability of the Buyer Parent and
the Buyer to perform any of their respective obligations under this
Agreement.
(b)
Covenant
Compliance
. The Buyer Parent and the Buyer shall have complied
in all material respects with their covenants set forth herein.
(c)
Certificate of the Buyer
Parent
. The Sellers shall have received a certificate from the
Buyer Parent, validly executed by an authorized officer of the Buyer Parent, to
the effect that, as of the 1st Closing, the conditions specified in
Sections 6.3(a) and 6.3(b) have been satisfied.
6.4
2nd
Closing Conditions to All
Parties’ Obligations
.
The obligation of the Buyer Parent, the Buyer and the Sellers to consummate the
2nd Closing is subject to the fulfillment on or prior to the 2nd Closing Date of
the following conditions:
(a)
German Merger
Control
. The FCO shall have cleared the purchase of the 2nd
Close Shares (or, as the case may be, have cleared the purchase of the 2nd Close
Shares concurrently with its approval of the purchase of the 1st Close Shares in
the 1st Close FCO Approval) by the Buyer (the “
2nd
Close FCO
Approval
”). This condition shall be deemed satisfied if the FCO (i) has
declared that the concentration does not meet the requirements for prohibition
pursuant to Section 36(1) of the GWB (either unconditionally or subject to the
fulfillment of certain conditions or obligations) or (ii) the concentration is
deemed to be cleared by the FCO pursuant to Section 41(1) and 40(1)
GWB.
(b)
ROC Competition Authorities
Approvals
. The ROC Competition Authorities shall have cleared
the purchase of the 2nd Close Shares.
(c)
Governmental Bodies
Approvals
. All required consents, approvals and authorizations
of all relevant Governmental Bodies necessary for the 2nd Share Purchase shall
have been obtained, in addition to the 2nd Close FCO Approval, and all required
waiting periods required by such authorities shall have expired, including the
2nd Close FIA Approval. For the avoidance of doubt, the parties are
aware of no such consents, approvals or authorizations other than the 2nd Close
FIA Approval.
(d)
No
Orders
. No temporary restraining Order, preliminary or
permanent injunction or other Order which restrains, prohibits, or renders this
Agreement or the consummation of the Share Purchase as contemplated by this
Agreement illegal shall be in effect. No Law shall have been
promulgated, enacted, entered, enforced or deemed applicable by a Governmental
Body, which (i) would make illegal the Share Purchase as contemplated by
this Agreement or (ii) has had or could reasonably be expected to have a
Material Adverse Effect.
(e)
Nanya Waiver
. The
Nanya Waiver shall have not been revoked or modified.
6.5
2nd
Closing Conditions to the
Buyer Parent and the Buyer’s Obligations
.
The obligation of the Buyer Parent and the Buyer to consummate the 2nd Closing
is subject to the following additional conditions, any of which may be waived by
the Buyer Parent in its sole discretion:
(a)
Representations of the
Sellers True
. The representations and warranties of the
Sellers set forth in Article III (disregarding all qualifications and
exceptions contained therein regarding materiality or a Material Adverse Effect)
shall have been true and correct when made and shall be true and correct as of
the 2nd Closing as if made as of the 2nd Closing (other than those
representations and warranties made as of a specific date, which shall be true
and correct as of such date), subject only to exceptions that would not,
individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.
(b)
Covenant
Compliance
. The Sellers shall have complied in all material
respects with their covenants set forth herein and in the other Acquisition
Documents.
(c)
Certificate of the
Sellers
. The Buyer Parent shall have received a certificate
from each Seller, validly executed by an authorized officer of each Seller, to
the effect that, as of the 2nd Closing, the conditions specified in
Sections 6.5(a), 6.5(b), 6.5(d), 6.5(e), 6.5(g) and 6.5(i)(B) have been
satisfied.
(d)
Solvency
. The
Management Board of the Seller Parent shall have obtained external legal and
business advice regarding relevant insolvency considerations and has determined
that the Seller Parent is neither “illiquid” (
zahlungsunfähig
) nor
“over-indebted” (
überschuldet
) within the
meaning of the relevant sections of the German Insolvency Code (
Insolvenzordnung
), and no
third party shall have applied for the opening of insolvency proceedings (
Insolvenzverfahren
) with
respect to the Seller Parent.
(e)
Fair Value
Opinion
. The Management Board of the Seller Parent shall have
received the Opinion, and the Opinion shall not have been amended or rescinded
as of the 2nd Closing Date.
(f)
Pending
Proceedings
. No Proceeding shall be pending which could
reasonably be expected to restrain or prohibit the consummation of the Share
Purchase as contemplated by this Agreement.
(g)
Material Adverse
Effect
. There shall not have occurred a Material Adverse
Effect.
(h)
Financing
. The
Buyer Parent or the Buyer shall have obtained financing in an amount and on
terms no less favorable to the Buyer Parent or the Buyer as those of the
Commitment Letters.
(i)
Third-Party
Consents
. (A) The Buyer Parent shall have been furnished with
evidence reasonably satisfactory to it that the Company and/or each Seller, as
applicable, have obtained or delivered consents, waivers, amendments and
notices, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to Buyer Parent, with
respect to (a) the US$260,000,000 Five-Year Syndicate Term Loan Agreement, dated
as of January 14, 2004, by and among the Company, as Borrower, and the other
parties thereto, (b) the US$672,000,000 and NT$5,700,000,000 Five-Year Syndicate
Term Loan Agreement, dated as of October 14, 2004, by and among the Company, as
Borrower, and the other parties thereto, and (c) US$400,000,000 and
NT$27,000,000,000 Five-Year Syndicated Term Loan Agreement, dated as of March 5,
2007, by and among the Company, as Borrower, and the other parties thereto, and
(B) the transactions contemplated by this Agreement shall not result in a
default or event of default under any of the Company's outstanding public bonds,
or any such incipient or prospective default or event of default.
(j)
Company
Board
. The Sellers shall have secured resignations from each
member of the Board of Directors and Supervisors of the Company that is a
corporate representative
or
designee of any Seller or its Affiliates with effect as of the 2nd Closing, and
shall deliver copies of said resignations to the Buyer Parent.
(k)
TDCC Book-Entry Share
Transfer
. To enable Buyer’s designated securities agent to
file appropriate and complete application with the TDCC to effect book-entry
transfer of the 2nd Close Shares, at least two (2) Business Days prior to the
2nd Closing Date, the Sellers shall have delivered to Buyer’s designated
securities agent: (1) a share transfer application form duly completed and
chopped or signed, as appropriate, by each Seller for transfer of its portion of
the 2nd Close Shares to the Buyer, (2) each Seller’s TDCC securities passbook
and relevant securities chop, if not already delivered, (3) original filing
record of each of the Sellers with the ROC Securities and Futures Bureau for
transfer of shares by the Seller Parent as a major shareholder and director of
the Company and by the Seller Sub as supervisor of the Company, (4) the 2nd
Close FIA Approval letter issued by the Investment Commission approving the
Sellers’ transfer of the 2nd Close Shares to the Buyer, and (5) any other
instruments and documents necessary for the application to the TDCC to effect
book-entry transfer of the 2nd Close Shares.
(l)
Acquisition
Documents
. Each of the 1st Close Acquisition Documents shall
have become effective concurrent with the 1st Closing and shall continue to be
in full force and effect in accordance with its terms. The
Company/Buyer TTA shall have become effective concurrent with the later of (A)
the receipt of the 2nd Close FCO Approval and (B) the 1st Closing and shall
continue to be in full force and effect in accordance with its
terms. The Nanya/Seller Termination Agreement shall be in full force
and effect concurrent with the 2nd Closing.
(m)
New JV Agreements
.
Each of the Buyer Parent and Nanya shall have entered into the New JV Agreement
and each of the Buyer Parent and Nanya shall have entered into the New JV
Ancillary Agreements on terms consistent with the New JV MOU and such agreements
shall be effective in accordance with their terms as of no later than the 2nd
Closing.
(n)
Patent Cross License.
The Patent Cross License shall be effective in accordance with its terms as of
the 2nd Closing.
6.6
2nd
Closing Conditions to the
Sellers’ Obligations
.
The obligation of the Sellers to consummate the 2nd Closing is subject to the
following additional conditions, any of which may be waived by the Sellers in
their sole discretion:
(a)
Representations of the Buyer
Parent and the Buyer True
. The representations and warranties
of the Buyer Parent and the Buyer set forth in Article IV (disregarding all
qualifications and exceptions contained therein regarding materiality) shall
have been true and correct when made and shall be true and correct as of the 2nd
Closing as if made as of the 2nd Closing (other than those representations and
warranties made as of a specific date, which shall be true and correct as of
such date), subject only to exceptions that would not, individually or in the
aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the ability of the Buyer Parent and
the Buyer to perform any of their respective obligations under this
Agreement.
(b)
Covenant
Compliance
. The Buyer Parent and the Buyer shall have complied
in all material respects with their covenants set forth herein.
(c)
Certificate of the Buyer
Parent
. The Sellers shall have received a certificate from the
Buyer Parent, validly executed by an authorized officer of the Buyer Parent, to
the effect that, as of the 2nd Closing, the conditions specified in
Sections 6.6(a) and 6.6(b) have been satisfied.
ARTICLE
VII
SURVIVAL
The
Limited Reps and the representations and warranties of the Buyer Parent and the
Buyer contained in Article IV shall survive until the first anniversary of
the Date hereof or, if the 1st Closing or the 2nd Closing occurs, the later of
the first anniversary of 1st Closing or the first anniversary of the
2nd Closing. Thereafter all such representations and warranties
of the parties referred to in the immediately preceding sentence shall be
extinguished and no claim for the recovery of any Losses may be asserted against
any party in respect thereof, except that claims first asserted in a Claim
Notice within the applicable period referred to above shall not thereafter be
barred. The representations and warranties of the Sellers other than
the Limited Reps and the covenants of the Buyer Parent, the Buyer and the
Sellers contained in this Agreement which are not explicitly covered by the
extinction pursuant to the two immediately preceding sentences shall survive
beyond the date hereof, the 1st Closing and the 2nd Closing, except for those
covenants that are expressly limited by their terms to other dates or times,
which shall survive only to such dates or times. For the avoidance of
doubt, the agreements of the Sellers contained in Section 5.2 shall
terminate upon the 2nd Closing Date.
ARTICLE
VIII
INDEMNIFICATION
8.1
Obligation of the Sellers to
Indemnify
.
From and after the 1st Closing Date, subject to Sections 8.3, 8.4 and 8.5,
the Sellers shall indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Buyer Parent and the
Buyer and each of their directors, officers and representatives, from and
against all liabilities, losses and damages and reasonable attorneys’ fees,
court costs and other out-of-pocket expenses (collectively, “
Losses
”)
that arise out of, or result from, the breach of any representation, warranty,
covenant or agreement of any Seller contained in this Agreement (or any
representation, warranty, covenant or agreement in any certificate delivered
pursuant to this Agreement) that survives the 1st Closing or the 2nd Closing
pursuant to Article VII above.
8.2
Obligation of the Buyer
Parent to Indemnify
.
From and after the date hereof, subject to Sections 8.3, 8.4 and 8.5, the
Buyer Parent shall indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Sellers and their
directors, officers and representatives, from and against all Losses that arise
out of or result from, the breach of any representation, warranty, covenant or
agreement of the Buyer Parent or the Buyer contained in this Agreement (or any
representation, warranty, covenant or agreement in any certificate delivered
pursuant to this Agreement) that survives the date hereof, the 1st Closing and
the 2nd Closing pursuant to Article VII above.
8.3
Indemnification
Procedure
.
(a)
Any
indemnified party seeking indemnification under this Agreement (each, an “
Indemnified
Party
”) shall, within the relevant limitation period provided in
Article VII, promptly give the indemnifying party or parties (collectively,
the “
Indemnifying
Party
”) written notice (a “
Claim
Notice
”) describing in reasonable detail the facts giving rise to any
claims for indemnification hereunder and shall include in the Claims Notice (if
then known) the amount or method of computation of the amount of such claim and
a reference to the provision of this Agreement or any agreement, certificate or
instrument delivered pursuant to this Agreement upon which such claim is based;
provided
, that a Claim
Notice in respect of any action at law or in equity by or against a third party
as to which indemnification will be sought shall be given promptly after the
action or suit is commenced;
provided, further,
any delay
or failure to so notify the Indemnifying Party shall only relieve the
Indemnifying Party of its obligations hereunder to the extent, if at all, that
it is prejudiced by reason of such delay or failure.
(b)
The
Indemnifying Party shall have the right, at its own cost, to participate jointly
in the defense of any claim or demand in connection with which the Indemnified
Party has claimed indemnification hereunder, and may elect to take over the
defense of such claim or demand through counsel of its own choosing by so
notifying the Indemnified Party within thirty (30) days of receipt of the
Indemnified Party’s Claim Notice. If the Indemnifying Party makes
such an election:
(i)
it shall
keep the Indemnified Party reasonably informed as to the status of such matter
and shall promptly send copies of all pleadings to the Indemnified
Party;
(ii)
with
respect to any issue involved in such claim or demand, it shall have the sole
right to settle or otherwise dispose of such claim or demand on such terms as
it, in its sole discretion, shall deem appropriate;
provided
,
however
, that the consent of
the Indemnified Party to the settlement or disposition of any claim or demand
shall be required if such settlement or disposition shall result in any
liability to, or equitable relief against, the Indemnified Party;
and
(iii)
the
Indemnified Party shall have the right to participate jointly in the defense of
such claim or demand, but shall do so at its own cost not subject to
reimbursement under Section 8.1 or 8.2.
(c)
If the
Indemnifying Party does not elect to take over the defense of a claim or demand,
the Indemnified Party shall have the right to contest, compromise or settle such
claim or demand in the exercise of its reasonable judgment;
provided
,
however
, that the consent of
the Indemnifying Party to any compromise or settlement of such claim or demand
shall be required, which consent shall not be unreasonably
withheld.
(d)
Each
party agrees that it shall cooperate with the other parties in the defense of
any claim or action.
8.4
Measure of and Limitations
upon Indemnification
.
(a)
The
Sellers’ liability for any Losses under this Article VIII shall be subject
to the following limitations: (i) the Sellers shall have no liability for
any Losses that arise directly or indirectly under Section 3.8, 3.9, 3.10, 3.11,
3.14 and 3.15 (the “
Limited
Reps
”) unless and until the aggregate amount of such Losses for which the
Sellers are obligated to indemnify pursuant to Section 8.1 exceeds
$1,000,000 (the “
Threshold
Amount
”), in which case the Sellers shall be liable only for the
aggregate amount of such Losses related to the Limited Reps, as finally
determined, that exceeds the Threshold Amount; and (ii) the aggregate
liability of the Sellers for all such Losses related to the Limited Reps shall
not exceed, in the aggregate, 25% of the Consideration actually paid to
Sellers.
(b)
IN NO EVENT SHALL ANY INDEMNIFYING
PARTY BE LIABLE TO ANY INDEMNIFIED PARTY FOR ANY PUNITIVE DAMAGES (OTHER THAN
INDEMNIFICATION FOR AMOUNTS PAID OR PAYABLE TO THIRD PARTIES IN RESPECT OF ANY
THIRD PARTY CLAIM FOR WHICH INDEMNIFICATION HEREUNDER IS OTHERWISE
REQUIRED)
.
8.5
Exclusivity of
Indemnity
.
The indemnification provided in this Article VIII shall be the sole and
exclusive remedy after the 1st Closing Date and the 2nd Closing Date for damages
available to the parties to this Agreement for breach of any of the
representations, warranties, covenants and agreements contained herein or any
right, claim or action arising from the transactions contemplated hereby that
were by their terms to have been effected as of the 1st Closing Date or the 2nd
Closing Date, respectively.
ARTICLE
IX
TERMINATION
OF AGREEMENT
9.1
Termination
.
(a)
This
Agreement may not be terminated prior to the 1st Closing, except as
follows:
(i)
by mutual
agreement of the Buyer Parent and the Sellers;
(ii)
by the
Sellers, if there has been a breach by the Buyer Parent or the Buyer of any
covenant, representation or warranty contained in this Agreement that has
prevented the satisfaction of any condition to the obligations of the Sellers to
consummate the 1st Closing, and such breach has not been waived by the Sellers
or cured, if capable of cure, by the Buyer Parent or the Buyer, within thirty
(30) days after written notice thereof from the Sellers;
(iii)
by the
Buyer Parent, if there has been a breach by any Seller of any covenant,
representation or warranty contained in this Agreement that has resulted in a
Material Adverse Effect or has prevented the satisfaction of any condition to
the obligations of the Buyer Parent and the Buyer to consummate the 1st Closing,
and such breach has not been waived by the Buyer Parent or, if capable of cure,
cured by the Sellers, within thirty (30) days after written notice thereof from
the Buyer Parent;
(iv)
by the
Buyer Parent, if after the date hereof the Seller Parent has applied (or is in
violation of German Laws by having failed to have applied) for the opening of
insolvency proceedings, or a third party has applied for the opening of
insolvency proceedings (
Insolvenzverfahren
) with
respect to the Seller Parent; and
(v)
at the
election of the Buyer Parent or the Sellers upon prior written notice, if any
court of competent jurisdiction or other competent Governmental Body shall have
issued a final Order restraining, enjoining or otherwise prohibiting the
consummation of the 1st Share Purchase or the 2nd Share Purchase and such Order
is or shall have become non-appealable.
(b)
Following
the 1st Closing, the obligations of the parties to consummate the 2nd Closing
(whether or not the conditions under Section 6.4, Section 6.5 and Section 6.6
have been satisfied) may be terminated:
(i)
by mutual
agreement of the Buyer Parent and the Sellers;
(ii)
at the
election of the Buyer Parent or the Sellers upon prior written notice, if any
one or more of the conditions set forth in Section 6.4, Section 6.5 and Section
6.6 has not been fulfilled (or waived by the party whose benefit such condition
is for) as of the close of business on January 31, 2009 (the “
Outside
Date
”), except that any party whose conduct is in breach of this
Agreement and substantially results in the failure of such condition to be
fulfilled may not be the terminating party under this clause;
(iii)
at the
election of the Seller Parent upon written notice, if all of the conditions set
forth in Sections 6.4 and 6.5 other than any one or more of those set forth in
Sections 6.5(h) and 6.5(m) have been fulfilled but the 2nd Closing has not been
consummated as of the close of business on the day that is the later of (i)
December 15, 2008 and (ii) five days after the first date
on which
all of such conditions other than those set forth in Sections 6.5(h) and 6.5(m)
are first fulfilled;
(iv)
by
Sellers, if there has been a breach by the Buyer Parent or the Buyer of any
covenant, representation or warranty contained in this Agreement that has
prevented the satisfaction of any condition to the obligations of the Sellers to
consummate the 2nd Closing, and such breach has not been waived by the Sellers
or cured, if capable of cure, by the Buyer Parent or the Buyer, within thirty
(30) days after written notice thereof from the Sellers;
(v)
by the
Buyer Parent, if there has been a breach by any Seller of any covenant,
representation or warranty contained in this Agreement that has resulted in a
Material Adverse Effect or has prevented the satisfaction of any condition to
the obligations of the Buyer Parent and the Buyer to consummate the 2nd Closing,
and such breach has not been waived by the Buyer Parent or, if capable of cure,
cured by the Sellers, within thirty (30) days after written notice thereof from
the Buyer Parent;
(vi)
by the
Buyer Parent, if after the date hereof the Seller Parent has applied (or is in
violation of German Laws by having failed to have applied) for the opening of
insolvency proceedings, or a third party has applied for the opening of
insolvency proceedings (
Insolvenzverfahren
) with
respect to the Seller Parent; and
(vii)
at the
election of the Buyer Parent or the Sellers upon prior written notice, if any
court of competent jurisdiction or other competent Governmental Body shall have
issued a final Order restraining, enjoining or otherwise prohibiting the
consummation of the 1st Share Purchase or the 2nd Share Purchase and such Order
is or shall have become non-appealable.
9.2
Survival After
Termination
.
(a)
In the
event of the termination of this Agreement pursuant to Section 9.1(a), the
provisions of this Agreement shall immediately become void and of no further
force or effect (other than Section 5.4, this Section 9.2, Article VII and
Article X which shall survive the termination of this Agreement in accordance
with their terms), and no party hereto will have any further obligations or
liabilities hereunder except for obligations or liabilities arising under such
surviving provisions or from a breach of this Agreement prior to such
termination.
(b)
In the
event of the termination of the obligations of the parties to consummate the 2nd
Closing pursuant to Section 9.1(b), the covenants and obligations of the parties
under Sections 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.5, 5.6 (but only with respect to the 2nd
Closing), 5.7, 5.9 (but only with respect to the 2nd Closing), 5.10, 5.11, 5.12,
5.13 and 5.14 shall expire effective as of the termination of the obligations to
consummate the 2nd Closing, and no party hereto will have any further
obligations or liabilities under such provisions except for obligations or
liabilities arising from a breach of any such provisions prior to such
termination.
ARTICLE
X
MISCELLANEOUS
10.1
Governing Law;
Venue
.
EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT THAT ROC LAW IS MANDITORILY APPLICABLE TO THE COMPANY, THE
TRANSFER IN REM OF THE SHARES IN THE COMPANY AND THE RIGHTS OF THE SHAREHOLDERS
OF THE COMPANY, THIS AGREEMENT SHALL BE GOVERNED IN ALL RESPECTS, INCLUDING AS
TO VALIDITY, INTERPRETATION AND EFFECT, BY THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
WITHOUT GIVING EFFECT TO ITS CONFLICT OF LAWS PRINCIPLES. EACH PARTY
HEREBY IRREVOCABLY SUBMITS TO THE EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION OF THE COURTS OF THE
STATE OF NEW YORK AND THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURTS LOCATED IN THE CITY OF
NEW YORK IN RESPECT OF THE INTERPRETATION AND ENFORCEMENT OF THE PROVISIONS OF
THIS AGREEMENT AND OF THE DOCUMENTS REFERRED TO IN THIS AGREEMENT, AND IN
RESPECT OF THE TRANSACTIONS CONTEMPLATED HEREBY AND THEREBY. EACH
PARTY HEREBY WAIVES AND AGREES NOT TO ASSERT, AS A DEFENSE IN ANY ACTION, SUIT
OR PROCEEDING FOR THE INTERPRETATION AND ENFORCEMENT HEREOF, OR ANY SUCH
DOCUMENT OR IN RESPECT OF ANY SUCH TRANSACTION, THAT SUCH ACTION, SUIT OR
PROCEEDING MAY NOT BE BROUGHT OR IS NOT MAINTAINABLE IN SUCH COURTS OR THAT THE
VENUE THEREOF MAY NOT BE APPROPRIATE OR THAT THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY SUCH DOCUMENT
MAY NOT BE ENFORCED IN OR BY SUCH COURTS. EACH PARTY HEREBY CONSENTS
TO AND GRANTS ANY SUCH COURT JURISDICTION OVER THE PERSON OF SUCH PARTIES AND
OVER THE SUBJECT MATTER OF ANY SUCH DISPUTE.
10.2
Notices
.
Any notice or other communication required or permitted hereunder shall be in
writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given (a) on the day of
delivery if delivered in Person, or if delivered by facsimile upon confirmation
of receipt, (b) on the first Business Day following the date of dispatch if
delivered by a nationally recognized express courier service, or (c) on the
tenth Business Day following the date of mailing if delivered by registered or
certified mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid. All
notices hereunder shall be delivered as set forth below, or pursuant to such
other instructions as may be designated by notice given in accordance with this
Section 10.2 by the party to receive such notice:
(a)
if to the
Buyer Parent or the Buyer, to:
Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000
South Federal Way
Boise,
Idaho 83716-9632
Attn:
General Counsel
Facsimile:
(208) 363-1309
with a
copy to:
Wilson
Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, Professional Corporation
650 Page
Mill Road
Palo
Alto, CA 94304
Attention: John
A. Fore
Facsimile: (650)
493-6811
(b)
if to any
Seller, to:
Qimonda
AG
Gustav-Heinemann-Ring
123
81739
Munich
Germany
Attention: Legal
Department
Facsimile: (49-89)
60088-442450
with
copies to:
Cleary
Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP
Main
Tower
Neue
Mainzer Strasse 52
60311
Frankfurt am Main
Germany
Attention: Ward
A. Greenberg
Facsimile: (49-69)
97103-199
10.3
Entire
Agreement
.
This Agreement and any other collateral agreements executed in connection with
the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, contain the entire
agreement among the parties with respect to the sale and purchase of the 1st
Close Shares and 2nd Close Shares and supersede all prior agreements, written or
oral, with respect thereto.
10.4
Waivers and
Amendments
.
This Agreement may be amended, superseded, canceled, renewed or extended, and
the terms hereof may be waived, only by a written instrument signed by the Buyer
Parent and the Sellers or, in the case of a waiver, by the party waiving
compliance. No delay on the part of any party in exercising any
right, power or privilege hereunder shall operate as a waiver thereof, nor shall
any waiver on the part of any party of any such right, power or privilege, nor
any single or partial
exercise
of any such right, power or privilege, preclude any further exercise thereof or
the exercise of any other such right, power or privilege.
10.5
Binding Effect;
Assignment
.
This Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties and
their respective successors and assigns. This Agreement is not
assignable by any party without the prior written consent of the other parties;
provided
,
however
, that the Buyer can
assign its obligations under this Agreement to the Buyer Parent or any of the
Buyer Parent’s wholly owned Subsidiaries. The Buyer Parent shall be
jointly and severally liable with the Buyer or any successor or assignee of the
Buyer or the Buyer Parent for all obligations arising under this Agreement of
any such Person to or for the benefit of any of the Sellers.
10.6
Construction
.
The parties acknowledge and agree that (a) each party and its counsel
reviewed and negotiated the terms and provisions of this Agreement and have
contributed to its revision, (b) the rule of construction to the effect
that any ambiguities are resolved against the drafting party shall not be
employed in the interpretation of this Agreement, and (c) the terms and
provisions of this Agreement shall be construed fairly as to all parties,
regardless of which party was generally responsible for the preparation of this
Agreement.
10.7
Severability of
Provisions
.
If any provision or any portion of any provision of this Agreement shall be held
invalid or unenforceable, the remaining portion of such provision and the
remaining provisions of this Agreement shall not be affected
thereby. If the application of any provision or any portion of any
provision of this Agreement to any Person or circumstance shall be held invalid
or unenforceable, the application of such provision or portion of such provision
to Persons or circumstances other than those as to which it is held invalid or
unenforceable shall not be affected thereby. Furthermore, the parties
shall use reasonable efforts to negotiate and include in this Agreement, in lieu
of such illegal, invalid or unenforceable provision, a legal, valid and
enforceable provision as similar in terms to such illegal, invalid or
unenforceable provision as may be possible.
10.8
Counterparts; Delivery by
Fax or E-mail
.
This Agreement may be executed by the parties hereto in separate counterparts,
each of which when so executed and delivered shall be an original, but all such
counterparts together shall constitute one and the same
instrument. Each counterpart may consist of a number of copies hereof
each signed by less than all, but together signed by all, of the parties
hereto. Delivery of an executed counterpart of this Agreement by
facsimile or electronic mail transmission shall be equally as effective as
delivery of an executed hard copy of the same. Any party doing so
shall also deliver an executed hard copy of same, but the failure by such party
to deliver an executed hard copy shall not affect the validity, enforceability
and binding effect of this Agreement.
10.9
Transfer
Taxes
. Other
than as expressly provided in Sections 2.3(c) and 2.6(b), the Sellers shall
(a) be responsible for any and all sales, use, stamp, documentary, filing,
recording, transfer, real estate transfer, gross receipts, registration, duty or
similar fees or taxes or governmental charges (together with any interest or
penalty, addition to tax or additional amount imposed) as levied by any taxing
authority in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement
(collectively, “
Transfer
Taxes
”), and (b) timely file or caused to be filed all necessary
documents (including all tax returns) with respect to Transfer
Taxes
10.10
Language
. This
Agreement shall be prepared in the English language, and the English language
version shall be official. No translation into German, Chinese or any
other language shall be taken into consideration in the interpretation of this
Agreement.
10.11
No Third Party
Beneficiaries
.
No provision of this Agreement is intended to, or shall, confer any third party
beneficiary or other rights or remedies upon any Person other than the parties
hereto.
[Signature
page follows]
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this Share Purchase Agreement as of
the date first above written.
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BUYER:
|
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MICRON
SEMICONDUCTOR B.V.
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By:
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/s/ Thomas L.
Laws
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Name:
Thomas L. Laws
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Title:
Managing Director A
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By:
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/s/ Patrick van
Maurik
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Name:
Patrick van Maurik
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Title:
Managing Director B
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BUYER
PARENT:
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MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
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By:
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/s/ D. Mark
Durcan
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Name:
D. Mark Durcan
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Title:
President and Chief Operating Officer
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SELLER
PARENT:
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QIMONDA
AG
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By:
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/s/ Kin Wah
Loh
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Name:
Kin Wah Loh
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Title:
Chief Executive Officer
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By:
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/s/ Nicole
Lau
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Name:
Nicole Lau
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Title:
Vice President and Corporate Legal
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Counsel
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SELLER
SUB:
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QIMONDA
HOLDING B.V.
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By:
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/s/ Nicole
Lau
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Name:
Nicole Lau
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Title:
Attorney in Fact
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(Signature
Page of Share Purchase Agreement)
EXHIBIT
10.71
[***]
DENOTES CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS OMITTED AND FILED SEPARATELY WITH THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO A REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL
TREATMENT
NTC/MICRON
CONFIDENTIAL
MASTER
AGREEMENT
This
MASTER AGREEMENT, is made and entered into as of this 26th day of November,
2008, among Micron Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“
Micron
”), Micron Semiconductor
B.V., a private limited liability company organized under the laws of the
Netherlands (“
MNL
”),
Nanya Technology Corporation
Nanya Technology Corporation
[Translation from Chinese]
(“
NTC
”), a company incorporated
under the laws of the Republic of China (“
ROC
” or “
Taiwan
”), MeiYa Technology
Corporation
MeiYa
Technology Corporation [Translation from Chinese]
, a company incorporated
under the laws of the ROC (“
MeiYa
” and, collectively with
Micron, MNL and NTC, the “
Old
JV Parties
”), and Inotera Memories, Inc.
Inotera Memories Inc.
[Translation from Chinese]
, a company incorporated under the
laws of the ROC (“
IMI
”
and, collectively with Micron, MNL and NTC, the “
New JV Parties
”).
RECITALS
A.
The Old
JV Parties entered into certain agreements with each other relating to the
ownership, governance and operation of MeiYa and regarding certain business
relationships among the Old JV Parties (such agreements, the “
MeiYa JV
Documents
”).
B.
In
accordance with that certain Share Purchase Agreement, dated October 11,
2008 (the “
Qimonda / MNL Share
Purchase Agreement
”), among Micron, MNL, Qimonda AG, a corporation
organized under the laws of Germany (“
Qimonda
”), and Qimonda Holding
B.V., a private limited company organized under the laws of the Netherlands
(“
Qimonda B.V.
”), MNL is
acquiring from Qimonda and Qimonda B.V. shares in IMI.
C.
After the
2
nd
Closing (as defined hereinafter), MNL, NTC, MeiYa and IMI intend for IMI to
conduct the MeiYa Rollup (as defined hereinafter).
D.
Upon the
2
nd
Closing, the MeiYa Rollup or the MeiYa Dissolution (as defined hereinafter),
(1) certain of the MeiYa JV Documents will remain in effect and intact
without modification, (2) certain of the MeiYa JV Documents will be
amended, (3) certain of the MeiYa JV Documents will be terminated,
(4) the New JV Parties will enter into certain agreements relating to the
ownership, governance and operations of IMI and regarding certain relationships
among the New JV Parties (such agreements, the “
IMI JV Documents
”) and (5)
MeiYa and IMI will enter into certain agreements related to the MeiYa
Rollup.
AGREEMENT
NOW,
THEREFORE, for good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of
which are hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto intending to be legally bound
do hereby agree as follows:
ARTICLE
1
DEFINITIONS;
CERTAIN INTERPRETIVE MATTERS
1.1
Definitions
. In
addition to the terms defined elsewhere in this Agreement, capitalized terms
used in this Agreement shall have the respective meanings set forth
below:
“
2
nd
Closing
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the Qimonda / MNL Share Purchase Agreement.
“
Agreement
” means this Master
Agreement.
“
Applicable Law
” means any
applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances, orders, codes,
arbitration awards, judgments, decrees or other legal requirements of any
Governmental Entity.
“
Governmental Entity
” means any
governmental authority or entity, including any agency, board, bureau,
commission, court, municipality, department, subdivision or instrumentality
thereof, or any arbitrator or arbitration panel.
“
IMI
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
IMI JV Documents
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Recital D to this Agreement.
[***]
“
JDP Agreement
” means that
certain Joint Development Program Agreement between NTC and Micron, dated
April 21, 2008.
“
Lease and License Agreement
”
means that certain Lease and License Agreement between NTC and MeiYa, dated
May 13, 2008.
“
Manufacturing Fab Cooperation
Agreement
” means that certain Manufacturing Fab Cooperation Agreement
between Micron and NTC, dated June 6, 2008.
“
MeiYa Dissolution
” means
(a) if the MeiYa Rollup is conducted as a result of clauses (a), (c) or (d)
of the definition of “MeiYa Rollup,” the MeiYa Rollup, or (b) if the MeiYa
Rollup is conducted as a result of clause (b) of the definition of “MeiYa
Rollup,” the subsequent liquidation, dissolution or winding up the affairs of
MeiYa.
“
MeiYa Joint Venture Agreement
”
shall have the meaning set forth in
Section
4.4(e)
.
“
MeiYa JV Documents
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Recital A to this Agreement.
[***]
“
MeiYa Rollup
” means
the first
to occur of the following events, whether through a single transaction or series
of related transactions: (a) any consolidation or merger of
MeiYa with or into another Person; (b) the sale of all or substantially all
of MeiYa’s non-cash assets to another Person; (c) the sale of all or
substantially all of MeiYa's voting equity to any other Persons; and
(d) the voluntary or involuntary liquidation, dissolution or winding up of
the affairs of MeiYa.
“
MeiYa TTA 68-50
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 4.3(a)(i) of this Agreement.
[***]
“
Micron
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“MNL
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement
” means that certain First Amended and Restated Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement effective as of April 21, 2008 among Micron, MNL
and NTC, as joined by MeiYa pursuant to the Joinder of Joint Venture Company by
MeiYa, dated May 13, 2008.
“
Non-Suit Agreement
” means that
certain Non-Suit Agreement between Micron and NTC, dated April 21,
2008.
“
Person
” means any natural
person, corporation, joint stock company, limited liability company,
association, partnership, firm, joint venture, organization, business, trust,
estate or any other entity or organization of any kind or
character.
“
Restricted Activities Side
Letter
” means that certain Restricted Activities Side Letter between
Micron and NTC, dated April 21, 2008.
“
Qimonda
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Recital B to this Agreement.
“
Qimonda B.V.
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Recital B to this Agreement.
“
Qimonda / MNL Share Purchase
Agreement
” shall have the meaning set forth in Recital B to this
Agreement.
“
ROC
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Taiwan
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Technology Transfer and License
Agreement
” means that certain Technology Transfer and License Agreement
between Micron and NTC, dated April 21, 2008.
“
TTA 68-50
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 5.7 of this Agreement.
1.2
Certain Interpretive
Matters
.
(a)
Unless
the context requires otherwise, (i) all references to Sections, Articles or
Exhibits are to Sections, Articles or Exhibits of or to this Agreement,
(ii) words in the singular include the plural and vice versa,
(iii) the term “
including
” means “including
without limitation,” and (iv) the terms “
herein
,” “
hereof
,” “
hereunder
” and words of
similar import shall mean references to this Agreement as a whole and not to any
individual Section or portion hereof. All references to “
$
” or dollar amounts will be
to lawful currency of the United States of America. All references to
“
day
” or “
days
” mean calendar
days.
(b)
No
provision of this Agreement will be interpreted in favor of, or against, any
party hereto by reason of the extent to which (i) such party or its counsel
participated in the drafting thereof, or (ii) such provision is
inconsistent with any prior draft of this Agreement or such
provision.
ARTICLE
2
MEIYA JV DOCUMENTS REMAINING
IN PLACE WITHOUT MODIFICATION
2.1
Technology Transfer and
License Agreement for 68-50 nm Process Nodes
. The Technology
Transfer and License Agreement for 68-50 nm Process Nodes between Micron and
NTC, dated April 21, 2008, will remain in effect and intact without
modification following the 2
nd
Closing, the MeiYa Rollup and the MeiYa Dissolution.
2.2
Patent
Assignment
. The Patent Assignment Agreement between Micron and
NTC, dated June 6, 2008, will remain in effect and intact without
modification following the 2
nd
Closing, the MeiYa Rollup and the MeiYa Dissolution.
2.3
Micron Guaranty
Agreement
. The Micron Guaranty Agreement between Micron and
NTC, dated April 21, 2008, will remain in effect and intact with respect to
any provisions of the MeiYa Joint Venture Agreement that then remain in
effect.
ARTICLE
3
MEIYA JV DOCUMENTS TO BE
AMENDED AS OF THE 2ND
CLOSING
3.1
Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, Micron, MNL, NTC, MeiYa and IMI will enter into a Second Amended and
Restated Mutual Confidentiality Agreement, substantially in the form attached
hereto as
Exhibit A
, to
amend the Mutual Confidentiality Agreement.
3.2
JDP
Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, Micron and NTC will enter into an Amended and Restated Joint
Development Program Agreement, substantially in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit B
,
to amend the JDP Agreement.
3.3
Restricted Activities Side
Letter
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, Micron and NTC will enter into an Amended and Restated Restricted
Activities Side Letter, substantially in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit C
, to
amend the Restricted Activities Side Letter.
3.4
Non-Suit
Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, Micron and NTC will enter into an Amended and Restated Non-Suit
Agreement, substantially in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit D
, to
amend the Non-Suit Agreement.
3.5
Technology Transfer and
License Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, Micron and NTC will enter into an Amended and Restated Technology
Transfer and License Agreement, substantially in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit E
,
to amend the Technology Transfer and License Agreement.
3.6
Manufacturing Fab
Cooperation Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, Micron and NTC will enter into an Amended and Restated Manufacturing
Fab Cooperation Agreement, substantially in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit F
, to
amend the Manufacturing Fab Cooperation Agreement.
ARTICLE
4
MEIYA JV DOCUMENTS TO BE
TERMINATED
4.1
MeiYa JV Documents
Terminated as of the 2nd
Closing
.
(a)
Corporate Opportunities Side
Letter
. The Corporate Opportunities Side Letter between Micron
and NTC, dated April 21, 2008, is hereby terminated effective as of the
2
nd
Closing;
provided
that
any provisions that, pursuant to such Corporate Opportunities Side Letter, are
expressly stated to survive termination shall so survive.
4.2
MeiYa JV Document Terminated
as of the MeiYa Rollup
.
(a)
Supply
Agreement
. The Supply Agreement among Micron, NTC and MeiYa,
dated June 6, 2008, is hereby terminated effective as of the MeiYa Rollup,
including all provisions that, pursuant to such Supply Agreement, are expressly
stated to survive termination, except for Article 7 and Sections 10.3, 11.3 and
11.5 – 11.14 which shall survive such termination.
(b)
Micron Assigned Employee
Agreement
. The Micron Assigned Employee Agreement between
Micron and MeiYa, dated June 6, 2008, is hereby terminated effective as of
the MeiYa Rollup;
provided
that any provisions
that, pursuant to such Micron Assigned Employee Agreement, are expressly stated
to survive termination shall so survive.
(c)
NTC Assigned Employee
Agreement
. The NTC Assigned Employee Agreement between NTC and
MeiYa, dated June 6, 2008, is hereby terminated effective as of the MeiYa
Rollup;
provided
that
any provisions that, pursuant to such NTC Assigned Employee Agreement, are
expressly stated to survive termination shall so survive.
4.3
MeiYa JV Documents
Terminated as of the earlier of (x) the MeiYa Rollup and (y) the date that is
six (6) months following the date of the 2
nd
Closing
.
(a)
Technology Transfer
Agreement for 68-50 nm Process Nodes
.
(i)
The
Technology Transfer Agreement for 68-50 nm Process Nodes between Micron and
MeiYa, dated May 13, 2008 (the “
MeiYa TTA 68-50
”), is hereby
terminated effective as of the earlier of (i) the MeiYa Rollup and (ii) the date
that is six (6) months following the date of the 2
nd
Closing;
provided
that
any provisions that, pursuant to the MeiYa TTA 68-50, are expressly stated to
survive termination shall so survive; and
provided
,
further
, that
[***].
(ii)
Effective
as of the 2
nd
Closing, the [***].
(b)
Technology Transfer
Agreement
. The Technology Transfer Agreement by and among
Micron, NTC and MeiYa, dated May 13, 2008, is hereby terminated effective
as of the earlier of (i) the MeiYa Rollup and (ii) the date that is six (6)
months following the date of the 2
nd
Closing;
provided
that
any provisions that, pursuant to such Technology Transfer Agreement, are
expressly stated to survive termination shall so survive.
4.4
MeiYa JV Documents
Terminated as of the MeiYa Dissolution
.
(a)
Master
Agreement
. The Master Agreement between Micron and NTC, dated
April 21, 2008, is hereby terminated effective as of the MeiYa
Dissolution.
(b)
Master Agreement Disclosure
Letter
. The Master Agreement Disclosure Letter by Micron and
agreed to by NTC, dated April 21, 2008, is hereby terminated effective as
of the MeiYa Dissolution.
(c)
Master Agreement Exhibits
Side Letter
. The Master Agreement Exhibits Side Letter by
Micron and agreed to by NTC, dated April 21, 2008, is hereby terminated
effective as of the MeiYa Dissolution.
(d)
Litigation Side
Letter
. The Litigation Side Letter by Micron and agreed to by
NTC, dated April 21, 2008, is hereby terminated effective as of the MeiYa
Dissolution.
(e)
Joint Venture
Agreement
. The Joint Venture Agreement between MNL and NTC,
dated April 21, 2008, (the “
MeiYa Joint Venture
Agreement
”) is hereby terminated effective as of the MeiYa Dissolution;
provided
that (i) any
provisions that, pursuant to the MeiYa Joint Venture Agreement, are expressly
stated to survive termination shall so survive, and (ii) the second and third
sentences of Section 8.1(a) of the MeiYa Joint Venture Agreement shall survive
and shall be amended as follows:
If any
current employee of NTC and/or the Joint Venture Company who was continuously
employed by NTC during the twelve-month period ending June 6, 2008 (i)
permanently transfers to Inotera Memories, Inc. (“
Inotera
”) no later than
December 31, 2008, and (ii) such employee has worked on a full-time basis for
the Joint Venture Company and/or Inotera during the period from August 1, 2008
to August 1, 2009 (even if, prior to December 31, 2008, such work was performed
as an employee of NTC and not technically as an employee of the Joint Venture
Company and/or Intera) and has not delivered to the Joint Venture Company or
Inotera, or received from the Joint Venture Company or Inotera, a notice of
termination, then NTC shall (x) invoice the Joint Venture Company for an
amount equal to such employee’s base salary for the six (6) months prior to such
transfer from NTC and (y) provide the Joint Venture Company and MNL with
reasonably detailed information supporting the requirements set forth above and
the invoiced amount. Within thirty (30) days of receiving such an
invoice and such supporting information from NTC, the Shareholders shall use
commercially reasonable efforts to cause the Joint Venture Company to pay the
invoiced amounts to NTC. The Shareholders shall not cause the Joint
Venture Company to make a capital reduction, dividend payment or distribution to
the Shareholders if such capital reduction, dividend or distribution would cause
the Joint Venture Company to have insufficient funds to pay its obligations
under the immediately preceding sentence.
(f)
Services Agreement
.
The Services Agreement between NTC and MeiYa, dated June 6, 2008, is hereby
terminated effective as of the MeiYa Dissolution.
ARTICLE
5
IMI JV DOCUMENTS TO BE
ENTERED INTO AS OF THE 2ND
CLOSING
5.1
Joint Venture
Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, MNL and NTC will enter into a Joint Venture Agreement, substantially in
the form attached hereto as
Exhibit G
.
5.2
Micron Guaranty
Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, Micron and NTC will enter into a Guaranty Agreement, substantially in
the form attached hereto as
Exhibit H
.
5.3
Facilitation
Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, MNL, NTC and IMI will enter into a Facilitation Agreement,
substantially in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit I
.
5.4
Supply
Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, Micron, NTC and IMI will enter into a Supply Agreement, substantially
in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit J
.
5.5
Micron Assigned Employee
Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, Micron and IMI will enter into a Micron Assigned Employee Agreement,
substantially in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit K
.
5.6
NTC Assigned Employee
Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, NTC and IMI will enter into a NTC Assigned Employee Agreement,
substantially in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit L
.
5.7
Technology Transfer
Agreement for 68-50 nm Process Nodes
. That certain Technology
Transfer Agreement for 68-50 nm Process Nodes between Micron and IMI, dated
October 11, 2008 (the “
TTA
68-50
”), will become effective, in accordance with its terms, on the date
of the 2
nd
Closing.
5.8
Technology Transfer
Agreement
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, Micron, NTC and IMI will enter into a Technology Transfer Agreement,
substantially in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit M
.
5.9
Corporate Opportunities Side
Letter
. On the date of the 2
nd
Closing, Micron and NTC will enter into a Corporate Opportunities Side Letter,
substantially in the form attached hereto as
Exhibit N
.
ARTICLE
6
MISCELLANEOUS
6.1
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Agreement be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Agreement shall remain in
full force and effect in all other respects. Should any provision of
this Agreement be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Laws or
interpretations thereof, or should this Agreement fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the parties hereto shall negotiate in good faith appropriate
modifications to this Agreement to reflect those changes that are required by
Applicable Law.
6.2
Third Party
Rights
. Nothing in this Agreement, whether express or implied,
is intended, or shall be construed, to confer, directly or indirectly, upon or
give to any Person, other than the parties hereto, any legal or equitable right,
remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any covenant, condition
or other provision contained herein.
6.3
Amendment
. This
Agreement may not be modified or amended except by a written instrument executed
by, or on behalf of, each of the parties hereto, except that the provisions
relating to (a) the continuance, amendment or termination of the MeiYa JV
Documents referenced in Articles 2, 3 and 4 may be modified or amended by a
written instrument executed by, or on behalf of, all of the Old JV Parties that
are parties thereto and (b) the entering into the IMI JV Documents referenced in
Article 5 may be modified or amended by a written instrument executed by,
or on behalf of, all of the New JV Parties that are contemplated to be parties
thereto.
6.4
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement, together with the Exhibits hereto
and the agreements and instruments expressly provided for herein, constitute the
entire agreement of the parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof
and supersede all prior agreements and understandings, oral and written, between
the parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof.
6.5
Choice of
Law
. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in
accordance with the laws of the ROC, without giving effect to its conflict of
laws principles.
6.6
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Agreement shall be brought in the Taipei District Court, located in Taipei,
Taiwan, and each of the parties hereto hereby consents and submits to the
exclusive jurisdiction of such court (and of the appropriate appellate courts
therefrom) in any such suit, action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the
fullest extent permitted by Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or
hereafter have to the laying of the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding
in any such court or that any such suit, action or proceeding which is brought
in any such court has been brought in an inconvenient forum.
6.7
Headings
. The
headings of the Articles and Sections in this Agreement are provided for
convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part
hereof.
6.8
Counterparts
. This
Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed
an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
[SIGNATURE
PAGES FOLLOW]
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been duly executed by, and on behalf of, the
parties hereto as of the date first written above.
|
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
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By:
|
/s/ D. Mark
Durcan
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D.
Mark Durcan
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President
and Chief Operating Officer
|
THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE MASTER AGREEMENT ENTERED
INTO
AMONG MICRON, MNL, NTC, MEIYA AND IMI
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MICRON
SEMICONDUCTOR B.V.
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By:
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/s/ Thomas L.
Laws
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Thomas
L. Laws
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Managing
Director A
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By:
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/s/ Stefan Boermans
/
/s/ Clemens van den
Broek
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Name: Stefan
Boermans /
Clemens
van den Broek
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Title Trust
International Management(T.I.M.) B.V.
|
|
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Managing
Director B
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THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE MASTER AGREEMENT ENTERED
INTO
AMONG MICRON, MNL, NTC, MEIYA AND IMI
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NANYA
TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
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By:
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/s/ Jih
Lien
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Jih
Lien
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President
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THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE MASTER AGREEMENT ENTERED
INTO
AMONG MICRON, MNL, NTC, MEIYA AND IMI
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MEIYA
TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
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By:
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/s/ David
Tsou
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Name: David
Tsou
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Title: Supervisor
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THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE MASTER AGREEMENT ENTERED
INTO
AMONG MICRON, MNL, NTC, MEIYA AND IMI
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INOTERA
MEMORIES, INC.
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By:
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/s/ Joseph
Hsieh
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Name: Joseph
Hsieh
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Title: Supervisor
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THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE MASTER AGREEMENT ENTERED
INTO
AMONG MICRON, MNL, NTC, MEIYA AND IMI
EXHIBIT
10.72
[***]
DENOTES CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS OMITTED AND FILED SEPARATELY WITH THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO A REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL
TREATMENT
JOINT
VENTURE AGREEMENT
This
JOINT VENTURE AGREEMENT, dated this 26th day of November, 2008, is made and
entered into by and between MICRON SEMICONDUCTOR B.V. (hereinafter “
MNL
”), a private limited
liability company organized under the laws of the Netherlands and NANYA
TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
Nanya Technology Corporation
[Translation from Chinese]
(hereinafter “
NTC
”), a company incorporated
under the laws of the Republic of China (“
ROC
” or “
Taiwan
”) (MNL and NTC are each
referred to individually as a “
JV Party,
” and collectively as
the “
JV
Parties
”).
RECITALS
A. NTC
and Infineon Technologies AG, a company incorporated under the laws of Germany
(hereinafter “
Infineon
”), have previously
formed Inotera Memories, Inc.
Inotera Memories Inc.
[Translation from Chinese]
, a company incorporated under the laws
of the ROC (the “
Joint Venture
Company
”).
B. Infineon
subsequently assigned to Qimonda AG, a company incorporated under the laws of
Germany (hereinafter “
Qimonda
”), all of Infineon’s
Shares in the Joint Venture Company.
C. In
accordance with that certain Share Purchase Agreement, dated
October 11, 2008 (the “
Qimonda/MNL Share Purchase
Agreement
”), by and between Micron Technology, Inc., a Delaware
corporation (“
Micron
”),
MNL, Qimonda and Qimonda Holding B.V., a private limited company organized under
the laws of the Netherlands (“
Qimonda B.V.
”), MNL is
acquiring from Qimonda and Qimonda B.V. Shares in the Joint Venture
Company.
D. The
JV Parties are now entering into this Agreement to set forth certain agreements
regarding the ownership, governance and operation of the Joint Venture
Company.
NOW,
THEREFORE, for good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of
which are hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto, intending to be legally
bound, do hereby agree as follows:
ARTICLE
1
DEFINITIONS;
INTERPRETATION
Section
1.1
Definitions
. In
addition to the terms defined elsewhere in this Agreement, capitalized terms
used in this Agreement shall have the respective meanings set forth
below:
“
2
nd
Closing
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the Qimonda/MNL Share Purchase Agreement.
“
Accountants
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 10.2(c)(ii) of this Agreement.
“
Affiliate
” means, with respect
to any specified Person, any other Person that, directly or indirectly,
including through one or more intermediaries, controls, is controlled by, or is
under common control with such specified Person; and the term “
affiliated
” has a meaning
correlative to the foregoing.
“
Agreement
” means this Joint
Venture Agreement.
“
Annual Budget
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 7.5(a)(ii) of this Agreement.
“
Annual Business Plan
” shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 7.5(a)(i) of this Agreement.
“
Answer Notice
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 7.3(b) of this Agreement.
“
Applicable Law
” means any
applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances, orders, codes,
arbitration awards, judgments, decrees or other legal requirements of any
Governmental Entity.
“
Articles of Incorporation
”
means the Articles of Incorporation of the Joint Venture Company in the form and
substance as Exhibit A attached to this Agreement, and as amended from time to
time.
“
Baseline Flow
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 7.2(b)(v) of this Agreement.
“
Board of Directors
” means the
board of directors of the Joint Venture Company.
“
Boundary Conditions
” means,
with respect to any fab, the Trench DRAM Boundary Conditions and Stack DRAM
Boundary Conditions.
“
Business Day
” means a day that
is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banking institutions
in either the ROC or the State of New York are authorized or required by
Applicable Law to be closed.
“
Business Plan
” means any
Annual Business Plan.
“
Buyout Notice
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 13.1(a) of this Agreement.
“
Buyout Price
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 12.3(a) of this Agreement.
“
Buyout Shares
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 13.1(a) of this Agreement.
“
Buyout Subsidiary
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 13.2 of this Agreement.
“
Chairman
” means the Chairman
of the Board of Directors.
“
Change Notice
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 7.3(b) of this Agreement.
“
Closing
” means the
consummation of the 2nd Closing.
“
Closing Date
” means the date
on which the Closing occurs. For purposes of this Agreement and the
other agreements and instruments referenced herein, the Closing shall be deemed
to have occurred at 12:01 a.m. in Taipei, Taiwan on such date.
“
Competitively Sensitive
Information
” means any information, in whatever form, that has not been
made publicly available relating to products and services that Micron or a
Subsidiary of Micron, on the one hand, and NTC or a Subsidiary of NTC, on the
other hand, sells in competition with the other at the execution of this
Agreement or thereafter, including DRAM Products, to the extent such information
of the Person selling such products and services includes price or any element
of price, customer terms or conditions of sale, seller-specific costs, volume of
sales, output (but not including the Joint Venture Company’s output), bid terms
of the foregoing type and such similar information as is specifically identified
electronically or in writing to the Joint Venture Company by Micron or a
Subsidiary of Micron, on the one hand, and NTC or a Subsidiary of NTC, on the
other hand, as competitively sensitive information.
“
Compliant JV Party
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 13.1(a) of this Agreement.
“
Confidentiality Agreement
”
shall have the meaning set forth in Section 15.13(a) of this
Agreement.
“
Control
” (whether or not
capitalized) means the power or authority, whether exercised or not, to direct
the business, management and policies of a Person, directly or indirectly,
whether through the ownership of voting securities, by contract or otherwise,
which power or authority shall conclusively be presumed to exist upon possession
of beneficial ownership or power to direct the vote of [***] of the votes
entitled to be cast at a meeting of the members, shareholders or other equity
holders of such Person or power to control the composition of a majority of the
board of directors or like governing body of such Person; and the terms “
controlling
” and “
controlled
” have meanings
correlative to the foregoing.
“
COSL
” shall have the meaning
set forth in Section 11.6 of this Agreement.
“
Cure Period
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 12.5 of this Agreement.
“
Deadlock
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 12.1 of this Agreement.
“
Defaulting JV Party
” shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 12.4 of this Agreement.
“
Design ID
” means a part number
that is assigned to a unique DRAM Design of a particular DRAM Product, which may
include a number or letter designating a specific device revision.
“
Design SOW
” means any
[***].
“
Dilutive Transaction
” means a
transaction in which the Joint Venture Company issues Shares and a JV Party does
not purchase 100% of the Shares that such JV Party would be entitled to purchase
with respect to such transaction as a result of fully exercising its pre-emptive
right with respect to the issuance of the Shares; provided, however, that such
transaction shall not be a Dilutive Transaction if neither JV Party exercises
any of its pre-emptive rights with respect to such issuance of
Shares.
“
Divestiture Action
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 2.4(c)(v) of this Agreement.
“
DRAM Design
” means an Trench
DRAM Designs or Stack DRAM Design.
“
DRAM Product
” means a Trench
DRAM Product or Stack DRAM Product.
“
Employee Restriction Period
”
means the period commencing on the date of this Agreement and ending on the date
that is two (2) years after the later of (i) the sale, exchange, transfer, or
disposal of all of the ordinary shares of the Joint Venture Company owned by one
JV Party and its Subsidiaries to the other JV Party, its Affiliates or to a
Third Party that was not in contravention of the Joint Venture Agreement and
(ii) the termination of the JDP Agreement.
“
Equity Interest
” means a JV
Party’s percentage ownership of the Shares as determined by dividing the number
of Shares owned by such JV Party at the time of determination by the total
issued and outstanding Shares at the time of determination.
“
Event of Default
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 12.4 of this Agreement.
“
Executive Vice President
”
shall have the meaning set forth in Section 5.4(b) of this
Agreement.
“
Exercise Notice
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 12.6(a) of this Agreement.
“
Fair Value
” means (i) if the
Joint Venture Company is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, [***] of the
Shares immediately prior to the date of the Exercise Notice or the Buyout
Notice, as applicable; or (ii) if the Joint Venture Company is not then listed
on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, the fair value immediately prior to the date of
the Exercise Notice or Buyout Notice, as applicable, as determined by
independent appraisers selected as follows: each JV Party shall appoint one
independent appraiser, which shall be an internationally recognized accounting,
valuation or investment banking firm, and these two independent appraisers shall
mutually select a third independent appraiser. Each such appraiser
shall in good faith conduct its own independent appraisal to determine the fair
value of the Shares (ignoring any applicable minority discounts or effects of
illiquidity that may be associated with the Shares of the Joint Venture
Company), and [***] that are the closest in value shall be the Fair Value of the
Shares.
[***]
“
Filing
” shall have the meaning
set forth in Section 2.4 of this Agreement.
“
Filing Event
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 2.4 of this Agreement.
“
Fiscal Quarter
” means any of
the four financial accounting quarters within the Fiscal Year.
“
Fiscal Year
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 10.1 of this Agreement.
“
GAAP
” means generally accepted
accounting principles, consistently applied for all periods at
issue.
“
Governmental Entity
” means any
governmental authority or entity, including any agency, board, bureau,
commission, court, municipality, department, subdivision or instrumentality
thereof, or any arbitrator or arbitration panel.
“
ICDR
” means the International
Centre for Dispute Resolution of the American Arbitration
Association.
“
Imaging Product
” means any (i)
semiconductor device having a plurality of photo elements (e.g., photodiodes,
photogates, etc.) for converting impinging light into an electrical
representation of the information in the light, (ii) image processor or other
semiconductor device for balancing, correcting, manipulating or otherwise
processing such electrical representation of the information in the impinging
light, or (iii) combination of the devices described in clauses (i) and
(ii).
“
IMI/Qimonda Supply Agreement
”
shall have the meaning set forth in Section 7.2(b)(iv) of this
Agreement.
“
Infineon
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the Recitals of this Agreement.
“
Initiating JV Party
” shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 7.3(b) of this Agreement.
“
JDP Agreement
” means that
certain Joint Development Program Agreement between NTC and Micron, dated as of
April 21, 2008, as amended.
“
JDP Committee
” means the
committee formed and operated by Micron and NTC to govern the performance of
Micron and NTC under the JDP Agreement in accordance with the JDP Committee
Charter.
“
JDP Committee Charter
” means
the charter attached as Schedule 2 to the JDP Agreement.
“
Joint Venture Company
” shall
have the meaning set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Joint Venture Documents
” means
the documents identified on Schedule A to this Agreement.
“
Joint Venture Reportable
Events
” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 10.3 of this
Agreement.
“
JV Party
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Manufacturing Capacity
” means
Trench DRAM Manufacturing Capacity and Stack DRAM Manufacturing
Capacity.
“
Manufacturing Committee
” shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 7.2(b)(i) of this Agreement.
“
Manufacturing Plan
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 7.2(c) of this Agreement.
“
Maximum Output Percentage
Adjustment
” means the [***].
“
Micron
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Micron Assigned Employee
Agreement
” means that certain Micron Assigned Employee Agreement between
Micron and the Joint Venture Company, dated as of the date of this
Agreement.
[***]
“
Minimally Restored Position
”
has the meaning set forth in Section 11.5(c) of this Agreement.
“
MNL
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
MTT
” shall mean Micron
Technology Asia Pacific, Inc., an Idaho corporation.
“
NAND Flash Memory Product
”
means a non-volatile semiconductor memory device containing memory cells that
are electrically programmable and electrically erasable whereby the memory cells
consist of one or more transistors that have a floating gate, charge trapping
regions or any other functionally equivalent structure utilizing one or more
different charge levels (including binary or multi-level cell structures), with
or without any on-chip control, I/O and other support circuitry, in wafer, die
or packaged form.
“
Non-compliant JV Party
” shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 13.1(a) of this Agreement.
“
Non-Defaulting JV Party
” shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 12.5 of this Agreement.
“
Non-SOW Product
” means a class
of Stack DRAM Product that does not result from a SOW.
“
Notice of Default
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 12.5 of this Agreement.
“
NT$
” means the lawful currency
of the ROC.
“
NTC
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
NTC Assigned Employee
Agreement
” means that certain NTC Assigned Employee Agreement between NTC
and the Joint Venture Company, dated as of the date of this
Agreement.
[***]
“
Offered Shares
” means the
Shares as defined in Section 9.3(a) of this Agreement.
“
Option Period
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 9.3(b) of this Agreement.
“
Other JV Party
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 7.3(b) of this Agreement.
“
Output Percentage
” means
[***].
“
Output Percentage Adjustment
”
means, [***].
“
Permitted Transfer
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 9.2 of this Agreement.
“
Person
” means any natural
person, corporation, joint stock company, limited liability company,
association, partnership, firm, joint venture, organization, business, trust,
estate or any other entity or organization of any kind or
character.
“
Plastics
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 11.5(b) of this Agreement.
“
President
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 5.4(a) of this Agreement.
“
Process Node
” means
[***].
“
Prohibited Employees
” shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 8.4(a) of this
Agreement.
“
Proposing JV Party
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 12.3(a) of this Agreement.
“
Qimonda
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Qimonda B.V.
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Qimonda/MNL Share Purchase
Agreement
” shall have the meaning set forth in the Recitals to this
Agreement.
“
Restricted Employees
” shall
have the meaning set forth in Section 8.4(a) of this
Agreement.
“
Receiving Party
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 9.3(a) of this Agreement.
“
Receiving JV Party
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 12.3(a) of this Agreement.
“
Regulatory Law
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 2.4 of this Agreement.
“
Restored Position
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 11.5(b) of this Agreement.
“
ROC
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
ROC Company Law
” means the
Company Law of the ROC, promulgated on December 26, 1929, and as last amended on
February 3, 2006.
“
ROC Securities Exchange Law
”
means the Securities and Exchange Law of the ROC, promulgated on April 30, 1968,
and as last amended on May 30, 2006.
“
Sale Offer
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 9.3(a) of this Agreement.
“
Share Decrease
Percentage
” means [***].
“
Share Disposition
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 7.3(b) of this Agreement.
“
Shareholders’ Meeting
” or
“
Shareholders’ Meetings
”
shall have the meaning set forth in Section 6.2 of this Agreement.
“
Shares
” means the ordinary
shares of the Joint Venture Company, each having a par value of
[***].
“
SOW
” means a statement of the
work that describes research and development work to be performed under the JDP
Agreement and that has been adopted by the JDP Committee pursuant to Section 3.2
of the JDP Agreement.
“
Stack DRAM
” means dynamic
random access memory cell that functions by using a capacitor arrayed
predominantly above the semiconductor substrate.
“
Stack DRAM Boundary
Conditions
” means, with respect to any fab, a requirement that, at any
point in time:
[***]
“
Stack DRAM Design
” means, with
respect to a Stack DRAM Product, all of the design elements, components,
specifications and information required to manufacture the subject Stack DRAM
Product, including some or all of the elements, components, specifications and
information listed on Schedule 3 to the JDP Agreement or others.
“
Stack DRAM Manufacturing
Capacity
”
means, with respect to
each of the Joint Venture Company’s fabs, the total work minutes available for
each Process Node to manufacture Stack DRAM Products at such fab.
“
Stack DRAM Module
” means one
or more Stack DRAM Products in a JEDEC-compliant package or module (whether as
part of a SIMM, DIMM, multi chip package, memory card or other memory module or
package).
“
Stack DRAM Product
” means any
memory comprising Stack DRAM, whether in die or wafer form.
“
Subsidiary
” means with respect
to any specified Person, any other Person that, directly or indirectly,
including through one or more intermediaries, is controlled by such specified
Person.
“
Supply Agreement
” means that
certain Supply Agreement among NTC, Micron and the Joint Venture Company, dated
as of the date of this Agreement.
“
Taiwan
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Taiwan GAAP
” means GAAP used
in the ROC, as in effect from time to time, consistently applied for all periods
at issue.
“
Technology Transfer Agreement
”
means that certain Technology Transfer Agreement among NTC, Micron and the Joint
Venture Company, dated as of the date of this Agreement.
“
Third Party
” means any Person
other than NTC, Micron, the Joint Venture Company or any of their respective
Subsidiaries.
“
Transfer
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 9.1(a) of this Agreement.
“
Transfer Notice
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 9.3(a) of this Agreement.
“
Transfer Period
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 9.3(d) of this Agreement.
“
Transferor
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 9.3(a) of this Agreement.
“
Transition Period
” shall have
the meaning set forth in Section 2.1(b) of this Agreement.
“
Trench Contract Process
” means
the 90nm and 70nm trench based DRAM process technology previously transferred to
the Joint Venture Company under that certain Know How Transfer Agreement among
the Joint Venture Company, NTC and Qimonda, dated November 13, 2002,
as amended.
“
Trench DRAM
” means a dynamic
random access memory cell that functions employing a capacitor arrayed
predominantly below the surface of the semiconductor substrate.
“
Trench DRAM Boundary
Conditions
” means, with respect to any fab, a requirement that, at any
point in time:
[***]
“
Trench DRAM Designs
” means,
with respect to a Trench DRAM Product, the corresponding design components,
materials and information.
“
Trench DRAM Manufacturing
Capacity
” means, with respect to each of the Joint Venture Company’s
fabs, the total work minutes available for each Process Node to manufacture
Trench DRAM Products at such fab.
“
Trench DRAM Products
” means
trench based dynamic random access memory products manufactured by the Joint
Venture Company in accordance with the Trench Contract Process.
“
TTA 68-50
” means that certain
Technology Transfer Agreement for 68-50 nm Process Nodes between Micron and the
Joint Venture Company dated as of October 11, 2008.
“
TTLA
” shall have the meaning
set forth in Section 11.5(a) of this Agreement.
[***]
shall have the meaning set forth in Section 11.5(a) of this
Agreement.
“
U.S. GAAP
” means GAAP used in
the United States, as in effect from time to time.
“
Vice-Chairman
” means the Vice
Chairman of the Board of Directors.
“
Wafer Start
” means the
initiation of manufacturing services with respect to a wafer.
“
Wholly-Owned Subsidiary
” of a
Person means a Subsidiary, all of the shares of stock or other ownership
interests of which are owned, directly or indirectly through one or more
intermediaries, by such Person, other than a nominal number of shares or a
nominal amount of other ownership interests issued in order to comply with
requirements that such shares or interests be held by one or more other Persons,
including requirements for directors’ qualifying shares or interests,
requirements to have or maintain two or more stockholders or equity owners or
other similar requirements.
Section
1.2
Certain Interpretive
Matters
.
(a)
Unless
the context requires otherwise, (i) all references to Sections, Articles,
Exhibits, Appendices or Schedules are to Sections, Articles, Exhibits,
Appendices or Schedules of or to this Agreement, (ii) each accounting term not
otherwise defined in this Agreement has the meaning commonly applied to it in
accordance with Taiwan GAAP, (iii) words in the singular include the plural and
vice versa, (iv) the term “
including
” means “
including without limitation,
”
and (v) the terms “
herein,
” “
hereof,
” “
hereunder
” and words of
similar import shall mean references to this Agreement as a whole and not to any
individual section or portion hereof. Unless otherwise denoted, all
references to “
$
” or
dollar amounts will be to lawful currency of the United States of
America. All references to “
day
” or “
days
” mean calendar
days.
(b)
No
provision of this Agreement will be interpreted in favor of, or against, either
JV Party by reason of the extent to which (i) such JV Party or its counsel
participated in the drafting thereof, or (ii) such provision is inconsistent
with any prior draft of this Agreement or such provision.
(c)
For
purposes of the definition of Boundary Conditions, the following fabs
collectively shall constitute a single fab: (i) the existing fabs
commonly referred to as “Fab 1” and “Fab 2” at Hwa Ya Technology Park, Taoyuan,
Taiwan, and (ii) the fab leased as of the date of this Agreement by MeiYa
Technology Corporation
MeiYa Technology Corporation
[Translation from Chinese]
,
a company incorporated under the
laws of the ROC, and located at Hwa Ya Technology Park, Taoyuan, Taiwan, so long
as such fab is operated by the Joint Venture Company.
ARTICLE
2
THE
JOINT VENTURE COMPANY
Section
2.1
General
Matters
.
(a)
Name
. The
JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the Joint Venture Company to be named
Inotera Memories Inc.
[Translation from Chinese]
in Chinese and “
Inotera Memories, Inc.
” in
English. The JV Parties acknowledge and agree to use best efforts to
cause the Joint Venture Company to be continued as a company-limited-by-shares
under the laws of the ROC.
(b)
Purpose
. During
the period commencing on the date hereof and ending on the date that the Joint
Venture Company’s fabs are fully converted (as determined based on the delivery
of the final Trench DRAM Product manufactured by the Joint Venture Company) from
the manufacture of Trench DRAM Products to the manufacture of Stack DRAM
Products (the “
Transition
Period
”), the JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the purpose of
the Joint Venture Company to be the manufacture and sale of certain Trench DRAM
Products exclusively for and to Micron, NTC and Qimonda and Stack DRAM Products
exclusively for and to Micron and NTC. After the Transition Period,
the JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the purpose of the Joint Venture
Company to be the manufacture and sale of certain Stack DRAM Products
exclusively for and to Micron and NTC; and the entry of, or engagement in, any
such lawful transactions or activities in furtherance of the foregoing
purpose.
(c)
Business
Scope
. Subject to amendment by the JV Parties from time to
time and any necessary approval from the relevant Governmental Entities, the JV
Parties shall use best efforts to cause the registered business scope of the
Joint Venture Company to be as set forth in its business license, other
incorporation documents and the Articles of Incorporation, all as mutually
agreed upon by the JV Parties.
(d)
Principal Place of
Business
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
registered address and the principal place of business of the Joint Venture
Company to be at Hwa-Ya Technology Park, Taoyuan, Taiwan, ROC, unless the Board
of Directors changes the registered address or the principal place of business
of the Joint Venture Company to such other place as the Board of Directors may
from time to time determine. The Joint Venture Company may maintain
offices and places of business at such other place or places within or outside
of Taiwan as the Board of Directors may deem to be advisable.
Section
2.2
Articles of
Incorporation
. In case of any conflict or inconsistency
between the provisions of the Articles of Incorporation and the terms of this
Agreement, the terms of this Agreement shall prevail as between the JV Parties
to the extent permitted under the Applicable Laws. The JV Parties
shall exercise all rights available to them to give effect to the terms of this
Agreement to the extent permissible under the Applicable Laws and to take such
reasonable steps to amend the Articles of Incorporation as soon as practicable
to the extent necessary to remove any such conflict or
inconsistency.
Section
2.3
Maintenance of Joint Venture
Company
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
Board of Directors, or officers of the Joint Venture Company, to make or cause
to be made, from time to time, filings and applications to the relevant
Governmental Entities in the ROC to amend any registration, license or permit of
the Joint Venture Company as the Board of Directors reasonably considers
necessary or appropriate under the Applicable Laws so as to ensure (a) the
continuation of the Joint Venture Company as a company-limited-by-shares under
the laws of the ROC and (b) compliance with the terms of this
Agreement.
Section
2.4
Governmental
Approvals
. In the event that either JV Party takes or desires
to take any action contemplated by this Agreement that could reasonably be
expected to result in an event or transaction, including the purchase by either
JV Party of Shares pursuant to Section 9.3, 12.3, 12.6 or 13.1, which event or
transaction, as to each of the foregoing, would require either JV Party to make
a filing, notification or any other required or requested submission under
antitrust, competition, foreign investment, company or fair trade law (any such
event or transaction, a “
Filing
Event
” and any such filing, notification, or any such other required or
requested submission, a “
Filing
” and any such law, a
“
Regulatory Law
”),
then:
(a)
the JV
Party taking such action, in addition to complying with any other applicable
notice provisions under this Agreement, shall promptly notify the other JV Party
of such Filing Event, which notification shall include an indication that
Filings under the Regulatory Law will be required;
(b)
notwithstanding
any provision to the contrary in this Agreement, a Filing Event may not occur or
close until after any applicable waiting period (including any extension
thereof) under the Regulatory Law, as applicable to such Filing Event, shall
have expired or been terminated, and all approvals under regulatory Filings in
any jurisdiction that shall be necessary for such Filing Event to occur or close
shall have been obtained, and any applicable deadline for the occurrence or
closing of such Filing Event contained in this Agreement shall be delayed, so
long as both JV Parties are proceeding diligently in accordance with this
Section 2.4 to seek any such expiration, termination or approval, and so long as
there are no other outstanding conditions preventing the occurrence or closing
of the Filing Event;
(c)
the JV
Parties shall, and shall cause any of their relevant Affiliates to:
(i)
as
promptly as practicable, make their respective Filings under the applicable
Regulatory Law;
(ii)
promptly
respond to any requests for additional information from the applicable
Governmental Entity;
(iii)
subject
to applicable Regulatory Laws, use commercially reasonable efforts to cooperate
with each other in the preparation of, and coordinate, such Filings (including
the exchange of drafts between each party’s outside counsel) so as to reduce the
length of any review periods;
(iv)
subject
to applicable Regulatory Laws, cooperate and use their respective commercially
reasonable efforts to take, or cause to be taken, all actions and to do, or
cause to be done, all things necessary under Regulatory Law in connection with
such Filing Event, including using commercially reasonable efforts to provide
information, obtain necessary exemptions, rulings, consents, clearances,
authorizations, approvals and waivers, and effect necessary registrations and
filings;
(v)
subject
to applicable Regulatory Laws, use their commercially reasonable efforts to (a)
take actions that are necessary to prevent the applicable Governmental Entity
from filing an action with a court or Governmental Entity that, if the
Governmental Entity prevailed, would restrict, enjoin, prohibit or otherwise
prevent or materially delay the consummation of the Filing Event, including an
action by any such Governmental Entity seeking a requirement to (i) sell,
license or otherwise dispose of, or hold separate and agree to sell or otherwise
dispose of, assets, categories of assets or businesses of either JV Party, the
Joint Venture Company, or any of their respective Subsidiaries; (ii) terminate
existing relationships and contractual rights and obligations of either JV
Party, the Joint Venture Company or any of their respective Subsidiaries; (iii)
terminate any relevant joint venture or other arrangement; or (iv) effectuate
any other change or restructuring of either JV Party or the Joint Venture
Company (as to each of the foregoing, a “
Divestiture Action
”), and (b)
contest and resist any action, including any legislative, administrative or
judicial action, and to have vacated, lifted, reversed or overturned any order
that restricts, enjoins, prohibits or otherwise prevents or materially delays
the occurrence or closing of such Filing Event; and
(vi)
subject
to applicable Regulatory Laws, prior to the making or submission of any
analysis, appearance, presentation, memorandum, brief, argument, opinion or
proposal by or on behalf of either JV Party in connection with proceedings under
or relating to the applicable Regulatory Law, consult and cooperate with one
another, and consider in good faith the views of one another, in connection with
any such analyses, appearances, presentations, memoranda, briefs, arguments,
opinions and proposals, and provide one another with copies of all material
communications from and filings with, any Governmental Entities in connection
with any Filing Event;
(d)
notwithstanding
anything to the contrary in this Section 2.4, nothing in this Section 2.4 shall
require either JV Party or its respective Affiliates, or the Joint Venture
Company, to take any Divestiture Action; and
(e)
if the
Filing Event is prevented from occurring or closing as a result of any
applicable Regulatory Laws, after exhausting all efforts required under this
Section 2.4 to obtain the necessary approval of any applicable Governmental
Entity, then the JV Parties shall negotiate in good faith to agree upon an
alternative event or transaction that would be permissible under applicable
Regulatory Laws, and would approximate, as closely as possible, the intent and
contemplated effect of the original Filing Event.
ARTICLE
3
CAPITALIZATION;
CONTRIBUTION OF CAPITAL
Section
3.1
Authorized
Capital
. In accordance with Section 6.5, the JV Parties shall
use best efforts to cause the authorized capital of the Joint Venture Company to
be amended from time to time, as may be necessary or desirable to consummate the
transactions contemplated herein and in accordance with the Applicable Laws of
the ROC.
Section
3.2
Capital
Contributions
.
(a)
No
Obligation
. Unless otherwise agreed by the JV Parties in
writing, neither JV Party shall be obligated to make any contribution of capital
to the Joint Venture Company.
(b)
Future Cash
Requirements
. Until the second anniversary of the Closing, the
JV Parties shall use commercially reasonable efforts consistent with their
fiduciary duties to the Joint Venture Company, to cause the Joint Venture
Company to fund future cash requirements through cash flow generated by
operations of the Joint Venture Company or external debt financing rather than
the issuance of Shares or other equity or equity-linked securities of the Joint
Venture Company.
Section
3.3
Unilateral Purchase of
Shares
. Except as otherwise provided herein, MNL shall not,
and shall not permit Micron or its Subsidiaries to, and NTC shall not, and shall
not permit its Subsidiaries to, directly or indirectly acquire Shares or any
other equity-linked securities of the Joint Venture Company from any Person
other than the Joint Venture Company, without the prior written consent of the
other JV Party. MNL and NTC shall use their respective best efforts
to prevent the Joint Venture Company from issuing Shares or any other
equity-linked security of the Joint Venture Company, directly or indirectly, to
an Affiliate of MNL or NTC without the prior written consent of both JV
Parties. If an Affiliate of MNL or of NTC acquires Shares or any
other equity-linked security of the Joint Venture Company, whether from the
Joint Venture Company or otherwise (except as a result of a Permitted Transfer
as contemplated by Section 9.2), the JV Parties shall, notwithstanding anything
to the contrary in Sections 5.1(b) or (c), use their respective commercially
reasonable efforts to cause the directors on the Board of Directors to be
allocated between them, consistent with the principles set forth in Sections
5.1(b) and (c), as if the Shares or equity-linked securities owned by such
Affiliates were owned one half by MNL and one half by NTC (and treating, for
purposes of this sentence, any director whose election was controlled by an
Affiliate of a JV Party as being a director designated by such JV
Party). Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the JV Parties fail to
achieve the foregoing result after using such commercially reasonable efforts,
no JV Party shall be in breach of this section or have any liability for such
failure.
ARTICLE
4
BANK
LOANS
If the
Board of Directors shall at any time determine that there is a need for the
Joint Venture Company to obtain external financing, the JV Parties will assist
the Joint Venture Company to seek and obtain commercial loans or other financing
arrangements from banks and other financial institutions on competitive market
terms and otherwise as the Joint Venture Company may reasonably
require. None of the JV Parties (or any of their representatives)
shall be obligated under this Agreement or otherwise to provide any guarantee or
security for any such loans in favor of the Joint Venture Company, unless
specifically agreed in writing by such JV Party (or its duly authorized
representative).
ARTICLE
5
MANAGEMENT
OF THE JOINT VENTURE COMPANY
Section
5.1
Board of
Directors
.
(a)
Power and
Authority
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
Board of Directors to be responsible for the overall management of the business,
affairs and operations of the Joint Venture Company. The JV Parties
shall use best efforts to cause the Board of Directors to have all the rights
and powers given to it under the Articles of Incorporation and the Applicable
Laws of the ROC, including without limitation, the ROC Company Law.
(b)
Number of
Directors
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
Articles of Incorporation to provide for the Joint Venture Company to have a
Board of Directors consisting of
twelve
(12)
directors (provided that the JV Parties shall use best efforts to
reduce such number for each director withdrawn in accordance with Section
5.1(b)(iv)). The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
directors to be designated and elected as follows (subject, and giving effect,
to any prior withdraw of one or more directors in accordance with Section
5.1(b)(iv)):
[***]
(c)
Agreement to
Vote
.
(i)
The JV
Parties agree to vote, in any meeting of the shareholders where directors are
elected, in a coordinated manner, to elect all of the Persons designated by the
JV Parties in accordance with Section 5.1(b) above. As soon as
practicable after the Closing, the JV Parties shall use their best efforts to
cause a Shareholders’ Meeting in order to elect the Persons designated by MNL
pursuant to Sections 5.1(b)(i) and (iii), as directors. From the
Closing until the date that the Persons designated by MNL pursuant to Sections
5.1(b)(i) and (iii) are first elected as directors of the Joint Venture Company
following the Closing, NTC shall not take or omit to take, and shall use best
efforts to prohibit the Joint Venture Company from taking or omitting to take,
any action or inaction, as applicable, that would require the approval of the
Board of Directors, unless NTC first obtains the prior written consent of MNL
for the Joint Venture Company to take or omit to take such action.
(ii)
If for
any reason the JV Parties shall be unable to elect twelve (12) Persons
(or such lesser number of Persons as is applicable after taking into account the
application of Section 5.1(b)(iv)) to be their representatives to serve as
directors pursuant to Section 5.1(b), the JV Parties shall vote, in a
coordinated manner, to elect as many of such Persons as possible, consistent
with the principles set forth in Section 5.1.
(d)
Removal and
Replacement
. Any of the representatives serving as directors
on the Board of Directors may be removed or replaced for any reason by the JV
Party that designated him or her. If any such representative serving
on the Board of Directors is so removed or replaced or otherwise ceases to serve
as a director on the Board of Directors, the JV Party that designated such
representative shall be entitled to designate another Person to fill such
vacancy, and the JV Parties shall use best efforts to have such replacement
elected as a director.
(e)
Compensation
. The
directors, except for the independent directors, if any, shall not receive any
compensation for serving as such, although the Board of Directors may authorize
the reimbursement of expenses reasonably incurred in connection with the
performance of their duties.
(f)
Meetings of the Board of
Directors; Notice
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to
cause or affect the following:
(i)
The Board
of Directors shall meet from time to time but at least once per Fiscal Quarter
in Taiwan (or such other place as the Board of Directors may decide) by not less
than fourteen (14) days notice in writing. Emergency meetings of the
Board of Directors may be convened from time to time by the Chairman, or the
Vice-Chairman pursuant to Section 5.2(c), by not less than two (2) Business Days
notice in writing.
(ii)
A notice
of a meeting of the Board of Directors shall contain the time, date, location
and agenda for such meeting. The presence of any director at a
meeting (including attendance by means of video conference) shall constitute a
waiver of notice of the meeting with respect to such director.
(iii)
The Board
of Directors shall cause written minutes to be prepared of all actions,
determinations and resolutions taken by the Board of Directors and a copy
thereof sent to each director and supervisor of the Joint Venture Company within
twenty (20) days of each meeting.
(g)
Proxy and Video
Conference
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
Joint Venture Company to allow that: (i) in any case where a director
cannot attend a meeting of the Board of Directors, such director may appoint
another director as his or her proxy in accordance with the ROC Company Law;
(ii) all or any of the directors may participate in a meeting of the Board of
Directors by means of a video conference which allows all persons participating
in the meeting to see and hear each other; and (iii) a director so participating
shall be deemed to be present in person at the meeting and shall be entitled to
vote or be counted in a quorum accordingly.
(h)
Quorum
. The
JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the presence of at least [***] of the
directors in office, in person, by proxy or by video conference, to be necessary
and sufficient to constitute a quorum for the purpose of taking action by the
directors at any meeting of the Board of Directors. No action taken
by the Board of Directors at any meeting shall be valid unless the requisite
quorum is present.
(i)
Voting
. Unless
a higher majority of votes is specifically required under the ROC Company Law or
the Articles of Incorporation, the JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause
all actions, determinations or resolutions of the Board of Directors to require
the affirmative vote of a [***] majority of the directors present at any meeting
of the Board of Directors at which a quorum is present.
(j)
Matters Requiring the
Approval of the Board of Directors
. The JV Parties shall use
best efforts to cause each of the following actions to require the approval of
the Board of Directors by resolution adopted in accordance with Section 5.1(i)
above (which approval may be obtained through the adoption of a Business Plan by
the Board of Directors in accordance with Section 7.5, provided, that the
relevant Business Plan sets forth such action in reasonable
detail):
(i)
appointing
or removing the Chairman and, once the position has been created, the Vice
Chairman of the Board of Directors and appointing or removing the President and
Executive Vice President of the Joint Venture Company nominated by the Chairman,
and appointing or removing any Vice Presidents of the Joint Venture
Company;
(ii)
approving
or amending any Business Plan, including the Annual Budget, any quarterly
budgets, the production plan, the profit and loss plan, the capital investment
plan and the financial plan;
(iii)
issuing
new Shares within the authorized capital of the Joint Venture Company or issuing
equity-linked securities;
(iv)
determining
long-term policies of the Joint Venture Company, including substantial change in
the organizational structure and business operation of the Joint Venture
Company;
(v)
determining
employment terms, including compensation packages of the President, the
Executive Vice President, Vice Presidents and assistant Vice Presidents of the
Joint Venture Company;
(vi)
establishing
Subsidiaries, opening and closing branch offices, acquiring or selling all or
part of the assets of another entity or business, establishing new business
sites and closing of existing ones;
(vii)
setting
the limits of authorities of various employment positions and approving the
internal chart of authorities;
(viii)
making
capital expenditures (or a group of related capital expenditures) in an amount
equal to or greater than [***] individually or [***] in the aggregate in any one
Fiscal Quarter;
(ix)
borrowing
or lending to, or guaranteeing the obligations of, any Third Party;
(x)
pledging
or hypothecating, or creating any encumbrance or other security interest in, the
Joint Venture Company’s assets;
(xi)
issuing
any debt securities of the Joint Venture Company;
(xii)
entering
into an agreement for the purchase, transfer, sale or any other disposal of
assets valued at an amount greater than [***] other than transfers, sales or
dispositions of assets in the ordinary course of business of the Joint Venture
Company;
(xiii)
entering
into, amending or terminating any material agreement relating to intellectual
property rights or know how;
(xiv)
entering
into, amending or terminating any agreement or other arrangement with, or for
the benefit of, any director of the Joint Venture Company;
(xv)
establishing,
modifying or eliminating any significant accounting or tax policy, procedure or
principle;
(xvi)
creating
new product lines or discontinuing existing product lines;
(xvii)
commencing
any litigation as plaintiff or settling any litigation matters;
(xviii)
preparing
and submitting proposals for surplus earning distributions and loss offset to
the shareholders of the Joint Venture Company for approval;
(xix)
submitting
any matters to the shareholders of the Joint Venture Company for consideration
or approval as may be required by the law;
(xx)
entering
into, modifying, extending or terminating any one-time service or purchase of
goods agreement in the amount of more than [***] or any long-term service or
purchase agreement for goods between the Joint Venture Company and a shareholder
holding more than 10% of the issued share capital of the Joint Venture Company,
or an Affiliate of such shareholder;
(xxi)
redeeming
or repurchasing Shares;
(xxii)
deciding
other important matters related to the Joint Venture Company that arise other
than in the ordinary course of business.
Section
5.2
Chairman and
Vice-Chairman
.
(a)
Chairman
. The
JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the Chairman of the Board of
Directors to be a director designated by NTC, subject to the consent of MNL,
which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld. The JV Parties
shall use best efforts to cause the Chairman to have such duties and
responsibilities as may be assigned to him or her by the Board of
Directors. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
Chairman to not have a second or casting vote.
(b)
Vice-Chairman
. The
JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the Articles of Incorporation to be
amended to provide that there shall be a Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors
who shall be a director designated by MNL, subject to the consent of NTC, which
consent shall not be unreasonably withheld. The JV Parties shall use
best efforts to cause the Vice-Chairman to not have a second or casting
vote.
(c)
Convening of the Board of
Directors Meeting
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to
cause meetings of the Board of Directors to be convened by the
Chairman. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause each
director of the Joint Venture Company to have the right to request the Chairman
to convene a meeting of the Board of Directors indicating the proposed
agenda. If the Chairman does not, within one week (or within three
(3) days for convening an emergency meeting of the Board of Directors), comply
with such director’s request, the JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
Vice-Chairman to have the right to convene the meeting of the Board of Directors
as requested by such director.
Section
5.3
Supervisors
.
(a)
Number of
Supervisors
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause
the Articles of Incorporation to provide for the Joint Venture Company to
have four (4) supervisors. The JV Parties agree to vote, in
any meeting of the shareholders where supervisors are elected, in a coordinated
manner, to elect as supervisors two (2) Persons designated by MTT and
two (2)Persons designated by Pei Jen Co., Ltd. From and after the
Closing, MNL shall cause MTT, and NTC shall cause Pei Jen Co., Ltd., to hold,
respectively, a number of Shares that is equal to or greater than one-half (1/2)
of the minimum number of Shares required to be held by all supervisors of the
Joint Venture Company in accordance with Applicable Laws.
(b)
Agreement to
Vote
. The JV Parties agree to vote, in any meeting of the
shareholders where supervisors are elected, in a coordinated manner, to elect
all of the Persons designated by the JV Parties in accordance with Section
5.3(a) above. As soon as practicable after the Closing, the JV
Parties shall elect the two (2) Persons designated by MNL, and the two
(2) Persons designated by NTC, to serve as supervisors of the Joint Venture
Company.
(c)
Removal and
Replacement
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to provide
that any of the supervisors may be removed or replaced for any reason by the JV
Party that designated him or her. If any supervisor is so removed or
replaced or otherwise ceases to serve as a supervisor, the JV Parties shall use
best efforts to cause the JV Party that designated such supervisor to be
entitled to designate another Person to fill such vacancy.
(d)
Compensation
. The
JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the supervisors, except for the
independent supervisors, if any, to not receive any compensation for serving as
such, although the Board of Directors may authorize the reimbursement of
expenses reasonably incurred in connection with the performance of their
duties.
(e)
Restriction on
Employment
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
supervisors to not be concurrently employed by the Joint Venture Company in any
other capacity.
Section
5.4
President and Executive Vice
President
.
(a)
President
. The
JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the Articles of Incorporation to
provide for the Joint Venture Company to have a president (the “
President
”), who shall report
to the Board of Directors and serve at its pleasure. The President
shall have such daily operation and management responsibilities of the Joint
Venture Company as may be assigned or delegated by the Board of Directors from
time to time. [***]
(b)
Executive Vice
President
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
Articles of Incorporation to provide for the Joint Venture Company to have an
executive vice president (the “
Executive Vice President
”),
who shall also report to the Board of Directors and serve at its
pleasure. The Executive Vice President shall work with and assist the
President in executing the daily operation and management responsibilities of
the Joint Venture Company and shall have such other responsibilities as may be
assigned or delegated by the Board of Directors from time to
time. [***]
(c)
Termination and
Vacancy
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
Board of Directors to have the exclusive right to terminate the services of the
President and the Executive Vice President with or without cause. In
the event of any such termination or in the event of any vacancy as a result of
death, resignation, retirement or any other reason, the JV Parties shall use
best efforts to cause the JV Party that nominated the President or the Executive
Vice President, as the case may be, to be entitled to nominate another Person,
subject to the same consent requirement set forth in Sections 5.4(a) or (b)
above, as the case may be, to fill such vacancy for appointment by the Board of
Directors.
(d)
Authority
. With
respect to the execution of the daily operation and management of the Joint
Venture Company, the JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the President
and the Executive Vice President to have the authority to, among other
things:
(i)
propose
the annual budget and business plan of the Joint Venture Company;
(ii)
approve
capital expenditures of the Joint Venture Company of [***] or less in a single
event, or an aggregate of [***] or less in any Fiscal Quarter;
(iii)
approve
borrowing and lending of the Joint Venture Company and dispositions of assets of
the Joint Venture Company, in each case less than [***]; and
(iv)
execute
annual budgets of the Joint Venture Company approved by the Board of
Directors.
(e)
Work as a
Team
. The President and the Executive Vice President shall
work as a team in executing their duties and responsibilities.
Section
5.5
Other
Officers
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to allow the
President and the Executive Vice President to appoint, subject to the approval
of the Board of Directors, and be assisted by such other officers of the Joint
Venture Company as the President and the Executive Vice President may consider
necessary or desirable from time to time. Such other officers shall
perform such duties and have such powers specifically delegated to them by the
Board of Directors from time to time. The JV Parties shall use best
efforts to cause the Board of Directors to determine, from time to time, the
compensation, including any incentive compensation, for which such officers may
be offered. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to allow the Board
of Directors to, from time to time, also appoint, and assign titles to, other
officers of the Joint Venture Company, and delegate to such officers such
authorities and duties as the Board of Directors may deem
advisable.
ARTICLE
6
SHAREHOLDERS’
MEETINGS
Section
6.1
Annual
Meeting
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
annual meetings of the shareholders of the Joint Venture Company to be convened
at least once annually by not less than thirty (30) days prior notice in writing
accompanied by an agenda specifying the business to be transacted.
Section
6.2
Special
Meeting
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause
special meetings of the shareholders of the Joint Venture Company to be held
from time to time and to be convened by the Board of Directors by not less than
fifteen (15) days prior notice in writing accompanied by an agenda specifying
the business to be transacted. (Any annual meetings of the
shareholders and any special meetings of the shareholders shall individually be
referred to as a “
Shareholders’
Meeting
” and collectively be referred to as “
Shareholders’
Meetings.
”)
Section
6.3
Quorum
. Unless
a higher quorum is required under the Applicable Laws, the JV Parties shall use
best efforts to cause the presence of the shareholders of the Joint Venture
Company representing [***] or more of the issued and outstanding Shares of the
Joint Venture Company to be necessary and sufficient to constitute a quorum for
the purpose of taking action at any Shareholders’ Meeting of the Joint Venture
Company. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to provide that no
action taken at a Shareholders’ Meeting shall be valid unless the requisite
quorum is present.
Section
6.4
Voting
. The
JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause each Share to entitle its holder to
one vote. Unless a higher vote is required under the Applicable Laws,
the JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause all actions, determinations or
resolutions of the shareholders at any Shareholders’ Meeting of the Joint
Venture Company to require the affirmative vote of [***] or more of the votes
represented in person or by proxy at the Shareholders’ Meeting at which a quorum
is present.
Section
6.5
Matters Requiring the
Approval of the Shareholders
. The JV Parties shall use best
efforts to cause each of the following actions to require the approval of the
shareholders of the Joint Venture Company by resolution adopted in accordance
with Section 6.4 above:
(a)
amending,
restating or revoking the Articles of Incorporation;
(b)
electing
or removing the directors or the supervisors;
(c)
determining
the compensation of any director or supervisor;
(d)
approving
the balance sheet and other financial statements received from the Board of
Directors;
(e)
appointing
and removing the auditors of the Joint Venture Company;
(f)
approval
of surplus earning distribution or loss offset proposals;
(g)
any
merger, consolidation or other business combination to which the Joint Venture
Company is a party, or any other transaction to which the Joint Venture Company
is a party (other than where the Joint Venture Company is merged or combined
with or consolidated into a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary of the Joint Venture
Company), resulting in (i) a change of control of the Joint Venture Company,
other than a change of control that may occur pursuant to Section 9.3, 12.3,
12.6 or 13.1 or (ii) the sale of all or substantially all assets of the Joint
Venture Company;
(h)
voluntary
submission by the Joint Venture Company to receivership, bankruptcy or any
similar status;
(i)
liquidation
or dissolution of the Joint Venture Company; and
(j)
other
actions reserved to the determination of the shareholders of the Joint Venture
Company by the ROC Company Law.
ARTICLE
7
OPERATIONS
Section
7.1
Manufacturing Facility; Fab
Equipment
.
(a)
Fab
Equipment
. Subject to the mutual agreement of the JV Parties,
the Joint Venture Company may purchase, at fair market value, NTC’s idle
equipment that is suitable for use in connection with the manufacturing of Stack
DRAM Products.
(b)
Upgrade and
Enhancements
. [***]
Section
7.2
Manufacturing
Operations
.
(a)
Front-End Manufacturing
Operations
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the
Joint Venture Company to operate, at all times, within the Boundary
Conditions.
(b)
Manufacturing
Committee
.
(i)
The JV
Parties shall jointly establish a manufacturing committee (the “
Manufacturing Committee
”),
[***]. The members of the Manufacturing Committee shall serve at the
pleasure of the JV Party appointing them and may be removed from the
Manufacturing Committee and replaced by such JV Party at any time with or
without cause.
(ii)
NTC’s
members of the Manufacturing Committee shall be employees of NTC, and MNL’s
members of the Manufacturing Committee shall be employees of Micron, in each
case who are responsible for product loading and planning decisions and who can
coordinate the loading of product at the Joint Venture Company
level.
(iii)
The JV
Parties shall use best efforts to cause the Manufacturing Committee to be
responsible for [***]. In reaching such decisions, the Manufacturing
Committee may take advice and input from such sources as it deems
appropriate.
(iv)
In the
event that the members of the Manufacturing Committee cannot agree on product
loading decisions, then the Manufacturing Committee will permit, with respect to
each Process Node, [***].
(v)
The
allocation of Trench DRAM Manufacturing Capacity shall be based on [***] (“
Baseline Flow
”). On
a quarterly basis, or as otherwise determined by the Manufacturing Committee,
the Manufacturing Committee shall determine the Baseline Flow. If,
during any quarter, the Manufacturing Committee cannot agree on a Baseline Flow,
[***].
(vi)
Requests
of Micron and NTC for products or product mixes different from the pre-planned
Baseline Flow with respect to a fab shall be honored, except to the extent
honoring such request would lead to wafer starts for the non-Baseline Flow
products at such fab resulting in Micron or NTC receiving more than the Trench
DRAM Manufacturing Capacity and or Stack DRAM Manufacturing Capacity allocated
to such Person under the current Baseline Flow for such fab. To the
extent that both Micron and NTC request changes in products or product mixes at
a given fab that result in [***], the Manufacturing Committee shall re-determine
the allocation of Trench DRAM Manufacturing Capacity and Stack DRAM
Manufacturing Capacity based on [***], which shall then be the basis for its
loading plans with respect to such fab.
(vii)
The JV
Parties shall use best efforts to cause the Joint Venture Company to ensure that
Trench DRAM Manufacturing Capacity and Stack DRAM Manufacturing Capacity at each
fab is allocated as provided for in this Section 7.2.
(viii)
The
Manufacturing Committee shall meet at such times as may be helpful or necessary
for the efficient operation of the Company but in no event less than
monthly. The Manufacturing Committee shall provide an annual report
to the Joint Venture Company for use in a Business Plan and the Manufacturing
Plan.
(c)
Manufacturing
Plan
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the Joint
Venture Company to prepare an annual manufacturing plan (the “
Manufacturing Plan
”) under the
direction of the President, with input from the Executive Vice President, the JV
Parties and the Manufacturing Committee (or such other persons or committees
charged with such responsibility from time to time by the JV
Parties). The Manufacturing Plan shall seek to optimize the
efficiency and output of the Joint Venture Company and shall be updated monthly
by the Manufacturing Committee. The Manufacturing Plan shall address
various manufacturing issues, including without limitation, the DRAM Products to
be manufactured, priority of wafer starts and weekly output.
Section
7.3
Output Rights and
Obligations
.
(a)
Supply
Agreement
. Effective as of the Closing, Micron and NTC will
enter into the Supply Agreement with the Joint Venture Company. No
amendment or modification of the terms or conditions of the Supply Agreement
shall be made without prior written notice to and the prior written consent of
NTC and Micron.
(b)
Output
Percentage
. [***].
Section
7.4
Marketing and
Sales
. With respect to DRAM Products purchased from the Joint
Venture Company, each of Micron and NTC shall be free to compete against each
other, anywhere in the world and with any customers, using its own marketing and
sales channels and personnel. The JV Parties agree that appropriate
safeguards shall be put in place by each JV Party, and the JV Parties shall use
best efforts to cause the Joint Venture Company to put in place such safeguards,
to ensure compliance with all applicable competition or anti-trust
laws.
Section
7.5
Business Plans and
Budgets
.
(a)
Annual Business Plan; Annual
Budget
.
(i)
For each
Fiscal Year, the JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the President, in
consultation with the Executive Vice President and with input from the
Manufacturing Committee or such other relevant Persons or committees charged by
the JV Parties with responsibility for such matters from time to time, to
prepare and submit to the Board of Directors for approval, an annual business
plan (the “
Annual Business
Plan
”) [***].
(ii)
The
Annual Business Plan shall include an annual budget (“
Annual Budget
”) which shall
cover [***].
(iii)
The JV
Parties shall use best efforts to cause the Annual Business Plan, including the
Annual Budget, to not be amended, updated, modified or superseded without the
approval of the Board of Directors.
(b)
Transition Supply
Obligation
. With respect to a Share Disposition of all (but not less than
all) of the Shares then owned by a JV Party as contemplated under
Sections 9.3, 12.3, 12.6 and 13.1, the JV Party that remains a shareholder
of the Joint Venture Company after such Share Disposition shall,
[***].
ARTICLE
8
EMPLOYEE
MATTERS
Section
8.1
Employees
.
(a)
Employees of the Joint
Venture Company
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to
cause the Joint Venture Company to employ its own personnel, including
administrative staff, operators, technicians and engineers, and, except with
respect to employees assigned to the Joint Venture Company pursuant to the
Micron Assigned Employee Agreement or NTC Assigned Employee Agreement, to be
their exclusive employer.
(b)
Hiring
. The
JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause the number, position and compensation
of the employees of the Joint Venture Company to be as determined by the
President in consultation with the Executive Vice President, consistent with the
Annual Business Plan and other employee policies, program and benefits approved
by the Board of Directors or as otherwise expressly authorized by the Board of
Directors.
(c)
Employee
Policies
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to cause,
subject to the approval of the Board of Directors, the Joint Venture Company to
put in place and implement such employee policies, programs and benefits as
determined by the President in consultation with the Executive Vice President or
as may otherwise be required by Applicable Laws.
Section
8.2
Assigned
Employees
.
(a)
Micron Assigned Employee
Agreement
. Certain employees of Micron may be assigned or
transferred to work at or with the Joint Venture Company. In
connection therewith, Micron and the Joint Venture Company shall enter into the
Micron Assigned Employee Agreement.
(b)
NTC Assigned Employee
Agreement
. Certain employees of
NTC
may be assigned
or transferred to work at or with the Joint Venture Company. In
connection therewith,
NTC
and the Joint
Venture Company shall enter into the
NTC
Assigned Employee
Agreement.
Section
8.3
Employment and
Service-Related Forms
. The JV Parties shall use best efforts
to cause the Joint Venture Company to have policies applicable to, and ensure
that all of its officers, employees and third-party independent contractors,
third-party consultants, and other third-party service providers enter into
appropriate agreements with respect to, (a) protection of confidential
information of the Joint Venture Company, (b) compliance with Applicable Laws,
(c) other matters related to the delivery of services to, or employment of such
Person by, the Joint Venture Company, (d) intellectual property creation and
assignment documents, including invention disclosures, pursuant to which
ownership to any intellectual property created in the course of employment with
(or service to) the Joint Venture Company shall be transferred and assigned to
the Joint Venture Company or its designee, as appropriate.
Section
8.4
[***]
(a)
[***]. During
the [***], MNL shall not, and shall cause Micron and its Affiliates not to,
without the prior written consent of NTC, [***], provided that such Affiliate of
Micron does not do so with information or assistance provided by Micron,
[***].
(b)
[***]. During
the [***], NTC shall not, and shall cause its Affiliates not to, without the
prior written consent of MNL and Micron, [***], provided that such Affiliate of
NTC does not do so with information or assistance provided by NTC,
[***].
ARTICLE
9
TRANSFER
RESTRICTIONS
Section
9.1
Restrictions on
Transfer
.
(a)
Transfer
Prohibitions
.
(i)
A JV
Party shall in no event sell, exchange, transfer, dispose of, encumber, pledge,
mortgage or hypothecate (each a “
Transfer
”), whether directly
or indirectly, any part of the Shares of the Joint Venture Company owned by it
to any Person if immediately after such Transfer such JV Party’s Equity Interest
would be below [***].
(ii)
The
JV Parties
agree
that:
(A)
MNL shall
in no event Transfer any part of the Shares of the Joint Venture Company owned
by it to a [***] without the prior written consent of NTC; and
(B)
NTC shall
in no event Transfer any part of the Shares of the Joint Venture Company owned
by it to a [***] without the prior written consent of MNL; provided,
however, the provisions of this Section 9.1(a)(ii) shall not apply to any
Transfer of Shares conducted on, and through the normal, public trading
procedures of, the Taiwan Stock Exchange or any other stock exchange upon which
the Shares are listed, in each case other than Transfers conducted through
after-hours trading on such exchanges.
(b)
Change of Control
Event
. [***].
(c)
Transferee to be
Bound
. Notwithstanding consent being given by one JV Party to
the other JV Party for the Transfer of any part of the Shares of the Joint
Venture Company owned by the transferring JV Party to any Person, the
transferring JV Party shall cause and procure the transferee to agree in writing
to perform and be bound by all duties and obligations of the transferring JV
Party, including the any transfer restrictions under Section 9.1 of this
Agreement, except where the Transfer is conducted on, and through the normal,
public trading procedures of, the Taiwan Stock Exchange or any other stock
exchange upon which the Shares are listed, in each case other than Transfers
conducted through after-hours trading on such exchanges.
Section
9.2
Permitted
Transfers
. Notwithstanding Section 9.1, a JV Party may
Transfer all (but not less than all) of its shares in the Joint Venture Company
to [***] (a “
Permitted
Transfer
”); provided, that:
(a)
such
transferee shall agree in writing to perform and be bound by all duties and
obligations of the transferring JV Party, including the obligations set forth in
this Agreement and any Joint Venture Documents to which the transferring JV
Party is a party;
(b)
the
transferring JV Party shall not be released from its duties and obligations
under this Agreement or any other Joint Venture Documents and shall remain fully
liable for the performance thereof by such transferee;
(c)
[***];
and
(d)
at least
[***] days prior written notice of any such Transfer by a JV Party of shares in
the Joint Venture Company shall be provided to the other JV Party.
(e)
prior to
the effectiveness of a Transfer permitted under this Section 9.2, the
transferring JV Party shall deliver to the Board of Directors and the other JV
Party a certificate stating that:
(i)
the
transferring JV Party is not in breach of any provisions of this Agreement or
any other Joint Venture Documents to which the transferring JV Party is a
party;
(ii)
immediately
after giving effect to such Transfer, there will exist no event of default or an
event or condition that, with the giving of notice or lapse of time or both,
would constitute an event of default of the Transferor or such transferee under
this Agreement or any of the Joint Venture Documents; and
(iii)
the
Transfer will not, and could not reasonably be expected to, cause an adverse
effect on the Joint Venture Company or the other JV Party, including any
material adverse tax consequences or an adverse effect due to the loss of
intellectual property rights.
Section
9.3
Right of First
Refusal
.
(a)
Transfer
Notice
. At any time during the term of this Agreement, and
further subject to Section 9.1, if a JV Party proposes to Transfer all or any
part of the Shares in the Joint Venture Company in one or more related
transactions (such JV Party a “
Transferor
”) to any party
other than a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary of Micron or the Transferor, then the
Transferor shall give the other JV Party (the “
Receiving Party
”) a written
notice of the Transferor’s intention to make the Transfer (the “
Transfer Notice
”), which shall
include [***]. The Transfer Notice shall also certify that the
Transferor has received a firm offer from the prospective transferee and in good
faith believes a binding agreement for such Transfer is obtainable on the terms
set forth in the Transfer Notice.
(b)
Option to
Purchase
. The Receiving Party shall have the first right and
option, at its sole discretion, but not the obligation, to purchase all (but not
less than all) of the Offered Shares pursuant to the Sale Offer by delivering a
written notice to the Transferor within [***] days from the date of the Sale
Offer (such period, the “
Option
Period
”) stating the Receiving Party’s intention to exercise its right
and option to purchase the Offered Shares.
(c)
Closing of Transfer to
Receiving Party
. The Transfer of Offered Shares resulting from
acceptance of the Sale Offer by the Receiving Party in accordance with paragraph
(b) above shall take place at a closing on a date designated by the Receiving
Party within [***] days following such acceptance (or, if any governmental or
regulatory approvals, consents, filings or authorizations are required in
connection with such Transfer, within [***] days following the receipt of all
such approvals, consents, filings or authorizations), or at such other time as
the Transferor and the Receiving Party may otherwise agree. At such
closing, the Transferor shall be obligated to sell and Transfer the Offered
Shares and the Receiving Party shall pay the purchase price for such shares in
accordance with the terms and conditions set forth in the Sale
Offer.
(d)
Sale to Third
Party
. If the Receiving Party elects not to, or fails to give
any notice of its intention to, purchase all of the Offered Shares within the
Option Period, then, subject to Section 9.1, the Transferor shall have the right
for [***] days thereafter (hereinafter the “
Transfer Period
”) to Transfer
the Offered Shares to the prospective transferee identified in the Transfer
Notice; provided, however, [***]. If such Transfer is not completed
within the Transfer Period, the Transferor shall no longer be permitted to sell
such Offered Shares except to again comply with the provisions of this Section
9.3.
(e)
Excluded
Transfers
. Notwithstanding the forgoing, the provisions of
this Section 9.3 shall not apply to any Transfer of Shares or depository
receipts representing the Shares by a JV Party conducted on, and through the
normal, public trading procedures of, the Taiwan Stock Exchange or any other
stock exchange upon which the Shares or depository receipts are listed, in each
case other than Transfers conducted through after-hours trading on such
exchanges.
ARTICLE
10
ACCOUNTING;
FINANCIAL MATTERS
Section
10.1
Accounting
. The
JV Parties shall use reasonable efforts to cause the Joint Venture Company’s
books of account and records to be kept and maintained in accordance with Taiwan
GAAP applied on a consistent basis. The JV Parties shall use
reasonable efforts to cause the fiscal year of the Joint Venture Company to be
from January 1 to December 31 (“
Fiscal Year
”) and the Fiscal
Quarter of the Joint Venture Company to be based on calendar months (ending on
the last day of each three-month period).
Section
10.2
Access to
Information
.
(a)
Inspection
. To
the extent not in violation of Applicable Laws, the JV Parties shall use best
efforts to cause each JV Party and its agents (which may include employees of
the JV Party (or, in the case of MNL, of Micron) or the JV Party’s independent
certified public accountants (or, in the case of MNL, Micron’s independent
certified public accountants)) to have the right, at any reasonable time, to
inspect, review, copy and audit (or cause to be audited) at the expense of the
inspecting JV Party any and all properties, assets, books of account, corporate
records, contracts, documentation and any other material of the Joint Venture
Company or any of its Subsidiaries, at the request of the inspecting JV Party,
whether in the possession of the foregoing or its (or their) independent
certified public accountants. Upon such request, the JV Parties shall
use reasonable efforts to cause the Joint Venture Company and each of its
relevant Subsidiaries to use reasonable efforts to make available (or cause to
make available) to such inspecting JV Party the Joint Venture Company’s
accountants and key employees for interviews to verify information furnished or
to enable such JV Party to otherwise review the Joint Venture Company or any of
its Subsidiaries and their operations.
(b)
Competitively Sensitive
Information
. The JV Parties recognize that the Joint Venture
Company may, from time to time, be in possession of Competitively Sensitive
Information belonging to a JV Party, and in no event shall a JV Party be
entitled to access any Competitively Sensitive Information of the other JV Party
in the possession of the Joint Venture Company. The JV Parties shall
use reasonable efforts to cause the Joint Venture Company to maintain procedures
reasonably acceptable to both JV Parties (including requiring that the JV
Parties use reasonable efforts to label or otherwise identify Competitively
Sensitive Information as such) to ensure that the Joint Venture Company will not
disclose or provide Competitively Sensitive Information of one JV Party to the
other JV Party (other than to a Joint Venture Company employee or to an assigned
employee of the other JV Party to the extent required for such employee or
assigned employee to perform his or her duties for the Joint Venture Company) or
any third party unless such disclosure is specifically requested by the JV Party
providing such Competitively Sensitive Information.
(c)
Information
Right
. The JV Parties shall use reasonable efforts to cause
the Joint Venture Company to, and to cause the Board of Directors to cause the
Joint Venture Company to, provide to each JV Party, without cost to the JV
Parties (except as otherwise provided below), the following:
(i)
Monthly
Reports
. At the end of each fiscal month, the Joint Venture
Company, and, if requested, each of its Subsidiaries, if any, shall provide each
JV Party with the following monthly reports prepared in accordance with Taiwan
GAAP consistently applied, in each case within the time period specified
below:
(A)
monthly
cash flow report as soon as practicable, but not later than [***] days after the
end of each fiscal month;
(B)
month-end
balance sheet as soon as practicable, but not later than [***] days after the
end of each fiscal month;
(C)
monthly
income statement as soon as practicable, but not later than [***] days after the
end of each fiscal month;
(D)
monthly
operational spending summary as soon as practicable, but not later than [***]
days after the end of each fiscal month; and
(E)
such
other reports as may be reasonably requested by each JV Party.
(ii)
Quarterly
Reports
. As soon as practicable, but not later than [***] days
after the end of each Fiscal Quarter, a consolidated balance sheet of the Joint
Venture Company as of the end of such period and consolidated statements of
income, cash flows and changes in shareholders’ equity, as applicable, for such
Fiscal Quarter and for the period commencing at the end of the previous Fiscal
Year and ending with the end of such period, setting forth in each case in
comparative form the corresponding figures for the corresponding period of the
preceding fiscal year, each prepared in accordance with Taiwan
GAAP. The quarterly financial statements shall be reviewed by a firm
of independent certified public accountants selected from time to time by the
Board of Directors (the “
Accountants
”). As
soon as practicable, but not later than [***] days after the end of each Fiscal
Quarter, the Joint Venture Company shall also prepare a reconciliation of its
quarterly financial statements to U.S. GAAP as of the end of each Fiscal
Quarter. The Joint Venture Company and MNL shall cooperate with
respect to the preparation of the quarterly financial statements and related
reconciliation for the Joint Venture Company’s current Fiscal Quarter, and the
presentation thereof shall be as mutually agreed by the Joint Venture Company
and MNL.
(iii)
Annual Financial
Statements
.
(A)
As soon
as practicable, but not later than [***] days after the end of each Fiscal Year
of the Joint Venture Company, audited consolidated financial statements of the
Joint Venture Company and its Subsidiaries, which shall include statements of
income, cash flows and of changes in shareholders’ equity, as applicable, for
such Fiscal Year and a balance sheet as of the last day thereof, each prepared
in accordance with Taiwan GAAP, consistently applied, and accompanied by the
report of the Accountants.
(B)
As soon
as practicable, but not later than [***] days after the end of each Fiscal Year
of the Joint Venture Company, audited consolidated financial statements of the
Joint Venture Company and its Subsidiaries, which shall include statements of
income, cash flows and of changes in shareholders’ equity, as applicable, for
such Fiscal Year and a balance sheet as of the last day thereof, each prepared
in accordance with U.S. GAAP, consistently applied, and accompanied by the
report of the Accountants. Notwithstanding the first sentence of this Section
10.2(c), unless MNL requests that an audit of such U.S. GAAP financial statement
not be undertaken, MNL will bear the cost of such audit.
Section
10.3
Other Information
Rights
. The Joint Venture Company shall provide to MNL and its Affiliates
such financial, accounting and other information as MNL may reasonably request
in connection with the accounting and financial reporting obligations of MNL or
any of its Affiliates relating to the ownership of Shares. If MNL
requests that the Accountants or MNL’s own auditors perform audit, review or
other agreed upon procedures in connection therewith, the fees and expenses of
the Accountants or MNL’s auditors relating thereto shall be borne by
MNL.
Section
10.4
Reportable
Events
. The JV Parties shall use reasonable efforts to cause
the Joint Venture Company to provide notice to the JV Parties of any Joint
Venture Company Reportable Event as soon as practicable and in any event not
later than [***] days after the Joint Venture Company becomes aware of such
Joint Venture Reportable Event. The following events shall be “
Joint Venture Reportable
Events
”:
(a)
Receipt
by the Joint Venture Company or any of its Subsidiaries of an offer by any
Person to buy an equity interest in the Joint Venture Company or any of its
Subsidiaries or a significant amount of its assets or to merge or consolidate
with the Joint Venture Company or any of its Subsidiaries, or any indication of
interest from any Person with respect to any such transaction;
(b)
The
commencement, or threat delivered in writing, of any lawsuit involving the Joint
Venture Company or any of its Subsidiaries;
(c)
The
receipt by the Joint Venture Company or any of its Subsidiaries of a notice that
the Joint Venture Company or any of its Subsidiaries is in default under any
loan agreement to which the Joint Venture Company or any of its Subsidiaries is
a party;
(d)
Any
breach by the Joint Venture Company or any of its Subsidiaries or a JV Party or
an Affiliate of a JV Party of any contract between the Joint Venture Company or
any of its Subsidiaries and a JV Party or an Affiliate of a JV
Party;
(e)
The
removal or resignation of the auditor for the Joint Venture Company, or any
adoption, or material modification, of any significant accounting policy or tax
policy other than those required by Taiwan GAAP; or
(f)
Any other
event that has had or could reasonably be expected to have a material adverse
effect on the business, results of operations, financial condition or assets of
the Joint Venture Company or any of its Subsidiaries.
Section
10.5
Distributions and Dividend
Policy
.
[***]
Section
10.6
Bank Accounts and
Funds
. The JV Parties shall use reasonable efforts to cause
the funds of the Joint Venture Company, including any cash capital
contributions, to be deposited in an interest-bearing account or accounts in the
name of the Joint Venture Company and to not be commingled with the funds of any
JV Party or any other Person. The JV Parties shall use reasonable
efforts to cause the checks, orders or withdrawals to be signed by any one or
more Persons as authorized by the Board of Directors.
Section
10.7
Internal
Controls
. The JV Parties shall use reasonable efforts to cause
the Joint Venture Company to have in place a system of internal accounting
controls, in accordance with the policies agreed by the JV Parties, which shall
be approved by the Board of Directors and monitored by the President and the
Executive Vice President. The JV Parties shall use best efforts to
provide that changes to the Joint Venture Company’s system of internal
accounting controls shall be made at the request of either JV Party, subject to
the approval of the Board of Directors; provided, however, that in the event one
JV Party is required to consolidate the financial results of the Joint Venture
Company under applicable GAAP, the internal controls and accounting systems of
the Joint Venture Company shall be modified as necessary to satisfy that JV
Party’s requirements relating to internal controls and financial reporting and
such JV Party shall be entitled to receive the information and perform the
testing that it deems necessary or advisable to satisfy its responsibilities
related thereto. At the request of a JV Party, the JV Parties shall
use their best efforts to cause the Joint Venture Company to (i) permit an
independent auditor retained by such requesting JV Party and reasonably
acceptable to the Joint Venture Company to perform a reasonable evaluation of
the internal controls and accounting systems of the Joint Venture Company,
provided that such evaluation is undertaken at the cost of the requesting JV
Party and (ii) cooperate with such evaluation.
Section
10.8
FCPA
. The
JV Parties shall use their best efforts to cause the Joint Venture Company to
comply with, and establish appropriate procedures to ensure compliance with, the
United States Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended.
ARTICLE
11
OTHER
AGREEMENTS AND COVENANTS
Section
11.1
Tax
Cooperation
. The JV Parties shall cooperate in a good faith,
commercially reasonable manner to maximize tax benefits and minimize tax costs
of the Joint Venture Company and of the JV Parties or their Affiliates with
respect to the activities of the Joint Venture Company, consistent with the
overall goals of the Joint Venture Documents. Such cooperation shall
include (a) NTC’s use of reasonable efforts to assist Micron, MNL and the Joint
Venture Company in applying for applicable tax incentives and for a tax
withholding exemption in Taiwan, the Netherlands and such other jurisdictions as
may be relevant, with respect to payments made by either, NTC or the Joint
Venture Company to Micron or MNL, or by MNL or an Affiliate of MNL to the Joint
Venture Company and (b) MNL’s use of reasonable efforts to assist NTC in
applying for applicable tax incentives and for a tax withholding exemption in
Taiwan, the Netherlands and such other jurisdictions as may be relevant, with
respect to payments made by either, the Joint Venture Company to NTC, or by NTC
or an Affiliate of NTC to the Joint Venture
Company. [***].
Section
11.2
Use of JV Party
Names
. Except as may be expressly provided in the Joint
Venture Documents, nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as conferring on
the Joint Venture Company, any Subsidiary of the Joint Venture Company or either
JV Party the right to use in advertising, publicity, marketing or other
promotional activities any name, trade name, trademark, service mark or other
designation, or any derivation thereof, of the JV Parties (in the case of a JV
Party, the other JV Party).
Section
11.3
JV Parties’
Covenants
. Each JV Party agrees and covenants that it will
not, without the prior written consent of the other JV Party:
(a)
confess
any judgment against the Joint Venture Company;
(b)
enter
into any agreement on behalf of, or otherwise purport to bind, the other JV
Party or the Joint Venture Company;
(c)
cause the
Joint Venture Company to take any action in contravention of the Articles of
Incorporation;
(d)
cause the
Joint Venture Company to dispose of the goodwill or the business opportunities
of the Joint Venture Company; or
(e)
cause the
Joint Venture Company to assign or place its property in trust for creditors or
on the assignee’s promise to pay any indebtedness of the Joint Venture
Company.
Section
11.4
Contractual Relationship
Between the Joint Venture Company and Any JV Party
. With
respect to any contract (including under the Fab Lease or the Supply Agreement)
between the Joint Venture Company and a JV Party (or an Affiliate of a JV
Party), the other JV Party shall have the right to demand that the Joint Venture
Company, and shall have the right to cause the Joint Venture Company to, take
any action, pursue any right, enforce any obligation or seek recourse pursuant
to or under such contract, including with respect to the assertion of any claim
or cause of action for breach of contract against the JV Party (or an Affiliate
of the JV Party) involved in such contractual relationship with the Joint
Venture Company. In respect thereof, each JV Party agrees that it
will not, and it shall cause its representatives elected as directors of the
Joint Venture Company to not, interfere with or otherwise obstruct in any
respect such action, pursuit, enforcement or recourse.
Section
11.5
[***]
[***]
Section
11.6
[***]
ARTICLE
12
DEADLOCK;
EVENTS OF DEFAULT
Section
12.1
Deadlock
. A
“
Deadlock
” shall [***]
is required for approval, and such matter is not approved because, in the case
of a [***] is not obtained.
Section
12.2
Resolution of a
Deadlock
. If a Deadlock occurs, the JV Parties
shall:
(a)
first,
submit the matter that was the subject of the Deadlock to the president of each
of Micron and NTC by providing notice of the Deadlock to such Persons, and the
JV Parties shall use reasonable efforts to cause such Persons to make a good
faith effort to hold at least [***] in-person meetings between them to resolve
the Deadlock within sixty (60) days of their receipt of the notice of
Deadlock;
(b)
next, if
the president of each of Micron and NTC are unable to resolve the Deadlock in
the given [***] days, then submit the matter to the chairman of each of Micron
and NTC for resolution, and the JV Parties shall use reasonable efforts to cause
such Persons to make a good faith effort to hold at least [***] in-person
meeting between them to resolve the Deadlock within [***] days following the
submission of the Deadlock to them;
(c)
next, if
the chairman of each of Micron and NTC are unable to resolve the Deadlock in the
given [***] days, either JV Party may commence mediation by providing to ICDR
and the other JV Party a written request for mediation, setting forth the
subject of the Deadlock and the relief requested. The JV Parties will
cooperate with ICDR and with one another in selecting a mediator from an ICDR
panel of neutrals, and in scheduling the mediation proceedings to be held in
[***] during the [***] days following the commencement of
mediation. The JV Parties covenant that they will participate in the
mediation in good faith, and that they will share equally in its
costs. All offers, promises, conduct and statements, whether oral or
written, made in the course of the mediation by any of the JV Parties, by any of
their respective agents, employees, experts and attorneys and by the mediator
and any ICDR employees are confidential, privileged and inadmissible for any
purpose, including impeachment, in any litigation or other proceeding involving
the JV Parties, provided, that evidence that is otherwise admissible or
discoverable shall not be rendered inadmissible or non-discoverable as a result
of its use in the mediation. Either JV Party may seek equitable
relief prior to the mediation to preserve the status quo pending the completion
of that process. The provisions of this Section 12.2(c) may be
enforced by any court of competent jurisdiction, and the JV Party seeking
enforcement shall be entitled to an award of all costs, fees and expenses,
including attorneys’ fees, to be paid by the JV Party against whom enforcement
is ordered.
Section
12.3
Buyout from
Deadlock
.
[***]
Section
12.4
Event of
Default
. An “
Event of Default
” shall occur
if (a) a JV Party (the “
Defaulting JV Party
”) breaches
or fails to perform in any material respect any material obligation under this
Agreement and (b) at the end of the Cure Period therefor such breach or failure
remains uncured.
Section
12.5
Cure
Period
. Upon a JV Party’s breach or failure to perform an
obligation under this Agreement, the other JV Party (the “
Non-Defaulting JV Party
”)
shall have the right to deliver to the Defaulting JV Party a notice of default
(a “
Notice of
Default
”). The Notice of Default shall set forth the nature of
the Defaulting JV Party’s breach or failure of performance. If the
Defaulting JV Party fails to cure the breach or failure within the Cure Period,
the Non-Defaulting JV Party shall be entitled to take such action as set forth
in Section 12.6. For purposes hereof, “
Cure Period
” means a period
commencing on the date that the Notice of Default is provided by the
Non-Defaulting JV Party and ending (a) [***] days after Notice of Default is so
provided, or (b) in the case of any obligation (other than an obligation to pay
money) which cannot reasonably be cured within such [***] day period, such
longer period not to exceed [***] days after the Notice of Default is so
provided as is necessary to effect a cure of the Event of Default, so long as
the Defaulting JV Party diligently attempts to effect a cure throughout such
period.
Section
12.6
Default
Remedy
.
(a)
Upon the
occurrence of an Event of Default, the Non-Defaulting JV Party shall have the
right, but not the obligation, by notice delivered in writing to the Defaulting
JV Party not later than [***] after the expiration of the applicable Cure Period
(the “
Exercise Notice
”),
to require the Defaulting JV Party to:
[***]
(b)
The JV
Parties shall in good faith complete the sale and purchase transaction
contemplated under Section 12.6(a) as soon as practicable, but in no event later
than 180 days after the determination of Fair
Value. [***]
(c)
Notwithstanding
anything to the contrary and in addition to the remedies provided under this
Section 12.6, the Joint Venture Company and the Non-Defaulting JV Party may also
pursue all other legal and equitable rights and remedies against the Defaulting
JV Party available to it. The Defaulting JV Party shall pay all
costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, incurred by the Joint Venture
Company and the Non-Defaulting JV Party in pursuing any and all such legal
remedies.
ARTICLE
13
BUYOUT
Section
13.1
Buyout
Right
.
(a)
Exercise of Buyout
Right
. If at any time, the Equity Interest of a JV Party (for
purposes of this Section 13.1, the “
Non-compliant JV Party
”) falls
below the lesser of (i) [***] and (ii) [***] (for purposes of this Section 13.1,
the “
Compliant JV
Party
”), the Compliant JV Party shall have the right, but not
the obligation, by notice to the Non-compliant JV Party in writing (such notice,
the “
Buyout Notice
”), to
purchase all (but not less than all) of the Shares of the Joint Venture Company
then owned by the Non-compliant JV Party and its Subsidiaries (such Shares, the
“
Buyout Shares
”) at the
Fair Value, [***] and such Buyout Notice is delivered to the Non-compliant JV
Party no later than [***] after such JV Party first becomes a Non-compliant JV
Party.
(b)
Completion of
Buyout
.
(i)
The JV
Parties shall in good faith complete the sale and purchase transaction
contemplated under Section 13.1(a) as soon as practicable, but in no event later
than [***] after deliver of the Buyout Notice.
(ii)
[***]
Section
13.2
Buyout
Subsidiary
. In the event of a buyout of Shares as contemplated
under Sections 9.3, 12.3, 12.6 and/or 13.1, the JV Party subject to the buyout
of its Shares shall use its best efforts to transfer, prior to consummation of
the proposed buyout, all of the Shares subject to the buyout under Section 9.3,
12.3, 12.6 or 13.1, as applicable to a wholly-owned Subsidiary of such JV Party
(the “
Buyout
Subsidiary
”) that has no liabilities and holds no assets other than the
Shares subject to the buyout under Section 9.3, 12.3, 12.6 or 13.1, as
applicable. If the Shares subject to the buyout under Section 9.3,
12.3, 12.6 or 13.1, as applicable, are transferred to the Buyout Subsidiary, the
JV Party acquiring such Shares shall have the right to acquire all of the
outstanding equity interests of the Buyout Subsidiary for the same price and on
the same terms as the JV Party would otherwise have acquired the Shares subject
to the buyout under Section 9.3, 12.3, 12.6 or 13.1, as applicable.
ARTICLE
14
TERMINATION
Section
14.1
Effective
Date
. Subject to obtaining relevant regulatory approvals as
may be required, this Agreement shall become effective on the Closing Date, and
continue in force unless terminated in accordance with this
Agreement.
Section
14.2
Termination
. This
Agreement shall terminate upon the Transfer of all of the Shares owned by one JV
Party and its Affiliates to the other JV Party and/or its Affiliates in
accordance with Section 12.3, 12.6 and 13.1; provided, that the following
provisions shall survive termination of this Agreement: Sections 7.2
(to the extent Micron and NTC both continue to purchase Stack DRAM Products from
the Joint Venture Company under the Supply Agreement), 7.3 (to the extent Micron
and NTC both continue to purchase Stack DRAM Products from the Joint Venture
Company under the Supply Agreement), 11.2 and 14.2 and Article 15.
ARTICLE
15
GENERAL
PROVISIONS
Section
15.1
Notices
. All
notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be
deemed duly given upon (a) transmitter’s confirmation of a receipt of a
facsimile transmission, (b) confirmation of delivery by a standard overnight or
recognized international carrier, or (c) delivery in person, addressed at the
following addresses (or at such other address for a JV Party as shall be
specified by like notice):
if to
NTC:
Nanya
Technology Corporation
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park 669
Fuhsing 3
RD. Kueishan
Taoyuan,
Taiwan, ROC
Attn: Legal department
Facsimile:
886-3-396-2226
if to
MNL:
Micron
Semiconductor B.V.
Naritaweg
165 Telestone 8
1043BW
Amsterdam
The
Netherlands
Attn: Managing
Director
Facsimile: 020-5722650
with a
mandatory copy to Micron:
Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000 S.
Federal Way
Mail Stop
1-507
Boise, ID
83716
Attn:
General Counsel
Facsimile:
(208) 368-4537
Section
15.2
Waiver
. The
failure at any time of a JV Party to require performance by the other JV Party
of any responsibility or obligation required by this Agreement shall in no way
affect a JV Party’s right to require such performance at any time thereafter,
nor shall the waiver by a JV Party of a breach of any provision of this
Agreement by the other JV Party constitute a waiver of any other breach of the
same or any other provision nor constitute a waiver of the responsibility or
obligation itself.
Section
15.3
Assignment
. [***]
Section
15.4
Amendment
. This
Agreement may not be amended or modified without the written consent of the JV
Parties.
Section
15.5
Third Party
Rights
. Nothing in this Agreement, whether express or implied,
is intended or shall be construed to confer, directly or indirectly, upon or
give to any Person, other than the JV Parties, any legal or equitable right,
remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any covenant, condition
or other provision contained herein.
Section
15.6
Governing
Law
. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in
accordance with the laws of the ROC, without giving effect to its conflict of
laws principles.
Section
15.7
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Agreement shall be brought in the Taipei District Court, located in Taipei,
Taiwan, and each of the Parties hereby consents and submits to the exclusive
jurisdiction of such court (and of the appropriate appellate courts therefrom)
in any such suit, action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the fullest
extent permitted by Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or hereafter
have to the laying of the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding in any
such court or that any such suit, action or proceeding which is brought in any
such court has been brought in an inconvenient forum.
Section
15.8
Headings
. The
headings of the Articles and Sections in this Agreement are provided for
convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part
hereof.
Section
15.9
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement, together with the Appendices,
Exhibits and Schedules hereto and the agreements (including the Joint Venture
Documents) and instruments referred to herein, constitute the entire agreement
of the JV Parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede all
prior agreements and understandings, oral and written, between the JV Parties
with respect to the subject matter hereof.
Section
15.10
Taxes and
Expenses
. Except as otherwise set forth in this Agreement, all
taxes, fees and expenses incurred in connection with this Agreement and the
transactions contemplated hereby shall be paid by the JV Party incurring such
expenses.
Section
15.11
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Agreement be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Agreement shall remain in
full force and effect in all other respects. Should any provision of
this Agreement be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Law or
interpretations thereof, or should this Agreement fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the JV Parties shall negotiate in good faith appropriate modifications to
this Agreement to reflect those changes that are required by Applicable
Law.
Section
15.12
Counterparts
. This
Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed
an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
Section
15.13
Confidential
Information
.
(a)
The JV
Parties shall abide by the terms of that certain Second Amended and Restated
Mutual Confidentiality Agreement among Micron, MNL, NTC, MeiYa Technology
Corporation and the Joint Venture Company, dated as of the date of the 2
nd
Closing, as may be amended or replaced from time to time (the “
Confidentiality Agreement
”),
which agreement is incorporated herein by reference. The JV Parties
agree that the Confidentiality Agreement shall govern the confidentiality,
non-disclosure and non-use obligations between the JV Parties respecting the
information provided or disclosed in connection with this
Agreement.
(b)
If the
Confidentiality Agreement is terminated or expires and is not replaced, such
Confidentiality Agreement shall continue with respect to confidential
information provided in connection with this Agreement, notwithstanding such
expiration or termination, for the duration of the term of this Agreement or
until a new Confidentiality Agreement is entered into between the JV
Parties. To the extent there is a conflict between this Agreement and
the Confidentiality Agreement, the terms of this Agreement shall
control.
(c)
The terms
and conditions of this Agreement shall be considered “
Confidential Information
”
under the Confidentiality Agreement for which each of Micron and NTC is
considered a “
Receiving
Party
” under such Confidentiality Agreement.
[SIGNATURE
PAGES FOLLOW]
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been executed and delivered as of the date
first written above.
|
NANYA
TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Jih Lien
|
|
|
Jih
Lien
|
|
|
President
|
THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE JOINT VENTURE AGREEMENT
ENTERED
INTO BY AND BETWEEN NTC AND MNL
|
MICRON
SEMICONDUCTOR B.V.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Thomas L. Laws
|
|
|
Thomas
L. Laws
|
|
|
Managing
Director A
|
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Stefan Boermans /
/s/
Clemens van den
Broek
|
|
|
Name: Stefan
Boermans / Clemens van den Broek
|
|
|
Title Trust
International Management (T.I.M.) B.V.
|
|
|
Managing
Director B
|
THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE JOINT VENTURE AGREEMENT
ENTERED
INTO BY AND BETWEEN NTC AND MNL
EXHIBIT
10.73
[***]
DENOTES CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS OMITTED AND FILED SEPARATELY WITH THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO A REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL
TREATMENT
NTC/MICRON CONFIDENTIAL
FACILITATION
AGREEMENT
This
FACILITATION AGREEMENT (the “
Agreement
”), dated this 26th
day of November, 2008, is made and entered into by and between MICRON
SEMICONDUCTOR B.V. (hereinafter “
MNL
”), a private limited
liability company organized under the laws of the Netherlands, NANYA TECHNOLOGY
CORPORATION
Nanya Technology Corporation
[Translation from Chinese]
(
hereinafter “
NTC
”), a company incorporated
under the laws of the Republic of China, and INOTERA MEMORIES, INC.
Inotera Memories Inc.
[Translation from Chinese]
,
(hereinafter “
Joint Venture Company
”), a
company incorporated under the laws of the Republic of China.
RECITALS
A. Micron
and NTC have entered into that certain Joint Venture Agreement, dated of even
date herewith (the “
JV
Agreement
”), which sets forth certain agreements regarding the ownership,
governance and operation of the Joint Venture Company.
B. Micron
and NTC desire the Joint Venture Company to enter into this Agreement in order
to fully effectuate the intent of the parties to the JV Agreement.
NOW,
THEREFORE, for good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of
which are hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto, intending to be legally
bound, do hereby agree as follows:
1.
Joint Venture
Agreement
. The Joint Venture Company shall do, cause to be
done, or otherwise facilitate any actions that, under the following provisions
of the JV Agreement, either (x) the JV Parties have agreed the Joint Venture
Company shall do or (y) the JV Parties have agreed (through commercially
reasonable efforts, best efforts or otherwise) to cause the Joint Venture
Company to do:
(a)
Sections
2.1(b) and (c);
(b)
Section
2.3 (but with respect to clause (b) of Section 2.3 only compliance with the
provisions of the JV Agreement specifically referenced in this Section
1);
(c)
Sections
5.1(e), 5.1(f)(iii), 5.3(d) and (e), 5.4(a) – (c) and 5.5;
(d)
Sections
7.1(a) (but subject to obtaining the required approval of the Board of
Directors), 7.2(a) and (c), 7.3, 7.4 and 7.5;
(e)
Sections
8.1 – 8.3;
(f)
Article
10 (but with respect to Section 10.4, subject to obtaining the required
approvals of the Board of Directors and shareholders of the Joint Venture
Company); and
(g)
Sections
11.1, 11.2, 11.4 and 11.5 (but with respect to Section 11.5, subject to
obtaining any approvals of the shareholders of the Joint Venture Company
required by Applicable Law or the Articles of Incorporation of the Joint Venture
Company).
2.
Vice-Chairman
. Subject
to obtaining the required approvals of the Board of Directors and shareholders
of the Joint Venture Company, the Joint Venture Company shall take reasonable
steps as soon as practicable to amend the Articles of Incorporation to provide
that (a) there shall be a Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors, (b) unless
expressly prohibited by Applicable Law, if the Chairman does not, within one
week (or within three (3) days for convening an emergency meeting of the Board
of Directors), comply with a director’s request for the Chairman to convene a
meeting of the Board of Directors, the Vice-Chairman shall have the right to
convene the meeting of the Board of Directors as requested by such director, and
(c) emergency meetings of the Board of Directors may be convened from time
to time by the Chairman, or (unless expressly prohibited by Applicable Law) the
Vice-Chairman pursuant to the immediately preceding clause (b), by not less than
two (2) Business Days notice in writing.
3.
Purchase of
Shares
. Prior to the issuance by the Joint Venture Company of
Shares or any other equity-linked securities of the Joint Venture Company, each
JV Party shall provide to the Joint Venture Company a true and complete list of
the Affiliates of such JV Party as of such date (the “
Listed
Affiliates
”). Except as required by Applicable Law, the Joint
Venture Company shall not issue Shares or any other equity-linked security of
the Joint Venture Company, directly or indirectly, to any Listed Affiliate
without the prior written consent of both JV Parties.
4.
[***]
5.
General
Provisions
.
(a)
Defined
Terms
. Capitalized terms used herein but not otherwise defined
shall have the meaning ascribed to such terms in the JV Agreement.
(b)
Notices
. All
notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be
deemed duly given upon (i) transmitter’s confirmation of a receipt of a
facsimile transmission, (ii) confirmation of delivery by a standard overnight or
recognized international carrier, or (iii) delivery in person, addressed at the
following addresses (or at such other address for a JV Party as shall be
specified by like notice):
if to
NTC:
Nanya
Technology Corporation
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park 669
Fuhsing 3
RD. Kueishan
Taoyuan,
Taiwan, ROC
Attn: Legal department
Facsimile:
886-3-396-2226
if to
MNL:
Micron
Semiconductor B.V.
Naritaweg
165 Telestone 8
1043BW
Amsterdam
The
Netherlands
Attn: Managing
Director
Facsimile: 020-5722650
with a
mandatory copy to Micron:
Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000 S.
Federal Way
Mail Stop
1-507
Boise, ID
83716
Attn:
General Counsel
Facsimile:
(208) 368-4537
If to the
Joint Venture Company:
Inotera
Memories, Inc.
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park
667,
Fuhsing 3
rd
Road
Kueishan,
Taoyuan
Taiwan,
R.O.C.
Attn:
General Counsel
Facsimile:
886-3-327-2988 Ext. 3385
(c)
Waiver
. The
failure at any time of a JV Party to require performance by the Joint Venture
Company of any responsibility or obligation required by this Agreement shall in
no way affect a JV Party’s right to require such performance at any time
thereafter, nor shall the waiver by a JV Party of a breach of any provision of
this Agreement by the Joint Venture Company constitute a waiver of any other
breach of the same or any other provision nor constitute a waiver of the
responsibility or obligation itself.
(d)
Assignment
. [***].
(e)
Amendment
. This
Agreement may not be amended or modified without the written consent of the
parties hereto.
(f)
Third Party
Rights
. Nothing in this Agreement, whether express or implied,
is intended or shall be construed to confer, directly or indirectly, upon or
give to any Person, other than the parties hereto, any legal or equitable right,
remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any covenant, condition
or other provision contained herein.
(g)
Governing
Law
. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in
accordance with the laws of the ROC, without giving effect to its conflict of
laws principles.
(h)
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Agreement shall be brought in the Taipei District Court, located in Taipei,
Taiwan, and each of the parties hereto consents and submits to the exclusive
jurisdiction of such court (and of the appropriate appellate courts therefrom)
in any such suit, action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the fullest
extent permitted by Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or hereafter
have to the laying of the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding in any
such court or that any such suit, action or proceeding which is brought in any
such court has been brought in an inconvenient forum.
(i)
Headings
. The
headings of the Sections in this Agreement are provided for convenience of
reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part hereof.
(j)
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement of
the parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersedes all
prior agreements and understandings, oral and written, between the parties
hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof.
(k)
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Agreement be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Agreement shall remain in
full force and effect in all other respects. Should any provision of
this Agreement be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Law or
interpretations thereof, or should this Agreement fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the parties hereto shall negotiate in good faith appropriate
modifications to this Agreement to reflect those changes that are required by
Applicable Law.
(l)
Counterparts
. This
Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed
an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
[SIGNATURE
PAGES FOLLOW]
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been executed and delivered as of the date
first written above.
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NANYA
TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
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By:
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/s/ Jih Lien
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Jih
Lien
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President
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THIS IS A
SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE FACILITATION AGREEMENT
ENTERED
INTO BY AND BETWEEN NTC, MNL
AND THE
JOINT VENTURE COMPANY
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MICRON
SEMICONDUCTOR B.V.
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By:
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/s/ Thomas L. Laws
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Thomas
L. Laws
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Managing
Director A
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By:
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/s/ Stefan Boermans / Clemens van den
Broek
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Name: Stefan
Boermans / Clemens van den Broek
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Title Trust
International Management (T.I.M.) B.V.
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Managing
Director B
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THIS IS A
SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE FACILITATION AGREEMENT
ENTERED
INTO BY AND BETWEEN NTC, MNL
AND THE
JOINT VENTURE COMPANY
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INOTERA
MEMORIES, INC.
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By:
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/s/ Joseph Hsieh
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Name: Joseph
Hsieh
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Title: Supervisor
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THIS IS A
SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE FACILITATION AGREEMENT
ENTERED
INTO BY AND BETWEEN NTC, MNL
AND THE
JOINT VENTURE COMPANY
EXHIBIT
10.74
[***]
DENOTES CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS OMITTED AND FILED SEPARATELY WITH THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO A REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL
TREATMENT
NTC/MICRON
CONFIDENTIAL
SUPPLY
AGREEMENT
This
SUPPLY AGREEMENT, is made and entered into as of this 26th day of November, 2008
(the “
Closing Date
”), by
and among MICRON TECHNOLOGY, INC., a Delaware corporation (“
Micron
”), NANYA TECHNOLOGY
CORPORATION
Nanya
Technology Corporation [Translation from Chinese]
(“
NTC
” and, together with
Micron, the “
Purchasers
”), a company
incorporated under the laws of the Republic of China (“
ROC
” or “
Taiwan
”), and INOTERA
MEMORIES, INC.
Inotera
Memories Inc. [Translation from Chinese]
a company incorporated under the
laws of the ROC (the “
Joint
Venture Company
”).
RECITALS
A. The
Joint Venture Company is engaged in the manufacture of Trench DRAM Products (as
defined hereinafter).
B. The
Joint Venture Company intends to convert fully from the manufacture of Trench
DRAM Products to Stack DRAM Products (as defined hereinafter).
C. The
Joint Venture Company is party to the IMI/Qimonda Supply Agreement (as defined
hereinafter), pursuant to which Qimonda AG, a German corporation (“
Qimonda
”), is obligated to
purchase Trench DRAM Products from the Joint Venture Company.
D. Micron,
NTC and the Joint Venture Company (each, a “
Party
” and collectively, the
“
Parties
”) desire,
except as otherwise provided in this Agreement, that the Joint Venture Company,
during the Transition Period (as defined hereinafter), generally supply
(1) to Micron Trench DRAM Conforming Wafers (as defined hereinafter) and
Trench DRAM Secondary Silicon (as defined hereinafter) in accordance with the
Output Percentage (as defined hereinafter) of MNL (as defined hereinafter) of
the aggregate Trench DRAM Manufacturing Capacity (as defined hereinafter),
reduced by the Trench DRAM Products sold to Qimonda pursuant to the IMI/Qimonda
Supply Agreement, and (2) to NTC Trench DRAM Conforming Wafers and Trench
DRAM Secondary Silicon in accordance with NTC’s Output Percentage of the
aggregate Trench DRAM Manufacturing Capacity, all upon the terms and subject to
the condition set forth in this Agreement.
E. The
Parties desire the Joint Venture Company to supply (1) to Micron Stack DRAM
Conforming Wafers (as defined hereinafter) and Stack DRAM Secondary Silicon (as
defined hereafter) in accordance with MNL’s Output Percentage of the aggregate
Stack DRAM Manufacturing Capacity (as defined hereinafter) and (2) to NTC
Stack DRAM Conforming Wafers and Stack DRAM Secondary Silicon in accordance with
NTC’s Output Percentage of the aggregate Stack DRAM Manufacturing Capacity, all
upon the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in this
Agreement.
AGREEMENT
NOW,
THEREFORE, for good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of
which are hereby acknowledged, the Parties intending to be legally bound do
hereby agree as follows:
ARTICLE
1
DEFINITIONS;
CERTAIN INTERPRETIVE MATTERS
1.1
Definitions
. In
addition to the terms defined elsewhere in this Agreement, capitalized terms
used in this Agreement shall have the respective meanings set forth
below:
“
Adjusted BEOL Costs Per Die
”
shall have the meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
Adjusted JVC Per Wafer
” means,
for a particular Purchaser for a particular Delivery Month, with respect to any
JV Product Category delivered in such Delivery Month, an amount equal to the sum
of (a) the JVC Per Wafer for such JV Product Category for the Delivery Month
immediately preceding such Delivery Month and (b) the Adjustment to JVC Per
Wafer for such Purchaser for such JV Product Category.
“
Adjustment to JVC Per Wafer”
means, for a particular Delivery Month, with respect to any JV Product Category
for such Delivery Month: (a) for Micron, an amount equal to the
quotient of (i) the product of (A) the Shared Costs and (B) MNL's Output
Percentage (as the same may change from time to time), divided by (ii) [***] of
such JV Product Category delivered to Micron in such Delivery Month and (b) for
NTC, an amount equal to the quotient of (i) the product of (A) the Shared Costs
and (B) NTC's Output Percentage (as the same may change from time to time),
divided by (ii) [***] of such JV Product Category delivered to NTC in such
Delivery Month.
“
Affiliate
” means, with respect
to any specified Person, any other Person that directly or indirectly, including
through one or more intermediaries, controls, or is controlled by, or is under
common control with such specified Person; and the term “
affiliated
” has a meaning
correlative to the foregoing.
“
Agreement
” means this Supply
Agreement.
“
Applicable Law
” means any
applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances, orders, codes,
arbitration awards, judgments, decrees or other legal requirements of any
Governmental Entity.
“
Audited Purchaser
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
5.3(c)
.
“
Average JVC Per Wafer
” shall
have the meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
Average Front End Cost
” means,
for a particular Delivery Month, an amount equal to (a) the sum of the following
for each class of Contract Products delivered in such Delivery Month (i) the
Front End Cost (as defined in the IMI/Qimonda Supply Agreement) for such class
of Contract Products, multiplied by (ii) the number of QC and NC wafers of such
class of Contract Products delivered by the Joint Venture Company to Qimonda in
such Delivery Month, divided by (b) the number of QC and NC wafers of all
classes of Contract Products delivered by the Joint Venture Company to Qimonda
in such Delivery Month.
“
Average Margin Per Wafer
”
shall have the meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
Average Qimonda JVC Per Wafer
”
means, for a particular Delivery Month, an amount equal to (a) the sum of the
following for each class of Contract Products delivered in such Delivery Month
(i) the Proforma JVC Per Wafer for such class of Contract Products in such
Delivery Month, multiplied by (ii) the number of QC and NC wafers of such class
of Contract Products delivered by the Joint Venture Company to Qimonda in such
Delivery Month, divided by (b) the number of QC and NC wafers of all classes of
Contract Products delivered by the Joint Venture Company to Qimonda in such
Delivery Month.
“
Back End Die Yield
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
Baseline Flow
” means, for a
particular Process Node at a particular fab, the production flow of a baseline
product or product mix for such Process Node at such fab, as determined by the
Manufacturing Committee;
provided
that, if the
Manufacturing Committee cannot agree to a baseline product or product mix for
such Process Node at such fab, then Baseline Flow shall mean the production flow
of the highest volume Stack DRAM Product being produced at such Process Node at
such fab and, during the Transition Period, the highest volume Trench DRAM
Product being produced at such Process Node at such fab, with the mix thereof
being that which will maximize the production of Stack DRAM
Products.
“
BEOL Cost Per Die
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
Boundary Conditions
” means,
with respect to any fab, the Trench DRAM Boundary Conditions and Stack DRAM
Boundary Conditions.
“
Business Day
” means a day that
is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banking institutions
in either the ROC or the State of New York are authorized or required by
Applicable Law to be closed.
“
Closing Date
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Conforming Ratio
” means for
any given period of time, the quotient, expressed as a percentage, of
(a) the number of Conforming Wafers produced during such period of time,
divided by (b) the number of Conforming Wafers and Secondary Silicon
produced during such period of time.
“
Conforming Wafer
” means a
Trench DRAM Conforming Wafer or Stack DRAM Conforming Wafer.
“
Contract Products
” shall have
the meaning set forth in the IMI/Qimonda Supply Agreement.
“
Control
” (whether or not
capitalized) means the power or authority, whether exercised or not, to direct
the business, management and policies of a Person, directly or indirectly,
whether through the ownership of voting securities, by contract or otherwise,
which power or authority shall conclusively be presumed to exist upon possession
of beneficial ownership or power to direct the vote of more than [***] of the
votes entitled to be cast at a meeting of the members, shareholders or other
equity holders of such Person or power to control the composition of a majority
of the board of directors or like governing body of such Person; and the terms
“
controlling
” and “
controlled
” have meanings
correlative to the foregoing.
“
Cycle-Time
” means the time
required to process a wafer through a portion of the manufacturing process or
through the manufacturing process as a whole, including Probe
Testing.
“
Demand Forecast
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
3.3(a)
.
“
Delivery Month
” shall have the
meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
Design ID
” means a part number
that is assigned to a unique DRAM Design of a particular DRAM Product, which may
include a number or letter designating a specific device revision.
“
Design SOW
” means
[***]
“
Die Yield
” means the quotient,
expressed as a percentage, of (a) the number of DRAM Products in die form that
are manufactured on a wafer and that meet the applicable Specifications
at the time of Probe
Testing, divided by (b) the maximum number of such die that could be
manufactured on such wafer to meet the applicable Specifications using the
applicable Process Node.
“
DRAM Design
” means a Trench
DRAM Design or Stack DRAM Design.
“
DRAM Product
” means a Trench
DRAM Product or Stack DRAM Product.
“
Engineering Wafers
” means
wafers ordered by a Purchaser in lieu of Conforming Wafers as contemplated by
Section
4.3
.
“
Environmental Laws
” means any
and all laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances, orders, codes or binding
determinations of any Governmental Entity pertaining to the environment in any
and all jurisdictions in which the Joint Venture Company’s fabs are located,
including laws pertaining to the handling of wastes or the use, maintenance and
closure of pits and impoundments, and other environmental conservation or
protection laws.
“
Estimated Final Price
Statement
” shall have the meaning set forth in
Section
4.9(b)
.
“
Excursion
” means a performance
deviation during the production process that is outside normal behavior, as
defined by historical performance or as established by a Purchaser and the Joint
Venture Company in writing in the applicable Specifications, which may impact
performance, Quality and Reliability or such Purchaser’s customer delivery
commitments for DRAM Product from Conforming Wafers.
“
Executive Vice President
”
means the Executive Vice President of the Joint Venture Company.
“
Fab Yield
” means, for any
given period of time, the quotient, expressed as a percentage, of (a) the number
of Conforming Wafers produced during such period of time, divided by (b) the
number of all wafers produced during such period of time.
“
Final Price Adjustment Memo
”
shall have the meaning set forth in Section 4.9(b).
“
Fiscal Month
” means any of the
twelve financial accounting months within the Fiscal Year.
“
Fiscal Quarter
” means any of
the four financial accounting quarters within the Fiscal Year.
“
Fiscal Year
” means the fiscal
year of the Joint Venture Company for financial accounting
purposes.
“
Force Majeure Event
” means the
occurrence of an event or circumstance beyond the reasonable control of the
Party and includes: (a) explosions, fires, flood, earthquakes,
catastrophic weather conditions, or other elements of nature or acts of God; (b)
acts of war (declared or undeclared), acts of terrorism, insurrection, riots,
civil disorders, rebellion or sabotage; (c) acts of Governmental Entities; (d)
labor disputes, lockouts, strikes or other industrial action, whether direct or
indirect and whether lawful or unlawful; (e) failures or fluctuations in
electrical power or telecommunications service or equipment; and (f) delays
caused by another Party’s or Third-Party nonperformance (except for delays
caused by a Party’s subcontractors or agents).
“
GAAP
” means generally accepted
accounting principles.
“
Governmental Entity
” means any
governmental authority or entity, including any agency, board, bureau,
commission, court, municipality, department, subdivision or instrumentality
thereof, or any arbitrator or arbitration panel.
“
Gross Revenue Per Die
” shall
have the meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
Hazardous Substances
” means
any asbestos, any flammable, explosive, radioactive, hazardous, toxic,
contaminating, polluting matter, waste or substance, including any material
defined or designated as a hazardous or toxic waste, material or substance, or
other similar term, under any Environmental Laws in effect or that may be
promulgated in the future.
“
IMI/Qimonda Supply Agreement
”
means that certain Supply Agreement between the Joint Venture Company and
Qimonda, dated October 11, 2008, as amended.
“
Indemnified Losses
”
mean all direct,
out-of-pocket liabilities, damages, losses, costs and expenses (including
reasonable attorneys’ and consultants’ fees and expenses).
“
Indemnified Party
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
8.2
.
“
JDP Agreement
” means that
certain Joint Development Program Agreement between NTC and Micron, dated
April 21, 2008, as amended.
“
JDP Committee
” means the
committee formed and operated by Micron and NTC to govern the performance of
Micron and NTC under the JDP Agreement in accordance with the JDP Committee
Charter.
“
JDP Committee Charter
” means
the charter attached as
Schedule 2
of the JDP
Agreement.
“
Joint Venture Agreement
” means
that certain Joint Venture Agreement between NTC and MNL, dated the Closing
Date, as amended, relating to the Joint Venture Company.
“
Joint Venture Company
” shall
have the meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
[***] Report
” shall have the
meaning set forth in
Section 3.7(a)
.
“
JVC Per Wafer
”
shall have the meaning
set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
JV Product Category
” shall
have the meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
Loading Plan
” shall have the
meaning set forth in
Section
3.1
.
“
Manufacturing Capacity
” means
Trench DRAM Manufacturing Capacity and Stack DRAM Manufacturing
Capacity.
“
Manufacturing Committee
” means
the manufacturing committee established by NTC and MNL pursuant to
Section 7.2(b)(i)
of
the Joint Venture Agreement.
“
Manufacturing Plan
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
3.1
.
“
Micron
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Micron Margin Per Wafer
” shall
have the meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
Micron Term
” shall have the
meaning set forth in
Section
10.1(a)
.
“
MNL
” means Micron
Semiconductor B.V., a private limited liability company organized under the laws
of the Netherlands.
“
Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement
” means that certain Second Amended and Restated
Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement among NTC, Micron, MNL, MeiYa Technology Corporation
MeiYa Technology Corporation
[Translation from Chinese]
a
company incorporated under the laws of the ROC, and the Joint Venture Company,
dated the Closing Date, as amended.
“
NC
” shall have the meaning set
forth in the IMI/Qimonda Supply Agreement.
“
Net Revenue Per Wafer
” shall
have the meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
Non-SOW Product
” means a class
of Stack DRAM Product that does not result from a SOW.
“
NTC
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
NTC Margin Per Wafer
” shall
have the meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
NTC Term
” shall have the
meaning set forth in
Section
10.1(b)
.
“
[***] Report
” shall have the
meaning set forth in
Section
3.7(b)
.
“
Output Percentage
” shall have
the meaning set forth in the Joint Venture Agreement.
“
Party
” and “
Parties
”
shall have the meanings
set forth in Recital D to this Agreement.
“
Performance
Criteria
” means the factors of [***]
“
Permitted Disclosures
” shall
have the meaning set forth in
Section
3.9(a)
.
“
Person
” means any natural
person, corporation, joint stock company, limited liability company,
association, partnership, firm, joint venture, organization, business, trust,
estate or any other entity or organization of any kind or
character.
“
Planning Forecast
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
3.3(b)
.
“
PPCRA
” means that certain
Product Purchase and Capacity Reservation Agreement among NTC, Qimonda and the
Joint Venture Company, dated November 13, 2002, as amended.
“
[***] Price
” means
[***]
“
President
” means the President
of the Joint Venture Company.
“
Price
” or “
Pricing
” means the calculation
set forth on
Schedule
4.9
.
“
[***] Report
” shall have the
meaning set forth in
Section
3.7(c)
.
“
Probe Testing
” means testing,
using a wafer test program as set forth in the applicable Specifications, of a
wafer that has completed all processing steps deemed necessary to complete the
creation of the desired integrated circuits in the die on such wafer, the
purpose of which test is to determine how many and which of the die meet the
applicable criteria for such die set forth in the Specifications.
“
Probe Yield
” means, with
respect to any period of time, the quotient, expressed as a percentage, of (a)
the number of DRAM Products in die form meeting the applicable Specifications
during such period of time, divided by (b) the number of die probed (excluding
the number of die contained on scrapped wafers) during such period of
time.
“
Product Die Yield
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Schedule
4.9
.
“
Proforma Invoice
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
4.9(a)
.
“
Proforma JVC Per Wafer
” means,
for a particular Delivery Month, with respect to any class of Contract Products
for such Delivery Month, [***]
“
Process Node
”
means [***]
“
Proposed Loading Plan
” shall
have the meaning set forth in
Section
3.3(c)
.
“
Proposed Manufacturing Plan
”
shall have the meaning set forth in
Section
3.1
.
“
Purchase Order
” shall have the
meaning set forth in
Section
4.4
.
“
Purchasers
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Purchaser Indemnified
Party
” means Micron, NTC or any of their respective
Subsidiaries.
“
QC
” shall have the meaning set
forth in the IMI/Qimonda Supply Agreement.
“
Quality and Reliability
” means
the quality and reliability standards for Conforming Wafers as set forth in the
applicable Specifications or the Manufacturing Plan in effect from time to
time.
“
Qimonda
” shall have the
meaning set forth in Recital C to this Agreement.
[***]
[***]
“
Ramp Down Period
” shall have
the meaning set forth in the IMI/Qimonda Supply Agreement.
“
Recoverable Taxes
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
4.8(a)
.
“
Restriction Period
” means,
with respect to any Segregated Employee, the period of time beginning on the
date such Person becomes a Segregated Employee and ends on the date that is
[***] months after the date such Person is no longer a Segregated
Employee.
“
ROC
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Secondary Silicon
” means
Trench DRAM Secondary Silicon or Stack DRAM Secondary Silicon.
“
Secondary Silicon
Specifications
” means those specifications used to describe,
characterize, and define the quality and performance of Secondary Silicon, as
such specifications may be determined from time to time by the
Parties.
“
Segregated Employees
” means
[***]
“
Shared Costs
” means,
[***]
“
Shared Design ID Wafers
” means
all wafers with the same Design ID that are intended to be sold to more than one
Person.
“
Ship Lot Line Yield
” means,
[***]
“
SOW
” means a statement of the
work that describes research and development work to be performed under the JDP
Agreement and that has been adopted by the JDP Committee pursuant to
Section 3.2
of the
JDP Agreement.
“
Specifications
” means those
specifications used to describe, characterize, and define the quality and
performance of the applicable Conforming Wafer (or of the die thereon, as
applicable), as such specifications may be determined from time to time by the
Parties.
“
Stack DRAM
” means dynamic
random access memory cell that functions by using a capacitor arrayed
predominantly above the semiconductor substrate.
“
Stack DRAM Boundary
Conditions
” means, with respect to any fab, a requirement that, at any
point in time:
[***]
“
Stack DRAM
Conforming Wafer
” means a
wafer (other than an Engineering Wafer) delivered by the Joint Venture Company
to a Purchaser under this Agreement containing Stack DRAM Products that has a
minimum Die Yield of [***] (or such other minimum Die Yield as the Parties may
agree in writing) and meets the applicable Specifications.
“Stack DRAM Design”
means,
with respect to a Stack DRAM Product, all of the design elements, components,
specifications and information required to manufacture the subject Stack DRAM
Product, including some or all of the elements, components, specifications and
information listed on Schedule 3 to the JDP Agreement or others.
“
Stack DRAM Manufacturing
Capacity
” means, with respect to each of the Joint Venture Company’s
fabs, the total work minutes available for each Process Node to manufacture
Stack DRAM Products at such fab.
“
Stack DRAM Module
” means one
or more Stack DRAM Products in a JEDEC-compliant package or module (whether as
part of a SIMM, DIMM, multi-chip package, memory card or other memory module or
package).
“
Stack DRAM Product
” means any
memory comprising Stack DRAM, whether in die or wafer form.
“
Stack DRAM
Secondary Silicon
” means a
wafer delivered by the Joint Venture Company to a Purchaser under this Agreement
containing Stack DRAM Products that fails to meet the applicable Specifications
or a minimum Die Yield of [***] (or such other minimum Die Yield as the Parties
may agree in writing),
provided
that such wafer
otherwise conforms to the applicable Secondary Silicon Specifications and has a
minimum Die Yield of [***] (or such other minimum Die Yield as the
Parties may agree in writing) or such other minimum Die Yield as the Parties may
mutually agree in writing.
[***]
“
Subsidiary
” means, with
respect to any specified Person, any other Person that directly or indirectly,
including through one or more intermediaries, is controlled by such specified
Person.
“
Taiwan
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Taiwan GAAP
” means GAAP used
in the ROC, as in effect from time to time, consistently applied for all periods
at issue.
“
Technology Transfer Agreement
”
means that certain
Technology Transfer
Agreement among NTC, Micron and the Joint Venture Company, dated the Closing
Date, as amended.
“
Technology Transfer and License
Agreement
” means that certain Amended and Restated Technology Transfer
and License Agreement between Micron and NTC, dated the Closing Date, as
amended.
“
Third Party
” means any Person,
other than NTC, Micron, the Joint Venture Company or any of their respective
Subsidiaries.
“
Third
Party Claim
” means any
claim, demand, lawsuit, complaint, cross-complaint or counter-complaint,
arbitration, opposition, cancellation proceeding or other legal or arbitral
proceeding of any nature brought in any court, tribunal or judicial forum
anywhere in the world, regardless of the manner in which such proceeding is
captioned or styled brought by any Third Party.
“
Transition Period
” means
[***]
“
Trench Contract Process
” means
the 90nm and 70nm trench based DRAM process technology previously transferred to
the Joint Venture Company under that certain Know How Transfer Agreement among
the Joint Venture Company, NTC and Qimonda, dated November 13, 2002, as
amended.
“
Trench DRAM Boundary
Conditions
” means, with respect to any fab, a requirement that, at any
point in time:
[***]
“
Trench DRAM Conforming Wafer
”
means a wafer (other than an Engineering Wafer) delivered by the Joint Venture
Company to a Purchaser under this Agreement containing Trench DRAM Products that
has a minimum Die Yield of [***] and meets the applicable
Specifications.
“
Trench DRAM Designs
” means,
with respect to a Trench DRAM Product, the corresponding design components,
materials and information.
“
Trench DRAM Manufacturing
Capacity
” means, with respect to each of the Joint Venture Company’s
fabs, the total work minutes available for each Process Node to manufacture
Trench DRAM Products at such fab.
“
Trench DRAM Products
” means
trench based dynamic random access memory products manufactured by the Joint
Venture Company in accordance with the Trench Contract Process.
“
Trench DRAM Secondary Silicon
”
means a wafer delivered by the Joint Venture Company to a Purchaser under this
Agreement containing Trench DRAM Products that fails to meet the applicable
Specifications or a minimum Die Yield of [***],
provided
that such wafer
otherwise conforms to the applicable Secondary Silicon Specifications and has a
Die Yield of [***] or such other minimum Die Yield as the Parties may mutually
agree in writing.
“
TTA 68-50
” means that certain
Technology Transfer Agreement for 68-50 nm Process Nodes between Micron and the
Joint Venture Company, dated October 11, 2008, as amended.
“
TTLA 68-50
” means that certain
Technology Transfer and License Agreement for 68 50 nm Process Nodes between
Micron and NTC, dated April 21, 2008, as amended.
“
US GAAP
” means GAAP used in
the United States, as in effect from time to time, consistently applied for all
periods at issue.
“
Wafer Start
” means the
initiation of manufacturing services with respect to a wafer.
“
Warranty Claim Period
” shall
have the meaning set forth in
Section
6.2
.
“
WIP
” means work in process at
any of the Joint Venture Company’s fabs, including all wafers in wafer
fabrication and sort and all completed Conforming Wafers and Secondary Silicon
not yet delivered to a Purchaser.
“
WIP Data
” means in line
inventory data, including wafer numbers, lot numbers, unit volumes, wafer
volumes, Cycle-Times, Die Yield, Fab Yield, Probe Yield and Ship Lot Line
Yield.
“
WSTS Forecast
” means the
forecast of semiconductor prices prepared by WSTS, Inc.
1.2
Certain Interpretive
Matters
.
(a)
Unless
the context requires otherwise, (i) all references to Sections, Articles,
Exhibits, Appendices or Schedules are to Sections, Articles, Exhibits,
Appendices or Schedules of or to this Agreement, (ii) each accounting term not
otherwise defined in this Agreement (A) with respect to Micron, has the meaning
commonly applied to it in accordance with US GAAP, and (B) with respect to NTC
and the Joint Venture Company, has the meaning commonly applied to it in
accordance with Taiwan GAAP, (iii) words in the singular include the plural and
vice versa, (iv) the term “
including
” means “including
without limitation,” and (v) the terms “
herein
,” “
hereof
,” “
hereunder
” and words of
similar import shall mean references to this Agreement as a whole and not to any
individual section or portion hereof. All references to “
$
” or dollar amounts will be
to lawful currency of the United States of America. All references to
“
day
” or “
days
” mean calendar days, and
all references to “
quarter(ly)
,” “
month(ly)”
or “
year(ly)
” mean Fiscal Quarter,
Fiscal Month or Fiscal Year, respectively, unless the context requires
otherwise.
(b)
No
provision of this Agreement will be interpreted in favor of, or against, any
Party by reason of the extent to which (i) such Party or its counsel
participated in the drafting thereof, or (ii) such provision is inconsistent
with any prior draft of this Agreement or such provision.
(c)
For
purposes of this Agreement, the following fabs collectively shall constitute a
single fab: (i) the existing fabs commonly referred to as “Fab 1” and “Fab 2”
located at Hwa Ya Technology Park, Taoyuan, Taiwan, and (ii) the fab currently
leased by MeiYa Technology Corporation
MeiYa Technology Corporation
[Translation from Chinese]
, a company incorporated under the laws of the
ROC, also located at Hwa Ya Technology Park, Taoyuan, Taiwan, at such time as it
is operated by the Joint Venture Company.
ARTICLE
2
OBLIGATIONS OF THE
PARTIES;
PROCESSES AND
CONTROLS
2.1
General
Obligations.
(a)
The Joint
Venture Company shall convert fully from the manufacture of Trench DRAM Products
to the manufacture of Stack DRAM Products as soon as commercially practicable
taking into account relevant manufacturing, finance and sales considerations and
shall otherwise provide and develop fabs to meet Manufacturing Capacity
according to the Manufacturing Plan in effect from time to time and the
obligations set forth herein.
[***]
2.2
Control;
Processes
. The Parties shall review the Joint Venture
Company’s control and process mechanisms, including such mechanisms that are
utilized to ensure that all parameters of the Specifications and Performance
Criteria are met or exceeded in the Joint Venture Company’s manufacture of
Conforming Wafers. The Parties agree to work together in good faith
to define mutually agreeable control and process mechanisms, including the
following: [***].
2.3
Production
Masks
.
(a)
During
the Transition Period, the Joint Venture Company shall obtain all masks required
to manufacture Trench DRAM Products under this Agreement in accordance with its
policies with respect thereto existing as of the date hereof.
(b)
Until a
second source for masks is qualified by the JDP Committee for the 68nm Process
Node or 50nm Process Node or a particular Stack DRAM Product pursuant to
Section 3.7
of the
JDP Agreement, and then except to the extent of such qualification, the Joint
Venture Company shall order all masks required to manufacture Stack DRAM
Products under this Agreement from [***]. Upon the
qualification of a second source for masks for a particular Process Node or
Stack DRAM Product by the JDP Committee in accordance with
Section 3.7
of the
JDP Agreement, the Joint Venture Company shall comply with the instructions from
time to time of the Manufacturing Committee with regards to whether such
qualified second source or [***] will be used to create, maintain, repair and
replace the masks required for such Process Nodes or Stack DRAM Products under
this Agreement. The Joint Venture Company shall have possession, but
not ownership of any underlying copyrights, mask works or other intellectual
property, of any physical production masks which the Joint Venture Company
obtains in accordance with this
Section
2.3(b)
.
2.4
Designation of
WIP
.
(a)
WIP Associated With Shared
Design ID Wafers
. The Joint Venture Company shall ensure that
WIP at its fabs associated with Shared Design ID Wafers is designated for all of
the purchasers of such Shared Design ID Wafers from Wafer Start, and the Shared
Design ID Wafers shall be allocated to the purchasers of such Shared Design ID
Wafers immediately prior to Probe Testing by Design ID
pro rata
in accordance with
the relative number of such Shared Design ID Wafers to be delivered to each
purchaser during such Delivery Month pursuant to the Purchasers’ Purchase Orders
and Qimonda’s non-cancellable purchase orders delivered pursuant to Section 4.2
of the IMI/Qimonda Supply Agreement.
(b)
Other
WIP
. The Joint Venture Company shall ensure that WIP at its
fabs associated with wafers other than Shared Design ID Wafers to be purchased
by Micron, NTC or Qimonda is designated for such purchaser from Wafer
Start.
2.5
Subcontractors
. The
Joint Venture Company may utilize subcontractors, subject to all subcontractors
whose work could reasonably be expected to have a direct impact on the
manufacture of Conforming Wafers or Probe Testing being approved by at least one
of the Purchasers, which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld or
delayed. The Joint Venture Company shall ensure that all contracts
with subcontractors (a) shall provide the Joint Venture Company with the same
level of access and controls as the Joint Venture Company provides to the
Purchasers in this Agreement and (b) contain customary nondisclosure
obligations in a form reasonably acceptable to the Purchasers.
2.6
[***]. In
addition to the [***] Report and the monthly review requirements set forth in
Section 3.7
,
the Joint Venture Company shall promptly notify each Purchaser of
[***].
2.7
Traceability; Data
Retention
. The Parties shall review the Joint Venture
Company’s [***] process and producing the WIP Data and (b) data retention policy
in regards to the WIP Data. The Joint Venture Company agrees to
maintain the WIP Data for a minimum of [***] (or such other period as may be
agreed in writing by the Parties).
2.8
Access to WIP
Data
. The Joint Venture Company shall provide each Purchaser
with full access to its respective WIP Data (including with respect to Shared
Design ID Wafers) [***].
2.9
Additional Customer
Requirements
.
(a)
Micron
shall inform the Joint Venture Company in writing of any supplier requirements
of any Micron customer relating to any of the Joint Venture Company’s fabs at
which DRAM Product is manufactured for Micron. Micron and the Joint
Venture Company shall work together in good faith to satisfy such
requirements.
(b)
NTC shall
inform the Joint Venture Company in writing of any supplier requirements of any
NTC customer relating to any of the Joint Venture Company’s fabs at which DRAM
Product is manufactured for NTC. NTC and the Joint Venture Company
shall work together in good faith to satisfy such requirements.
2.10
Notification of Changes in
Output Percentage
. Micron and NTC shall jointly notify the
Joint Venture Company of any change in the Output Percentages of MNL and NTC as
promptly as practicable but no later than the date that is [***] days prior to
the effectiveness of such change.
ARTICLE
3
PLANNING AND
FORECASTING;
PERFORMANCE REVIEWS AND
REPORTS
3.1
Annual Manufacturing
Plan
. At least [***] days (or such other number of days as may
be agreed in writing by the Parties) prior to the end of each Fiscal Year, the
Joint Venture Company shall prepare, under the direction of the President, with
input from the Executive Vice President, the Purchasers and the Manufacturing
Committee (or such other persons or committees charged with such responsibility
from time to time by the MNL and NTC), an annual manufacturing plan (the “
Proposed Manufacturing Plan
”)
for the next [***] Fiscal Quarters (or such other period or periods as may be
agreed in writing by the Parties) and shall submit the Proposed Manufacturing
Plan to the Manufacturing Committee for its approval;
provided
that,
notwithstanding the foregoing, the Proposed Manufacturing Plan to be prepared
for [***]. The Manufacturing Committee may approve the Proposed
Manufacturing Plan as submitted or may condition its approval on the Joint
Venture Company making changes to the Proposed Manufacturing Plan, in which case
the Joint Venture Company shall make such changes to the Proposed Manufacturing
Plan (as so approved and, if applicable, changed, the “
Manufacturing
Plan
”). Upon such approval of and, if applicable, such
amendment to the Proposed Manufacturing Plan, the Manufacturing Plan shall
become effective. The Manufacturing Plan shall seek to optimize the
efficiency and output of the Joint Venture Company and shall be updated in
accordance with
Section
3.3
. The Manufacturing Plan shall address [***].
3.2
Quarterly Statement
Regarding Anticipated Share of Manufacturing Capacity
. No
later than [***] days (or such other number of days as may be agreed in writing
by the Parties) prior to the end of each Fiscal Quarter (commencing with the
[***]), the Joint Venture Company shall deliver to each Purchaser a statement
setting forth such Purchaser's anticipated share of the Manufacturing Capacity
of the Joint Venture Company [***] Fiscal Quarters (or such other period or
periods as may be agreed in writing by the Parties), based on,
[***].
3.3
Quarterly
Planning and
Forecasting
.
(a)
At a
point in each Fiscal Quarter as agreed in writing by the Parties (commencing
with the [***]), each Purchaser shall provide the Joint Venture Company with a
written non-binding forecast of such Purchaser’s demand (a “
Demand Forecast
”) for the next
[***] (or such other period or periods as may be agreed in writing by the
Parties). All Demand Forecasts [***].
(b)
The Joint
Venture Company shall furnish each Purchaser with a written response within
[***] (or such other number of days as may be agreed in writing by the Parties)
of receiving such Purchaser’s Demand Forecast, indicating its Manufacturing
Capacity during the period covered by such Demand Forecast [***] outlined in
such Demand Forecast that the Joint Venture Company can commit to
deliver. This written response (the “
Planning Forecast
”) shall
include:
[***]
(c)
Based on
the Planning Forecasts (and, during the Ramp Down Period, the Ramp Down Wafer
Starts (as defined in the IMI/Qimonda Supply Agreement)), the Joint Venture
Company shall develop a proposed Loading Plan (the “
Proposed Loading Plan
”) for
the next [***] Fiscal Quarters (or such other period or periods as
may be agreed in writing by the Parties). The Joint Venture Company
shall provide each Purchaser with the Proposed Loading Plan at least [***] (or
such other number of days as may be agreed in writing by the Parties) prior to
its review by the Manufacturing Committee.
(d)
The Joint
Venture Company shall submit the Proposed Loading Plan, Planning Forecasts and
other requested information to the Manufacturing Committee for its
approval. The Manufacturing Committee may approve the Proposed
Loading Plan as submitted or may condition its approval on the Joint Venture
Company making changes to the Proposed Loading Plan, in which case the Joint
Venture Company shall make such changes to the Proposed Loading
Plan. Upon such approval of and, if applicable, such changes to the
Proposed Loading Plan, the Manufacturing Plan shall be changed to conform to the
Proposed Loading Plan, as so approved and, if applicable, changed.
3.4
[***]
3.5
Loading
Modifications
. The Joint Venture Company may, from time to
time, submit to the Manufacturing Committee for its approval recommendations for
loading wafers in a manner other than as set forth in the Manufacturing
Plan. If such recommendations are approved by the Manufacturing
Committee, notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the Joint Venture
Company shall load wafers in accordance with such
recommendations. The Manufacturing Committee may, from time to time,
and shall at least monthly, consider loading modifications and may, from time to
time and at any time, require that wafers be loaded in a manner other than as
set forth in the Manufacturing Plan, in which case, notwithstanding anything
herein to the contrary, the Joint Venture Company shall load wafers as so
required rather than as set forth in the Manufacturing Plan.
3.6
Manufacturing Committee
Deadlock
. If the Manufacturing Committee does not agree on
whether to approve or how to change a Proposed Manufacturing Plan or a Proposed
Loading Plan or if a member of the Manufacturing Committee requests that wafers
be loaded in a manner other than as set forth in the Manufacturing Plan and the
Manufacturing Committee does not agree to the manner in which wafers should be
loaded, then the Joint Venture Company [***].
3.7
Monthly
Reports
.
(a)
[***]
Reports
. Within [***](or such other number of days as may be
agreed in writing by the Parties) [***], the Joint Venture Company shall deliver
to each Purchaser a report (each, a “[***]
Report
”) which shall
include:
[***]
Neither
Purchaser will use or disclose the [***] Reports, or the contents thereof,
received by such Purchaser in contravention of any Applicable Law.
(b)
[***]
Report
. [***]
days (or such other number of days as may be agreed in writing by the Parties)
after the end of each Fiscal Month, the Joint Venture Company shall deliver to
each Purchaser a report [***] (the “[***]
Report
”), which shall
include:
(i)
a
comparison of [***];
(ii)
a summary
of [***];
(iii)
a
description of [***] and
(iv)
a
description [***].
(c)
[***]
Reports
. [***]
days (or such other number of days as may be agreed in writing by the Parties)
after the end of each Fiscal Month, each Purchaser shall deliver to the Joint
Venture Company a report (each, a “[***]
Report
”), which shall [***]
The Joint Venture Company will not use or disclose the [***] Reports, or the
contents thereof, received by the Joint Venture Company in contravention of any
Applicable Law.
3.8
Performance
Reviews
.
(a)
The Joint
Venture Company shall hold a monthly meeting with the Manufacturing Committee,
the primary purposes of which shall be to review and discuss the most recent
[***] Report and the Performance Criteria and to mutually agree on operational
adjustments if necessary.
(b)
Each
Purchaser (separately) and the Joint Venture Company shall hold a monthly
meeting to review and discuss (i) at the election of such Purchaser, the most
recent [***] Report received by such Purchaser, and (ii) at the election of the
Joint Venture Company, the most recent [***] Report delivered by such
Purchaser.
(c)
The
monthly meetings required by this
Section 3.8
shall be
held on dates to be agreed in writing by the Parties intended to attend such
meetings;
provided
that
(i) the meeting required by
Section 3.8(a)
shall
not be held prior to the delivery of the [***] Report by the Joint Venture
Company, and (ii) the meetings required by
Section 3.8(b)
shall
not be held prior to the delivery of the [***] Report and the applicable [***]
Report by the Joint Venture Company and the delivery of the [***] Report by the
applicable Purchaser.
3.9
Restrictions on Access to
Pricing Information; Nonsolicitation of Segregated
Employees
.
(a)
The Joint
Venture Company shall prevent any Person that is not a Segregated Employee from
obtaining access to the [***] (including the [***] Reports), or the data from
which [***] is derived from, delivered to, or created by, the Joint Venture
Company under this Agreement, except (i) as the Parties may otherwise agree in
writing, (ii) as may be required by legal process under Applicable Law, and
(iii) that the Joint Venture Company may provide (A) a Purchaser with its [***]
Reports and the Proforma Invoices and [***] delivered to such Purchaser under
Section 4.9
,
and the data from which such [***] Reports, Proforma Invoices, [***] or [***]
are derived, (B) any independent Third Party auditor acting as contemplated by
Section 5.3
with such information as such auditor may request that is reasonably relevant to
the applicable inspection and audit, and (C) the Joint Venture Company’s
independent outside auditors with such information as such auditor may
reasonably request in connection with its audit of the Joint Venture Company’s
financial statements and other statutory audit requirements (the items in
clauses (i), (ii) and (iii) being referred to as the "
Permitted
Disclosures
"). Without limiting the generality of the
foregoing, the Joint Venture Company shall (x) develop, maintain, implement and
enforce policies that (A) prohibit all Segregated Employees from
disclosing, or allowing disclosure of, [***] (including the [***] Reports) to
Persons that are not Segregated Employees, other than the Permitted Disclosures
and (B) require all Segregated Employees to store all physical files related to
[***] (including the [***] Reports) in secure locations that are not accessible
by non-Segregated Employees, (y) segregate the office space of the Segregated
Employees from other employees of the Joint Venture Company, and (z) maintain
all electronic files containing [***] (including the [***] Reports) in
confidential password protected files. Neither Purchaser shall take
any action that reasonably should be expected to cause the Joint Venture Company
to violate this
Section
3.9
.
(b)
Even if
permitted under
Section 8.4
of
the Joint Venture Agreement, the Purchasers shall not, and shall cause their
respective Affiliates not to, directly or indirectly recruit, solicit or hire,
or make arrangements to recruit, solicit or hire, any current or former
Segregated Employee during the Restriction Period.
ARTICLE
4
PURCHASE AND SALE OF
PRODUCTS
4.1
Product
Quantity
.
(a)
During
the Transition Period, except as otherwise provided in
Section 2.1(b)
,
Micron shall purchase from the Joint Venture Company [***]. During
the Transition Period, NTC shall purchase from the Joint Venture Company
[***].
(b)
Micron
shall purchase from the Joint Venture Company [***].
(c)
Notwithstanding
anything in
Sections
4.1(a)
and
4.1(b)
to the
contrary, the Joint Venture Company shall manufacture for and deliver to the
Purchasers Conforming Wafers in quantities other than as contemplated by
Sections 4.1(a)
and
4.1(b)
upon
receiving, and in accordance with, joint written instructions from the
Purchasers setting forth a new allocation of Conforming Wafers between the
Purchasers.
4.2
Secondary Silicon and
Scrapped Wafers
.
(a)
At the
direction and option of Micron, the Joint Venture Company shall deliver to
Micron all Secondary Silicon produced by the Joint Venture Company (i) from
wafers designated from Wafer Start for Micron in accordance with
Section 2.4
and (ii)
in the case of Shared Design ID Wafers, the portion thereof allocated to Micron
in accordance with
Section 2.4
. At
the direction and option of Micron, the Joint Venture Company shall deliver to
Micron all scrapped wafers produced by the Joint Venture Company (x) from wafers
designated from Wafer Start for Micron and Qimonda in accordance with
Section 2.4
and (y)
in the case of Shared Design ID Wafers, the portion thereof allocated to Micron
and Qimonda in accordance with
Section 2.4
.
(b)
At the
direction and option of NTC, the Joint Venture Company shall deliver to NTC all
Secondary Silicon produced by the Joint Venture Company (i) from wafers
designated from Wafer Start for NTC in accordance with
Section 2.4
and (ii)
in the case of Shared Design ID Wafers, the portion thereof allocated to NTC in
accordance with
Section
2.4
. At the direction and option of NTC, the Joint Venture
Company shall deliver to NTC all scrapped wafers produced by the Joint Venture
Company (x) from wafers designated from Wafer Start for NTC in accordance with
Section 2.4
and
(y) in the case of Shared Design ID Wafers, the portion thereof allocated to NTC
in accordance with
Section
2.4
.
4.3
Engineering
Wafers
. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, to
the extent requested in any Purchase Order placed, or any change order to a
Purchase Order issued, by a Purchaser, the Joint Venture Company shall
manufacture and deliver Engineering Wafers in lieu of Conforming
Wafers. The Manufacturing Capacity required to manufacture each
Engineering Wafer shall be deemed to equal [***] of the Manufacturing Capacity
required to manufacture a Conforming Wafer of the same Design ID. The
Joint Venture Company shall promptly provide each Purchaser with full access to
all data it reasonably requests relating to Engineering Wafers that are being
manufactured by the Joint Venture Company for such Purchaser.
4.4
Placement of Purchase
Orders
. Prior to the commencement of every Fiscal Month or
such other time period as agreed in writing by the Parties, each Purchaser shall
place a non-cancelable blanket purchase order (each such order, a “
Purchase Order
”) for the
quantity, by Design ID, of Conforming Wafers and Engineering Wafers to be
supplied to it by the Joint Venture Company in the upcoming Fiscal
Month. [***] The terms and conditions of this Agreement
supersede the terms and conditions contained in any Party’s sales or purchase
documentation provided in connection herewith unless expressly agreed otherwise
in a writing signed by each Party.
4.5
Content of Purchase
Orders
. Each Purchase Order shall specify the following
items:
(a)
the
Purchase Order number;
(b)
the
Design ID of each Conforming Wafer and of each Engineering Wafer;
(c)
by Design
ID, [***];
(d)
[***];
(e)
[***];
(f)
special
instructions for manufacturing Engineering Wafers, if any;
(g)
by Design
ID, [***];
(h)
by Design
ID, the place of delivery; and
(i)
other
terms (if any).
The Joint
Venture Company shall not use or disclose the Purchaser Orders, or the contents
thereof, received by the Joint Venture Company in contravention of any
Applicable Law.
4.6
Acceptance of Purchase
Order
. Each Purchase Order that (a) is consistent with the
Boundary Conditions, (b) corresponds to the Manufacturing Plan in the manner
contemplated by
Section 4.4
, and (c)
is otherwise free of errors, shall be deemed accepted by the Joint Venture
Company upon receipt and shall be binding on the Joint Venture Company and the
applicable Purchaser to the extent not inconsistent with the Boundary Conditions
and the Manufacturing Plan.
4.7
Shortfall; Excess
Output
.
(a)
The Joint
Venture Company shall immediately notify the applicable Purchaser in writing of
any inability to meet a Purchase Order commitment to such
Purchaser. In such an event, such Purchaser shall accept delivery of
such lesser quantities the Joint Venture Company is able to ship and issue to
the Joint Venture Company a revised Purchase Order to account for such
shortfall.
(b)
The Joint
Venture Company shall immediately notify the applicable Purchaser in writing if
the output to be purchased by such Purchaser under this Agreement will exceed,
for any Design ID, the quantity of Conforming Wafers contained in such
Purchaser’s Purchase Order. In such an event, such Purchaser shall
accept delivery of the additional quantities and issue to the Joint Venture
Company a supplementary Purchase Order to cover such excess.
4.8
Taxes
.
(a)
General
. All
sales, use and other transfer taxes imposed directly on or solely as a result of
the supplying of Conforming Wafers and Engineering Wafers to a Purchaser and the
payments therefor provided herein shall be stated separately on the Joint
Venture Company’s Proforma Invoices and Final Price Adjustment Memos, collected
from such Purchaser and shall be remitted by the Joint Venture Company to the
appropriate tax authority (
“Recoverable Taxes”
), unless
such Purchaser provides valid proof of tax exemption prior to the effective date
of the transfer of the Conforming Wafers and Engineering Wafers or otherwise as
permitted by Applicable Law prior to the time the Joint Venture Company is
required to pay such taxes to the appropriate tax authority. When
property is delivered and/or services are provided, or the benefit of services
occurs, within jurisdictions in which collection of taxes from a Purchaser and
remittance of taxes by the Joint Venture Company is required by Applicable Law,
the Joint Venture Company shall have sole responsibility for payment of said
taxes to the appropriate tax authorities. In the event such taxes are
Recoverable Taxes and the Joint Venture Company does not collect tax from such
Purchaser, or pay such taxes to the appropriate governmental entity on a timely
basis, and is subsequently audited by any tax authority, liability of such
Purchaser shall be limited to the tax assessment for such Recoverable Taxes with
no reimbursement for penalty or interest charges or other amounts incurred in
connection therewith. Notwithstanding anything herein to the
contrary, taxes other than Recoverable Taxes shall not be reimbursed by either
Purchaser, and each Party is responsible for its own respective income taxes
(including franchise and other taxes based on net income or a variation
thereof), taxes based upon gross revenues or receipts and taxes with respect to
general overhead, including business and occupation taxes, and such taxes shall
not be Recoverable Taxes.
(b)
Withholding
Taxes
. In the event that a Purchaser is prohibited by
Applicable Law from making payments to the Joint Venture Company unless such
Purchaser deducts or withholds taxes therefrom and remits such taxes to the
local taxing jurisdiction, then such Purchaser shall duly withhold and remit
such taxes and shall pay to the Joint Venture Company the remaining net amount
after the taxes have been withheld. Such taxes shall not be
Recoverable Taxes and such Purchaser shall not reimburse the Joint Venture
Company for the amount of such taxes withheld.
4.9
Invoicing;
Payment
.
(a)
Along
with each delivery of Conforming Wafers or Engineering Wafers to a Purchaser,
the Joint Venture Company shall invoice such Purchaser for the
aggregate [***] Price of the Conforming Wafers and Engineering Wafers
contained in such delivery (a “
Proforma
Invoice
”).
(b)
No later
than [***] days (or such other number of days as may be agreed in writing by the
Parties) prior to the end of each Delivery Month, each Purchaser shall deliver
to the Joint Venture Company a statement setting forth such Purchaser’s
estimates of [***] and, at the end of such Delivery Month, the Joint Venture
Company shall deliver to such Purchaser a statement setting forth [***] (the
“
Estimated Final Price
Statement
”).
(c)
No later
than [***] (or such other number of days as may be agreed in writing by the
Parties) after the delivery by both Purchasers to the Joint Venture Company of
their respective [***] Reports with respect to any Delivery Month, the Joint
Venture Company shall issue a credit or debit memo (the "
Final Price Adjustment Memo
")
as appropriate to such Purchaser in an [***].
(d)
During
the Ramp Down Period, each Final Price Adjustment Memo issued to Micron by the
Joint Venture Company shall be accompanied by a separate credit or debit memo
(the “[***]”) as appropriate in an [***].
(e)
Except as
otherwise specified in this Agreement, each Purchaser shall pay the Joint
Venture Company for the amounts due and owing by, and duly invoiced in a
Proforma Invoice or a Final Price Adjustment Memo (or, in the case of Micron, a
[***]) to, such Purchaser within [***] days following delivery to such Purchaser
of both the Proforma Invoice and Final Price Adjustment Memo (and, in the case
of Micron, the [***]) therefor or, if longer, within [***] days following the
end of the Delivery Month covered thereby. All amounts owed under
this Agreement are stated, calculated and shall be paid in United States
Dollars.
4.10
Payment to
Subcontractors
. The Joint Venture Company shall be responsible
for, and shall hold the Purchasers harmless from and against, any and all
payments to the vendors or subcontractors the Joint Venture Company utilizes in
the performance of this Agreement.
4.11
Title; Risk of
Loss
. Title to, and risk of loss of, Conforming Wafers,
Engineering Wafers, Secondary Silicon and scrapped wafers shall pass to
Purchasers [***] according to Incoterms 2000, as amended.
4.12
Packaging
. All
shipment packaging of the Conforming Wafers, Engineering Wafers, Secondary
Silicon and scrapped wafers shall be in conformance with the Specifications, the
applicable Purchaser’s reasonable instructions and general industry standards,
and shall be resistant to damage that may occur during
transportation. Marking on the packages shall be made by the Joint
Venture Company in accordance with the applicable Purchaser’s reasonable
instructions.
4.13
Shipment
. All
Conforming Wafers, Engineering Wafers, Secondary Silicon and scrapped wafers
shall be prepared for shipment in a manner that: (a) follows
good commercial practice; (b) is acceptable to common carriers for shipment at
the lowest rate; and (c) is adequate to ensure safe arrival. The
Joint Venture Company shall mark all containers with (w) necessary lifting,
handling and shipping information; (x) Purchase Order number; (y) date of
shipment; and (z) the name of the applicable Purchaser. If no
instructions are given, the Joint Venture Company shall select the most price
effective carrier, given the time constraints known to the Joint Venture
Company. At a Purchaser’s request, the Joint Venture Company shall
provide drop-shipment of Conforming Wafers, Engineering Wafers, Secondary
Silicon and scrapped wafers to such Purchaser’s customers, contractors or
vendors. Such shipment service may be provided by a subcontractor to
the Joint Venture Company provided that title remains with the Joint Venture
Company and then passes to such Purchaser upon tender to the
carrier. In no event shall the Joint Venture Company be obligated to
maintain any significant inventory for the Purchasers.
4.14
Customs
Clearance
. Upon a Purchaser’s request, the Joint Venture
Company shall promptly provide such Purchaser with a statement of origin, and
applicable customs documentation, for Conforming Wafers, Engineering Wafers,
Secondary Silicon and scrapped wafers wholly or partially manufactured outside
of the country of import.
ARTICLE
5
VISITATIONS;
AUDITS
5.1
Visits
. The
Joint Venture Company shall accommodate each Purchaser’s reasonable requests for
visits to the Joint Venture Company’s fabs and for meetings for the purpose of
reviewing performance of production of Conforming Wafers, including requests for
further information and assistance in troubleshooting performance
issues.
5.2
Audit
. A
Purchaser’s representatives and key customer representatives, upon such
Purchaser’s request, shall be allowed to visit the Joint Venture Company’s fabs
during normal working hours upon reasonable advance written notice to the Joint
Venture Company for the purposes of monitoring production processes and
compliance with any requirements set forth in this Agreement applicable to the
supply to such Purchaser and the Specifications. Upon completion of
the audit, the Joint Venture Company and such Purchaser shall agree to an audit
closure plan, to be documented in the audit report issued by such
Purchaser.
5.3
Financial
Audit
.
(a)
Micron
reserves the right to have the Joint Venture Company’s books and records related
to Pricing of the Conforming Wafers delivered to Micron during both the then
current Fiscal Year and the prior Fiscal Year inspected and audited not more
than [***] during any Fiscal Year to ensure compliance with
Schedule
4.9
. Such audit shall be performed, at Micron’s expense, by an
independent Third Party auditor acceptable to both Micron and the Joint Venture
Company. Micron shall provide [***] days advance written notice to
the Joint Venture Company of its desire to initiate an audit, and the audit
shall be scheduled so that it does not adversely impact or interrupt the Joint
Venture Company’s business operations. If the audit reveals any
material discrepancies, Micron or the Joint Venture Company shall reimburse the
other, as applicable, for any material discrepancies within [***] days after
completion of the audit. The nature and extent of the discrepancies
identified by the audit shall be reported to Micron and the Joint Venture
Company. Notwithstanding the foregoing, auditor reports shall not
disclose pricing, or terms of purchase, for any purchases of materials or
equipment by the Joint Venture Company, absent written agreement from the
respective legal counsel of Micron and the Joint Venture Company. If
any audit reveals a material discrepancy requiring a payment by the Joint
Venture Company, Micron may increase the frequency of such audits to [***] for
the [***] month period. If any such audit reveals any discrepancy,
the Joint Venture Company shall notify NTC of (i) the existence of such
discrepancy, (ii) whether such discrepancy was found in the computation of the
[***], and (iii) the aggregate amount of the discrepancy by category
([***]). Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Joint Venture Company
shall not disclose any Pricing information to NTC to the extent such disclosure
would violate Applicable Law.
(b)
NTC
reserves the right to have the Joint Venture Company’s books and records related
to Pricing of the Conforming Wafers delivered to NTC during both the then
current Fiscal Year and the prior Fiscal Year inspected and audited not more
than [***] during any Fiscal Year to ensure compliance with
Schedule
4.9
. Such audit shall be performed, at NTC’s expense, by an
independent Third Party auditor acceptable to both NTC and the Joint Venture
Company. NTC shall provide [***] days advance written notice to the
Joint Venture Company of its desire to initiate an audit, and the audit shall be
scheduled so that it does not adversely impact or interrupt the Joint Venture
Company’s business operations. If the audit reveals any material
discrepancies, NTC or the Joint Venture Company shall reimburse the other, as
applicable, for any material discrepancies within [***] days after completion of
the audit. The nature and extent of the discrepancies identified by
the audit shall be reported to NTC and the Joint Venture
Company. Notwithstanding the foregoing, auditor reports shall not
disclose pricing, or terms of purchase, for any purchases of materials or
equipment by the Joint Venture Company, absent written agreement from the
respective legal counsel of NTC and the Joint Venture Company. If any
audit reveals a material discrepancy requiring a payment by the Joint Venture
Company, NTC may increase the frequency of such audits to [***] for the [***]
month period. If any such audit reveals any discrepancy, the Joint
Venture Company shall notify Micron of (i) the existence of such discrepancy,
(ii) whether such discrepancy was found in the computation of the [***], and
(iii) the aggregate amount of the discrepancy by category (
i.e.
,
[***]). Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Joint Venture Company
shall not disclose any Pricing information to Micron to the extent such
disclosure would violate Applicable Law.
(c)
The Joint
Venture Company reserves the right to have a Purchaser’s (the “
Audited Purchaser’s
”) books
and records related to the Audited Purchaser’s Pricing Report for both the then
current Fiscal Year and the prior Fiscal Year inspected and audited not more
than [***] during any Fiscal Year to ensure compliance with
Schedule
4.9
. Such audit shall be performed, at the Joint Venture
Company’s expense, by an independent Third Party auditor acceptable to both the
Joint Venture Company and the Audited Purchaser. The Joint Venture
Company shall provide [***] days advance written notice to the Audited Purchaser
of its desire to initiate an audit, and the audit shall be scheduled so that it
does not adversely impact or interrupt the Audited Purchaser’s business
operations. If the audit reveals any material discrepancies, the
Audited Purchaser or the Joint Venture Company shall reimburse the other, as
applicable, for any material discrepancies within [***] days after completion of
the audit. The nature and extent of the discrepancies identified by
the audit shall be reported to the Audited Purchaser and the Joint Venture
Company. Notwithstanding the foregoing, auditor reports shall not
disclose (i) pricing, or terms of purchase, for any purchases of materials or
equipment by the Audited Purchaser, (ii) the back end component and module
assembly, packaging and testing costs of the Audited Purchaser, or (iii) the
terms of sales of DRAM Products by the Audited Purchaser, absent written
agreement from the respective legal counsel of the Audited Purchaser and the
Joint Venture Company. If any audit reveals a material discrepancy
requiring a payment by the Audited Purchaser, the Joint Venture Company may
increase the frequency of such audits to [***] for the subsequent
[***]. If any such audit reveals any discrepancy, the Joint Venture
Company shall notify the Purchaser that is not the Audited Purchaser of (i) the
existence of such discrepancy, (ii) whether such discrepancy was found in the
computation of [***], and (iii) the aggregate amount of the discrepancy by
category (
i.e.
,
[***]). Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Joint Venture Company
shall not disclose any Pricing information to the Purchaser that is not the
Audited Purchaser to the extent such disclosure would violate Applicable
Law.
(d)
Pricing
information as to which audit rights under this
Section 5.3
have
expired shall be deemed final and conclusive for all purposes (absent fraud or
willful misconduct), except to the extent that (i) an audit with respect thereto
has been commenced under this
Section 5.3
prior to
such expiration and (ii) the process under this
Section 5.3
has not
been fully completed with respect to such audit.
5.4
Micron Financial Audit
Rights with Respect to the [***]
. Micron reserves the right to
have the Joint Venture Company’s books and records related to the [***]
delivered to Micron inspected and audited not more than twice during any Fiscal
Year to ensure compliance with
Section
4.9
. Such audit shall be performed, at Micron’s expense, by an
independent Third Party auditor acceptable to both Micron and the Joint Venture
Company. Micron shall provide [***] written notice to the Joint
Venture Company of its desire to initiate an audit, and the audit shall be
scheduled so that it does not adversely impact or interrupt the Joint Venture
Company’s business operations. If the audit reveals any material
discrepancies, Micron or the Joint Venture Company shall reimburse the other, as
applicable, for any material discrepancies [***] after completion of the
audit. The nature and extent of the discrepancies identified by the
audit shall be reported to Micron and the Joint Venture Company. If
any audit reveals a material discrepancy requiring a payment by the Joint
Venture Company, Micron may increase the frequency of such audits to once per
Fiscal Quarter.
ARTICLE
6
WARRANTY; HAZARDOUS
SUBSTANCES; DISCLAIMER
6.1
Warranties
.
(a)
Conforming
Wafers
. The Joint Venture Company makes the following
warranties to the Purchaser of Conforming Wafers hereunder regarding the
Conforming Wafers furnished to such Purchaser hereunder, which warranties shall
survive any delivery, inspection, acceptance, payment or resale of such
Conforming Wafers:
(i)
such
Conforming Wafers conform to all agreed Specifications;
(ii)
such
Conforming Wafers are free from defects in materials and workmanship;
and
(iii)
the Joint
Venture Company has the necessary right, title and interest to such Conforming
Wafers, and, upon the sale of such Conforming Wafers to the applicable
Purchaser, such Conforming Wafers shall be free of liens and
encumbrances.
(b)
Engineering Wafers,
Secondary Silicon and Scrapped Wafers
. ALL ENGINEERING WAFERS,
SECONDARY SILICON AND SCRAPPED WAFERS PROVIDED HEREUNDER ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS
IS,” “WHERE IS” BASIS WITH ALL FAULTS AND DEFECTS WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY
KIND.
6.2
Warranty
Claims
. Within a period of time, [***] (“
Warranty Claim Period
”), such
Purchaser shall notify the Joint Venture Company if it believes that any
Conforming Wafer does not meet the warranty set forth in
Section
6.1
. Such Purchaser shall return such Conforming Wafer (or
DRAM Product therefrom) to the Joint Venture Company as directed by the Joint
Venture Company. If a Conforming Wafer is determined not to be in
compliance with such warranty, then such Purchaser shall be entitled to return
such Conforming Wafer (or DRAM Product therefrom) and receive a credit (or, if
this Agreement has or is terminating with respect to such Purchaser so that it
will not be able to use such credit, a refund) equal to the sum of (a) any
monies paid to the Joint Venture Company by the Purchaser in respect of such
Conforming Wafer [***].
6.3
Inspections
. Each
Purchaser may, upon reasonable advance written notice, request samples of WIP
designated to such Purchaser (whether individually as contemplated by
Section 2.4(b)
or
together with others as contemplated by
Section 2.4(a)
)
during production for purposes of determining compliance with the requirements
and Specification(s) hereunder,
provided
that the provision
of such samples shall not materially impact the Joint Venture Company’s
performance under the Manufacturing Plan or its ability to meet delivery
requirements under any accepted Purchase Order. Any samples provided
hereunder shall be: (a) limited in quantity to the amount
reasonably necessary for the purposes hereunder; (b) invoiced and paid for
in accordance with
Section 4.9
; and (c)
included in any performance requirements. The Joint Venture Company
shall provide reasonable assistance for the safety and convenience of the
requesting Purchaser in obtaining the samples in such manner as shall not
unreasonably hinder or delay the Joint Venture Company’s
performance.
6.4
Hazardous
Substances
.
(a)
If
Conforming Wafers, Engineering Wafers, Secondary Silicon, scrapped wafers or
DRAM Products provided hereunder include Hazardous Substances as determined in
accordance with Applicable Law, the Joint Venture Company shall ensure that its
employees, agents and subcontractors actually working with such materials in
providing the Conforming Wafers, Engineering Wafers, Secondary Silicon, scrapped
wafers or DRAM Products hereunder to the Purchasers are trained in accordance
with Applicable Law regarding the nature of, and hazards associated with, the
handling, transportation and use of such Hazardous Substances.
(b)
To the
extent required by Applicable Law, the Joint Venture Company shall provide each
Purchaser with Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) either prior to or
accompanying any delivery of Conforming Wafers, Engineering Wafers, Secondary
Silicon, scrapped wafers or DRAM Products to such Purchaser.
(c)
The Joint
Venture Company shall indemnify, defend and hold harmless each Purchaser from
and against any and all Indemnified Losses suffered or incurred by such
Purchaser based on, relating to, or arising under any Environmental Laws and
related to the manufacture of Conforming Wafers, Engineering Wafers, Secondary
Silicon, scrapped wafers or DRAM Products by the Joint Venture
Company.
6.5
Disclaimer
. [***]
ARTICLE
7
CONFIDENTIALITY;
OWNERSHIP
7.1
Protection and Use of
Confidential Information
. All information provided, disclosed
or obtained in the performance of any of the Parties’ activities under this
Agreement shall be subject to all applicable provisions of the Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement. Furthermore, the terms and conditions of
this Agreement shall be considered “Confidential Information” under the Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement for which each Party is considered a “
Receiving Party
” under such
agreement. To the extent there is a conflict between this Agreement
and the Mutual Confidentiality Agreement, the terms of this Agreement shall
control.
7.2
Masks for Stack DRAM
Products
. Any masks used by the Joint Venture Company to
manufacture Stack DRAM Products under this Agreement shall be based on Stack
DRAM Designs owned by a Purchaser
and shall be treated as
“Confidential Information” of such Purchaser under the Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement.
ARTICLE
8
INDEMNIFICATION
8.1
General
Indemnity
. Subject to
Article
9
:
(a)
the Joint
Venture Company shall indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Purchaser
Indemnified Parties from and against any and all Indemnified Losses based on, or
attributable to, [***]
(b)
Micron
shall indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Joint Venture Company from and
against any and all Indemnified Losses based on, or attributable to, [***];
and
(c)
NTC shall
indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Joint Venture Company from and against
any and all Indemnified Losses based on, or attributable to, [***].
8.2
Indemnification
Procedures
.
(a)
Promptly
after the receipt by any Purchaser Indemnified Party or the Joint Venture
Company (an “
Indemnified
Party
”) of a notice of any Third Party Claim that may be subject to
indemnification under
Section 8.1
, such
Indemnified Party shall give written notice of such Third Party Claim to the
Party obligated to provide such indemnification under
Section 8.1
(an
“
Indemnifying Party
”),
stating in reasonable detail the nature and basis of each allegation made in the
Third Party Claim and the amount of potential Indemnified Losses with respect to
each allegation, to the extent known, along with copies of the relevant
documents received by the Indemnified Party evidencing the Third Party Claim and
the basis for indemnification sought. Failure of the Indemnified
Party to give such notice shall not relieve the Indemnifying Party from
liability on account of this indemnification, except if, and only to the extent
that, the Indemnifying Party is actually prejudiced by such failure or
delay. Thereafter, the Indemnified Party shall deliver to the
Indemnifying Party, promptly after the Indemnified Party’s receipt
thereof,
copies of all notices and documents (including court papers) received by the
Indemnified Party relating to the Third Party Claim. The Indemnifying
Party shall have the right to assume the defense of the Indemnified Party with
respect to such Third Party Claim upon written notice to the Indemnified Party
delivered within [***] days after receipt of the particular notice from the
Indemnified Party. So long as the Indemnifying Party has assumed the
defense of the Third Party Claim in accordance herewith and notified the
Indemnified Party in writing thereof, (i) the Indemnified Party may retain
separate co-counsel, at its sole cost and expense, and participate in the
defense of the Third Party Claim, it being understood that the Indemnifying
Party shall pay all reasonable costs and expenses of counsel for the Indemnified
Party after such time as the Indemnified Party has notified the Indemnifying
Party of such Third Party Claim and prior to such time as the Indemnifying Party
has notified the Indemnified Party that it has assumed the defense of such Third
Party Claim, (ii) the Indemnified Party shall not consent to the entry of any
judgment or enter into any settlement with respect to a Third Party Claim
without the prior written consent of the Indemnifying Party (not to be
unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed) and (iii) the Indemnifying Party
shall not consent to the entry of any judgment or enter into any settlement with
respect to the Third Party Claim (other than a judgment or settlement that is
solely for money damages and is accompanied by a release of all indemnifiable
claims against the Indemnified Party) without the prior written consent of the
Indemnified Party (not to be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or
delayed).
(b)
Equitable
Remedies
. In the case of any Third Party Claim where the
Indemnifying Party reasonably believes that it would be appropriate to settle
such Third Party Claim using equitable remedies (
i.e.
, remedies involving
future activity of the Indemnified Party), the Indemnifying Party and the
Indemnified Party shall work together in good faith to agree to a settlement;
provided
,
however
, that no Party shall
be under any obligation to agree to any such settlement.
(c)
Treatment of Indemnification
Payments; Insurance Recoveries
. Any indemnity payment under
this Agreement shall be decreased by any amounts actually recovered by the
Indemnified Party under Third Party insurance policies with respect to such
Indemnified Losses (net of any premiums paid by such Indemnified Party under the
relevant insurance policy). Each Party agrees (i) to use all
reasonable efforts to recover all available insurance proceeds and (ii) to the
extent that any indemnity payment under this Agreement has been paid by the
Indemnifying Party to the Indemnified Party prior to the recovery by the
Indemnified Party of such insurance proceeds, the amount of such insurance
proceeds actually recovered by the Indemnified Party shall be promptly paid to
the Indemnifying Party.
(d)
Certain Additional
Procedures
. The Indemnified Party shall cooperate and assist
the Indemnifying Party in determining the validity of any Third Party Claim and
in otherwise resolving such matters. The Indemnified Party shall
cooperate in the defense by the Indemnifying Party of each Third Party Claim
(and the Indemnified Party and the Indemnifying Party agree with respect to all
such Third Party Claims that a common interest privilege agreement exists
between them), including: (i) permitting the Indemnifying Party to
discuss the Third Party Claim with such officers, employees, consultants and
representatives of the Indemnified Party as the Indemnifying Party reasonably
requests; (ii) providing to the Indemnifying Party copies of documents and
samples of products as the Indemnifying Party reasonably requests in connection
with defending such Third Party Claim; (iii) preserving all
properties,
books, records, papers, documents, plans, drawings, electronic mail and
databases of the Indemnifying Party and relating to matters pertinent to the
conduct of the Indemnifying Party under the Indemnified Party’s custody or
control in accordance with such Party’s corporate documents retention policies,
or longer to the extent reasonably requested by the Indemnifying Party; (iv)
notifying the Indemnifying Party promptly of receipt by the Indemnified Party of
any subpoena or other Third Party request for documents or interviews and
testimony; (v) providing to the Indemnifying Party copies of any documents
produced by the Indemnified Party in response to or compliance with any subpoena
or other Third Party request for documents; and (vi) except to the extent
inconsistent with the Indemnified Party’s obligations under Applicable Law and
except to the extent that to do so would subject the Indemnified Party or its
employees, agents or representatives to criminal or civil sanctions, unless
ordered by a court to do otherwise, not producing documents to a Third Party
until the Indemnifying Party has been provided a reasonable opportunity to
review, copy and assert privileges covering such documents.
ARTICLE
9
LIMITATION OF
LIABILITY
9.1
Damages
Limitation
. [***].
9.2
Exclusions
.
Section 9.1
shall not
apply to
Section 6.4(c)
or to any Party’s breach of
Article
7
.
9.3
Mitigation
. Each
Party shall have a duty to use commercially reasonable efforts to mitigate
damages for which another Party is responsible.
ARTICLE
10
TERM AND
TERMINATION;
SUPPLY OBLIGATIONS FOLLOWING
TRIGGERING EVENT
10.1
Term
.
(a)
Micron
Term
. With respect to Micron, the term of this Agreement (the
“
Micron Term
”) commences
on the Closing Date and continues in effect until the date of
[***].
(b)
NTC
Term
. With respect to NTC, the term of this Agreement (the
“
NTC Term
”) commences on
the Closing Date and continues in effect until the date of [***].
10.2
Termination
. This
Agreement [***] (a) by Micron [***], (b) by NTC for any reason, [***], or (c) by
the Joint Venture Company [***]. Notwithstanding anything herein to
the contrary, upon the occurrence of an [***] (as defined in the Joint Venture
Agreement), [***].
10.3
Joint Venture Company
Requirements at Termination
.
(a)
Within
[***] days after (x) the end of the Micron Term or (y) the termination of this
Agreement pursuant to the last sentence of
Section 10.2
, the
Joint Venture Company:
(i)
shall
destroy all production masks obtained for or on behalf of Micron pursuant to
Section 2.3(b)
;
and
(ii)
shall (A)
destroy all copies and other embodiments of any process technology or
information provided to the Joint Venture Company by Micron, or any portion
thereof, in whatever form received, reproduced or stored, (B) certify to Micron
that such destruction is complete, and (C) cease all use of the process
technology or information provided to the Joint Venture Company by
Micron.
(b)
Within
[***] days after (x) the end of the NTC Term or (y) the termination
of this Agreement pursuant to the last sentence of
Section 10.2
, the
Joint Venture Company:
(i)
shall
destroy all production masks obtained for or on behalf of NTC pursuant to
Section 2.3(b)
;
and
(ii)
shall (A)
destroy all copies and other embodiments of any process technology or
information provided to the Joint Venture Company by NTC, or any portion
thereof, in whatever form received, reproduced or stored, (B) certify to NTC
that such destruction is complete, and (C) cease all use of the process
technology or information provided to the Joint Venture Company by
NTC.
10.4
Survival
.
(a)
Survival of Provisions
Applicable to All Parties
. Termination of this Agreement with
respect to either Purchaser shall not affect any of the Parties’ respective
rights accrued, or obligations owed, before such termination, including any
rights or obligations of the Parties in respect of any accepted Purchase Orders
existing at the time of such termination. In addition, the following
shall survive termination of this Agreement with respect to either Purchaser for
any reason:
Sections
2.7
,
4.2
,
4.5
,
4.8
,
4.9
,
4.10
,
4.11
,
4.12
,
4.13
,
4.14
,
6.1
,
6.2
,
6.4(c)
and
6.5
, and
Articles 7
,
8
,
9
,
10
and
11
.
(b)
Survival of the Agreement
for Non-Terminating Parties
. Upon the termination of this
Agreement with respect to Micron as a result of the expiration of the Micron
Term, this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect as between NTC and
the Joint Venture Company. Upon the termination of this Agreement
with respect to NTC as a result of the expiration of the NTC Term, this
Agreement shall remain in full force and effect as between Micron and the Joint
Venture Company.
ARTICLE
11
MISCELLANEOUS
11.1
Force Majeure
Events
. The Parties shall be excused from any failure to
perform any obligation hereunder to the extent such failure is caused by a Force
Majeure Event. A Force Majeure Event shall operate to excuse a failure to
perform an obligation hereunder only for the period of time during which the
Force Majeure Event renders performance impossible or infeasible and only if the
Party asserting Force Majeure as an excuse for its failure to perform has
provided written notice to, in the event of an assertion by Micron or NTC, the
Joint Venture Company and, in the event of an assertion by the Joint Venture
Company, Micron and NTC specifying the obligation to be excused and describing
the events or conditions constituting the Force Majeure Event.
11.2
Specific
Performance
. The Parties agree that irreparable damage will
result if this Agreement is not performed in accordance with its terms, and the
Parties agree that any damages available under the indemnification provisions or
at law for a breach of this Agreement would not be an adequate
remedy. Therefore, the provisions hereof and the obligations of the
parties hereunder shall be enforceable in a court of equity, or other tribunal
with jurisdiction, by a decree of specific performance, and appropriate
injunctive relief may be applied for and granted in connection
therewith.
11.3
Assignment
. [***].
11.4
Compliance with Laws and
Regulations
. Each of the Parties shall comply with, and shall
use reasonable efforts to require that its respective subcontractors comply
with, Applicable Laws relating to this Agreement and the performance of such
Party’s obligations hereunder.
11.5
Notice
. All notices
and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed given
upon (a) transmitter’s confirmation of a receipt of a facsimile transmission,
(b) confirmation of delivery by a standard overnight or recognized international
carrier, or (c) delivery in person, addressed at the following addresses (or at
such other address for a Party as shall be specified by like
notice):
In the
case of the Joint Venture Company.
Inotera
Memories Inc.
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park
667,
Fuhsing 3rd Road
Kueishan,
Taoyuan
Taiwan,
ROC.
Fax: 886-3-327-2988
Ext. 3385
Attention:
General Counsel
|
|
In
the case of Micron:
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Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000
S. Federal Way
Mail
Stop 1-507
Boise,
ID 83716
Attn:
General Counsel
Facsimile:
(208) 368-4537
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In
the case of NTC:
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Nanya
Technology Corporation
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park 669
Fuhsing
3 RD. Kueishan
Taoyuan,
Taiwan, ROC
Attn: Legal department
Facsimile:
886-3-396-2226
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11.6
Waiver
. The
failure at any time of a Party to require performance by another Party of any
responsibility or obligation required by this Agreement shall in no way affect a
Party’s right to require such performance at any time thereafter, nor shall the
waiver by a Party of a breach of any provision of this Agreement by another
Party constitute a waiver of any other breach of the same or any other provision
nor constitute a waiver of the responsibility or obligation itself.
11.7
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Agreement be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Agreement shall remain in
full force and effect in all other respects. Should any provision of
this Agreement be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Laws or
interpretations thereof, or should this Agreement fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the Parties shall negotiate in good faith appropriate modifications to
this Agreement to reflect those changes that are required by Applicable
Law.
11.8
Third Party
Rights
. Except as expressly provided in
Section 8
, nothing in
this Agreement, whether express or implied, is intended, or shall be construed,
to confer, directly or indirectly, upon or give to any Person, other than the
Parties hereto, any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in
respect of this Agreement or any covenant, condition or other provision
contained herein.
11.9
Amendment
. This
Agreement may not be modified or amended except by a written instrument executed
by, or on behalf of, each of the Parties.
11.10
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement, together with the Schedules hereto
and the agreements and instruments expressly provided for herein (including the
Mutual Confidentiality Agreement), constitute the entire agreement of the
Parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede all prior
agreements and understandings, oral and written, between the Parties with
respect to the subject matter hereof.
11.11
Choice of
Law
. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in
accordance with the laws of the ROC, without giving effect to its conflict of
laws principles.
11.12
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Agreement shall be brought in the Taipei District Court, located in Taipei,
Taiwan, and each of the Parties hereby consents and submits to the exclusive
jurisdiction of such court (and of the appropriate appellate courts therefrom)
in any such suit, action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the fullest
extent permitted by Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or hereafter
have to the laying of the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding in any
such court or that any such suit, action or proceeding which is brought in any
such court has been brought in an inconvenient forum.
11.13
Headings
. The
headings of the Articles and Sections in this Agreement are provided for
convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part
hereof.
11.14
Counterparts
. This
Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed
an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
11.15
Insurance
. Without
limiting or qualifying the Joint Venture Company’s liabilities, obligations or
indemnities otherwise assumed by the Joint Venture Company pursuant to this
Agreement, the Joint Venture Company shall at all times (except as otherwise
stipulated in Appendix I), for so long as this Agreement remains in effect (and
notwithstanding any termination of the Joint Venture Agreement), maintain in
effect insurance of the types and in the amounts set forth on Appendix I or as
otherwise agreed by the Parties from time to time. Such insurance
coverage may be provided through the coverage under one or more insurance
policies maintained by Micron or NTC.
11.16
Initial Implementation of
this Agreement
. The manufacturing plan currently in effect for
the Joint Venture Company shall be deemed to be the initial Manufacturing Plan
hereunder. On the Closing Date, NTC shall be deemed to have placed a
Purchase Order for the quantity, by Design ID, of Conforming Wafers and
Engineering Wafers to be supplied to it by the Joint Venture Company during
December 2008 as indicated in the initial Manufacturing
Plan. Notwithstanding anything in the PPCRA to the contrary, (a) this
Agreement shall govern with respect to any wafers delivered by the Joint Venture
Company to a Purchaser during the period beginning on December 1, 2008 and
ending on the last day of the Micron Term or the NTC Term, as applicable to such
Purchaser, and (b) the PPCRA shall govern with respect to any wafers delivered
by the Joint Venture Company to NTC prior to December 1, 2008.
[SIGNATURE
PAGES FOLLOW]
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been duly executed by, and on behalf of, the
Parties as of the Closing Date.
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INOTERA
MEMORIES, INC.
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By:
/s/ Joseph
Hsieh
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Name: Joseph
Hsieh
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Title: Supervisor
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THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE SUPPLY AGREEMENT ENTERED
INTO
BY AND BETWEEN MICRON, NTC AND
JOINT
VENTURE COMPANY
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MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
|
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By:
/s/ D. Mark
Durcan
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D.
Mark Durcan
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President
and Chief Operating Officer
|
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THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE SUPPLY AGREEMENT ENTERED
INTO
BY AND BETWEEN MICRON, NTC AND
JOINT
VENTURE COMPANY
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NANYA
TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
|
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By:
/s/
Jih
Lien
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Jih
Lien
|
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President
|
THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE SUPPLY AGREEMENT ENTERED
INTO
BY AND BETWEEN MICRON, NTC AND
JOINT
VENTURE COMPANY
EXHIBIT
10.75
[***]
DENOTES CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS OMITTED AND FILED SEPARATELY WITH THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO A REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT
AMENDED
AND RESTATED
JOINT
DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM AGREEMENT
This
AMENDED AND RESTATED
JOINT DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
AGREEMENT
(this “
Agreement
”), is made and
entered into as of this 26th day of November, 2008 (“
Amendment Date
”), by and
between Nanya Technology Corporation
Nanya Technology Corporation
[Translation from Chinese]
, a company incorporated under the laws of the
Republic of China (“
NTC
”), and Micron Technology,
Inc., a Delaware corporation (“
Micron
”). (NTC and
Micron are referred to in this Agreement individually as a “
Party
” and collectively as the
“
Parties
”).
RECITALS
A. The
Parties entered that certain Joint Development Program Agreement dated April 21,
2008 (“
Original
Agreement
”) in connection with the formation of MeiYa Technology
Corporation, a company-limited-by-shares incorporated under the laws of the
Republic of China (“
MeiYa
”).
B. Pursuant
to certain of the Joint Venture Documents (as defined hereinafter) and the
transactions contemplated thereby, MNL (as defined herein), an Affiliate of
Micron, and NTC have acquired an ownership interest in Inotera Memories, Inc., a
company incorporated under the laws of the Republic of China (“
IMI
”) for the collaborative
manufacture and sale of Stack DRAM Products exclusively to the Parties, and the
Parties are combining their ownership and operations of MeiYa with that of the
Joint Venture Company such that MeiYa will cease to exist.
C. NTC
and Micron desire to continue to engage in joint development of Stack DRAM
Designs and Process Technology (each, as defined hereinafter) on process node of
[***], or on such other design or process technology, the Parties may agree
pursuant to this Agreement. The Parties desire to outline the procedures under
which they will pool their respective resources as provided in this Agreement
for the purpose of performing research and development work relating to Stack
DRAM Designs and Process Technology that will be used by the Joint Venture
Company, by NTC, by Micron, and, for up to six (6) months after the Amendment
Date, by MeiYa, to manufacture Stack DRAM Products.
D. Accordingly,
the Parties desire to amend and restated the Original Agreement to account for
the transactions contemplated by the Joint Venture Documents related to IMI upon
the terms and conditions set forth herein.
AGREEMENT
NOW,
THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises and agreements herein set
forth, the Parties, intending to be legally bound, hereby agree as
follows.
ARTICLE
1
DEFINITIONS; CERTAIN
INTERPRETATIVE MATTERS
1.1
Definitions
. In
addition to the terms defined elsewhere in this Agreement, capitalized terms
used in this Agreement shall have the respective meanings set forth
below:
“
Affiliate
” means, with respect
to any specified Person, any other Person that directly or indirectly, including
through one or more intermediaries, controls, or is controlled by, or is under
common control with such specified Person; and the term “affiliated” has a
meaning correlative to the foregoing.
“
Agreement
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Amendment Date
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Applicable Law
” means any
applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances, orders, codes,
arbitration awards, judgments, decrees or other legal requirements of any
Governmental Entity.
“
ATE
” means automatic test
equipment, such as that sold under the trademark ADVENTEST.
“
Burn-In
” means
[***].
“
Burn-In Documen
t” means a
document that describes the specification of voltage and test pattern settings
in the Burn-In test program. The Burn-In Document also describes the
methodology of how the voltage and test pattern settings are
optimized.
“
Business Day
” means a day that
is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banking institutions
in either the Republic of China or the State of New York
are authorized or
required by Applicable Law to be closed.
“Change of Control”
means,
with respect to any first Person, the occurrence of any of the following events,
whether through a single transaction or series of related
transactions: (a) any consolidation or merger of such first Person
with or into another Person in which the holders of such first Person’s
outstanding voting equity immediately before such consolidation or merger do
not, immediately after such consolidation or merger, own or control directly or
indirectly equity representing a majority of the outstanding voting equity of
the surviving Person; (b) the sale of all or substantially all of such first
Person’s assets to another Person wherein the holders of such first Person’s
outstanding voting equity immediately before such sale do not, immediately after
sale, own or control directly or indirectly equity representing a majority of
the outstanding voting equity of the purchaser; or (c) the sale of such first
Person’s voting equity to any other Person(s) wherein the holders of such first
Person’s outstanding voting equity immediately before such sale do not,
immediately after such sale, own or control directly or indirectly equity
representing a majority of the outstanding voting equity of such first
Person.
“
Closing
” means June 6, 2008,
the date of closing of the formation of MeiYa.
“Commodity Stack DRAM Products”
means Stack DRAM Products for system main memory for computing or Mobile
Devices, in each case that are fully compliant with one or more Industry
Standard(s).
“
Confidential Information
”
means that information described in
Section 6.1
deemed to
be “Confidential Information” under the Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement.
“
Contractor
” means a Third
Party who (a) is contracted by a Party in connection with work to be conducted
by such Party under a SOW, (b) has agreed to assign to such contracting Party
all rights in and to any inventions, discoveries, improvements, processes,
copyrightable works, mask works, trade secrets or other technology that are
conceived or first reduced to practice, whether patentable or not, as a result
of any performance by such Third Party of any obligations of such Party under a
SOW, and all Patent Rights, IP Rights and other intellectual property rights in
the foregoing, and (c) has agreed to grant a license to such contracting Party,
with the right to sublicense of sufficient scope that includes the other Party,
under all Patent Rights, IP Rights and other rights of the Third Party
reasonably necessary for such contracting Party and the other Party to exploit
the work product created by the Third Party consistent with the rights granted
by the contracting Party to the other Party under the Joint Venture
Documents.
“
Control
” (whether capitalized
or not) means the power or authority, whether exercised or not, to direct the
business, management and policies of a Person, directly or indirectly, whether
through the ownership of voting securities, by contract or otherwise, which
power or authority shall conclusively be presumed to exist upon possession of
beneficial ownership or power to direct the vote of [***] of the votes entitled
to be cast at a meeting of the members, shareholders or other equity holders of
such Person or power to control the composition of a majority of the board of
directors or like governing body of such Person; and the terms “
controlling
” and “
controlled
” have meanings
correlative to the foregoing.
“
Coverage Test
” means test
solution for module application fail in CP/FT/Module ATE.
“
Deadlock Terminating Party
”
shall have the meaning set forth in
Section III.D.5
of
Schedule
2
.
“
Design Qualification
” means,
[***].
“Design SOW”
means
[***].
“
Design SOW Costs
” means any
and all SOW Costs attributable to a Design SOW in accordance with
Schedule
4
.
“
Draft
” means the mechanism
described in
Section
5.3
by which either Micron or NTC may select from [***] to solely
own.
“
Drafting Party
” means either
Micron or NTC, as the Party selecting a [***] pursuant to the
Draft.
“DRAM Module”
means one or
more DRAM Products in a JEDEC-compliant package or module (whether as part of a
SIMM, DIMM, multi-chip package, memory card or other memory module or
package).
“
DRAM Product
” means any
stand-alone semiconductor device that is a dynamic random access memory device
and that is designed or developed primarily for the function of storing data, in
die, wafer or package form.
“
Effective Date
” means April
21, 2008, the Effective Date of the Original Agreement.
“Existing Entity”
means
[***].
“
Force Majeure Event
” means the
occurrence of an event or circumstance beyond the reasonable control of a Party
and includes, without limitation, (a) explosions, fires, flood, earthquakes,
catastrophic weather conditions, or other elements of nature or acts of God; (b)
acts of war (declared or undeclared), acts of terrorism, insurrection, riots,
civil disorders, rebellion or sabotage; (c) acts of federal, state, local or
foreign Governmental Entity; (d) labor disputes, lockouts, strikes or other
industrial action, whether direct or indirect and whether lawful or unlawful;
(e) failures or fluctuations in electrical power or telecommunications service
or equipment; and (f) delays caused by the other Party or third-party
nonperformance (except for delays caused by a Party’s Contractors,
subcontractors or agents).
“
Foundational Know-How
” means,
with respect to each Party, [***].
“
Foundry Customer
” means a
Third Party customer of either NTC or Micron for Stack DRAM Products
[***].
“
FT
” means [***].
“
GAAP
” means, with respect to
Micron, United States generally accepted accounting principles, and with respect
to NTC, Republic of China generally accepted accounting principles, in each
case, as consistently applied by the Party for all periods at
issue.
“
Governmental Entity
” means any
governmental authority or entity, including any agency, board, bureau,
commission, court, municipality, department, subdivision or instrumentality
thereof, or any arbitrator or arbitration panel.
“Imaging Product”
means any
(a) semiconductor device having a plurality of photo elements (e.g.,
photodiodes, photogates, etc.) for converting impinging light into an electrical
representation of the information in the light, (b) image processor or other
semiconductor device for balancing, correcting, manipulating or otherwise
processing such electrical representation of the information in the impinging
light, or (c) combination of the devices described in clauses (a) and
(b).
“
IMI
” has the meaning set forth
in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Indemnified Claim
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
8.2
.
“
Indemnified Party
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
8.2
.
“
Indemnifying Party
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
8.2
.
“Industry Standard”
means the
documented technical specifications that set forth the pertinent technical and
operating characteristics of a DRAM Product if such specifications are publicly
available for use by DRAM manufacturers, and if [***]
“
IP Rights
” means copyrights,
rights in trade secrets, Mask Work Rights and pending applications or
registrations of any of the foregoing anywhere in the world. The term
“IP Rights” does not include any Patent Rights or rights in
trademarks.
“
JDP Co-Chairman
” and “
JDP Co-Chairmen
” shall have
the meaning set forth on
Schedule
2
.
“
JDP Committee
” shall mean the
committee formed and operated by Micron and NTC to govern the performance of the
Parties under this Agreement in accordance with the JDP Committee
Charter.
“
JDP Committee Charter
” means
the charter attached as
Schedule
2
.
“
JDP Design
” means any Stack
DRAM Design resulting from the research and development activities of the
Parties pursuant to this Agreement.
“JDP Inventions”
shall mean
all discoveries, improvements, inventions, developments, processes or other
technology, whether patentable or not, that is/are conceived by one or more
Representatives of one or more of the Parties in the course of activities
conducted under this Agreement.
“
JDP Process Node
” means any
Primary Process Node or Optimized Process Node resulting from the research and
development activities of the Parties pursuant this Agreement.
“
JDP Work Product
” means
[***].
“
Joint Venture Company
” means
either IMI or MeiYa, as the context dictates, subject to
Section
9.2(f)
.
“
Joint Venture Documents
” means
(a) with respect to IMI, that certain Joint Venture Agreement between MNL and
NTC dated as of the Amendment Date relating to the Joint Venture Company and
those documents listed on
Schedule A
to that
Joint Venture Agreement and (b) with respect to MeiYa, that certain Master
Agreement by and between Micron and NTC dated as of the Effective Date, the
Master Agreement Disclosure Letter by and between Micron and NTC dated as of the
Effective Date, and the documents listed on
Schedules 2.1
through
2.5
of such
disclosure letter, each as amended.
“Lead Product
” means
[***].
“
Mask Data Processing
” means
[***].
“
Mask Work Rights
" means rights
under the United States Semiconductor Chip Protection Act of 1984, as amended
from time to time, or under any similar equivalent laws in countries other than
the United States.
“
MeiYa
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
MeiYa Roll-Up
” means the first
to occur of the following events, whether through a single transaction or series
of related transactions: (a) any consolidation or merger of MeiYa
with or into another Person; (b) the sale of all or substantially all of MeiYa’s
non-cash assets to another Person; (c) the sale of all or substantially all of
MeiYa 's voting equity to any other Persons; and (d) the voluntary or
involuntary liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the affairs of
MeiYa.
“Micron
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Micron Indemnitees
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
8.1
.
“
MNL
” means Micron
Semiconductor B.V., a private limited liability company organized under the laws
of the Netherlands.
“Mobile Device”
means a
handheld or portable device using as its main memory one or more Stack DRAM
Products that is/are compliant with an Industry Standard [***].
“
Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement
” means that certain Second Amended and Restated Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement dated as of the Amendment Date among NTC, Micron, MNL,
MeiYa and IMI.
“
NAND Flash Memory Product
”
means a non-volatile semiconductor memory device containing memory cells that
are electrically programmable and electrically erasable whereby the memory cells
consist of one or more transistors that have a floating gate, charge trapping
regions or any other functionally equivalent structure utilizing one or more
different charge levels (including binary or multi-level cell structures), with
or without any on-chip control, I/O and other support circuitry, in wafer, die
or packaged form.
“
NTC
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
NTC Indemnitees
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
8.1
.
“
OPC
” means optical proximity
correction of the circuit layout patterns, which is important in Mask Data
Processing.
“Optimized Process Node”
means
[***].
“
Original Agreement
” shall have
the meaning set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Party
” and “
Parties
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Patent Prosecution
” means (a)
preparing, filing and prosecuting patent applications (of all types), and (b)
managing any interference, reexamination, reissue, or opposition proceedings
relating to the foregoing.
“
Patent Review Committee
” means
the committee formed by the JDP Committee to [***].
“
Patent Rights
” means all
rights associated with any and all issued and unexpired patents and pending
patent applications in any country in the world, together with any and all
divisionals, continuations, continuations-in-part, reissues, reexaminations,
extensions, foreign counterparts or equivalents of any of the foregoing,
wherever and whenever existing.
“
Person
” means any natural
person, corporation, joint stock company, limited liability company,
association, partnership, firm, joint venture, organization, business, trust,
estate or any other entity or organization of any kind or
character.
[***]
[***]
“
Post Termination Funding
Period
” shall have the meaning set forth in
Section III.D.5
of
Schedule
2
.
“
Primary Process Node
” means
[***].
“
Probe Testing
” means testing,
using a wafer test program as set forth in the applicable specifications, of a
wafer that has completed all processing steps deemed necessary to complete the
creation of the desired Stack DRAM integrated circuits in the die on such wafer,
the purpose of which test is to determine how many and which of the die meet the
applicable criteria for such die set forth in the specifications.
“
Process Node
” means
[***]
“
Process Qualification
” means,
with respect to each Primary Process Node and Optimized Process Node, when (a)
the Stack DRAM Products or Stack DRAM Modules designed to be on the node can be
made fully compliant with any applicable Industry Standard(s) (if any) and [***]
or (b) or such other or additional parameters as may be defined in the Process
SOW as “Process Qualification” for the Primary Process Node or the Optimized
Process Node that is the subject of the SOW, [***].
“Process SOW”
means any SOW
primarily directed to the development of Process Technology, including the
development of a Primary Process Node or an Optimized Process Node to be used by
a Joint Venture Company, Micron or NTC in the manufacture of Stack DRAM
Products.
“
Process SOW Costs
” means
[***].
“Process Technology
” means
that process technology developed before expiration of the Term and utilized in
the manufacture of Stack DRAM wafers, including Probe Testing and technology
developed through Product Engineering thereof
,
regardless of the form in
which any of the foregoing is stored, but excluding any Patent Rights and any
technology, trade secrets or know-how that relate to and are used in any
back-end operations (after Probe Testing).
“
Product Engineering
” means any
one or more of the engineering activities described on
Schedule 7
as applied
to Stack DRAM Products or Stack DRAM Modules.
“
Proposing Party
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
3.2
.
“
Recoverable Taxes
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
4.4
.
“
Rejecting Party
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
3.2
.
“
Rejected Development Work
”
shall have the meaning set forth in
Section
3.2
.
“
Representative
” means with
respect to a Party, any director, officer, employee, agent or Contractor of such
Party or a professional advisor to such Party, such as an attorney, banker or
financial advisor of such Party who is under an obligation of confidentiality to
such Party by contract or ethical rules applicable to such Person.
“
R&D Roadmap
” has the
meaning provided in
Section
2.3
.
“
Software
” means computer
program instruction code, whether in human-readable source code form,
machine-executable binary form, firmware, scripts, interpretive text, or
otherwise. The term “Software” does not include databases and other
information stored in electronic form, other than executable instruction codes
or source code that is intended to be compiled into executable instruction
codes.
“
SOW
” means a statement of the
work that describes research and development work to be performed under this
Agreement and that has been adopted by the JDP Committee pursuant to
Section 3.2
.
“
SOW Costs
” means any or all
costs that are incurred by a Party in connection with any SOW as provided on
Schedule
4
.
“
Stack DRAM
” means dynamic
random access memory cell that functions by using a capacitor arrayed
predominantly above the semiconductor substrate.
“
Stack DRAM
Design
” means, with respect to
a Stack DRAM Product, the corresponding design components, materials and
information listed on
Schedule 3
or as
otherwise determined by the JDP Committee in a SOW.
“Stack DRAM Module”
means one
or more Stack DRAM Products in a JEDEC-compliant package or module (whether as
part of a SIMM, DIMM, multi-chip package, memory card or other memory module or
package).
“Stack DRAM Product”
means any
memory comprising Stack DRAM, whether in die or wafer form.
“
Subsidiary
”
means, with
respect to any specified Person, any other Person that, directly or indirectly,
including through one or more intermediaries, is controlled by such specified
Person.
“
Tax
” or “
Taxes
” means any federal,
state, local or foreign net income, gross income, gross receipts, sales, use ad
valorem, transfer, franchise, profits, service, service use, withholding,
payroll, employment, excise, severance, stamp, occupation, premium, property,
customs, duties or other type of fiscal levy and all other taxes, governmental
fees, registration fees, assessments or charges of any kind whatsoever, together
with any interest and penalties, additions to tax or additional amounts imposed
or assessed with respect thereto.
“
Taxing Authority
” means any
Governmental Entity exercising any authority to impose, regulate or administer
the imposition of Taxes.
“
Technology Transfer Agreement
”
means (a) with respect to IMI, that certain Technology Transfer Agreement by and
among NTC, Micron, and IMI dated as of the Amendment Date, and (b) with respect
to MeiYa, that certain Technology Transfer Agreement by and among NTC, Micron
and MeiYa dated as of May 13, 2008.
“
Technology Transfer and License
Agreement
” means that certain Amended and Restated Technology Transfer
and License Agreement by and between NTC and Micron dated as of the Amendment
Date.
“
TTLA 68-50
” means that certain
Technology Transfer and License Agreement For 68-50NM Process Nodes by and
between NTC and Micron dated as of the Effective Date.
“
Term
” shall have the meaning
set forth in
Section 9.1
.
“
Third Party
” means any Person
other than NTC or Micron.
“Unit Process/Module
Invention”
means JDP Inventions related to one or more process steps that
are performed on a semiconductor wafer and that are designed to achieve a
particular feature characteristic or structure.
“
Works Registration
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
5.4(c)
.
1.2
Certain Interpretive
Matters
.
(a)
Unless
the context requires otherwise, (1) all references to Sections, Articles,
Exhibits, Appendices or Schedules are to Sections, Articles, Exhibits,
Appendices or Schedules of or to this Agreement, (2) each accounting term
not otherwise defined in this Agreement has the meaning commonly applied to it
in accordance with GAAP, (3) words in the singular include the plural and
vice versa, (4) the term “
including
” means “including
without limitation,” and (5) the terms “
herein
,” “
hereof
,”
“hereunder
” and words of
similar import shall mean references to this Agreement as a whole and not to any
individual section or portion hereof. Unless otherwise denoted, all
references to
$
or
dollar amounts will be to lawful currency of the United States of
America. All references to “
day
” or “
days
” will mean calendar
days.
(b)
No
provision of this Agreement will be interpreted in favor of, or against, either
Party by reason of the extent to which (1) such Party or its counsel
participated in the drafting thereof or (2) any such provision is
inconsistent with any prior draft of this Agreement or such
provision.
ARTICLE
2
JDP COMMITTEE; R&D
ROADMAP
2.1
JDP Committee; Patent Review
Committee.
Micron and NTC shall form and operate the JDP
Committee to govern their performance under this Agreement in accordance with
the JDP Committee Charter attached as
Schedule
2
. The JDP Committee shall form and oversee the Patent Review
Committee, which shall also operate in accordance with the applicable provisions
of
Schedule
2
.
2.2
JDP
Co-Chairmen
. Micron and NTC shall notify the other Party in
writing of the identity of the full-time employee of such Party who will serve
as its JDP Co-Chairman. Each JDP Co-Chairman shall serve on the JDP
Committee as provided in
Schedule 2
and shall
devote his or her attention to the performance of this Agreement by the
Parties. Each of Micron and NTC may replace its respective JDP
Co-Chairman upon written notice to the other Party;
provided that
each Party’s
JDP Co-Chairman must at all times be a full-time employee of such
Party.
2.3
R&D
Roadmap
.
(a)
[***]
(b)
[***]
(c)
The first
R&D Roadmap shall contain the Stack DRAM Designs and Process Technology
described in the SOWs identified on
Schedule
1
.
ARTICLE
3
DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS AND
SOWS
3.1
Content of
SOWs
. The Parties expect that each SOW will conform to
the following requirements, as applicable:
(a)
Each SOW
will contain at least the following:
[***]
(b)
The
Process SOW for each Primary Process Node and each Process SOW effective as of
the Effective Date will specify that the work to be performed thereunder will be
performed [***]
.
(c)
[***].
(d)
Process
SOWs for Optimized Process Nodes may specify that the work to be performed
thereunder can be performed [***].
(e)
Process
SOWs entered after the Effective Date for work to be performed
[***].
[***]
3.2
Proposal and Adoption of
SOWs.
(a)
Each
Party solely through its JDP Co-Chairman, or both of the Parties jointly through
the JDP Chairmen, may submit proposed SOWs to the JDP Committee for
consideration and potential adoption as an SOW hereunder. SOWs can be
proposed for the design of products that are not at the time of submission
Commodity Stack DRAM Products.
(b)
[***].
(c)
The SOWs
identified on
Schedule
1
are deemed SOWs under this Agreement adopted by the JDP Committee as of
the Effective Date.
(d)
[***].
3.3
Development Restrictions;
Rejected Development Work.
[***]
3.4
SOW Performance
Monitoring
.
[***]
3.5
JDP Committee
Monitoring
. [***]
3.6
On-Site
Visitations
. Each Party and its Representatives shall observe
and be subject to all safety, security and other policies and regulations
regarding visitors and contractors while on site at a facility of the other
Party or its Affiliate. A Party's Representatives who access any
facility of the other Party or its Affiliate shall not interfere with, and
except as otherwise agreed by the Parties, shall not participate in, the
business or operations of the facility accessed.
3.7
Mask Source Qualification
and Mask Purchases
.
[***]
3.8
Repository of JDP Work
Product.
(a)
Micron
and NTC each shall use commercially reasonable efforts to each establish a
repository in its own facility for storing the JDP Work Product described on
Schedules 3
,
7
,
8
or
9
separately from
other technology, information and data of such Party and any Third Parties
.
Each Party shall
implement procedures so that such JDP Work Product is either created in such
repository or added to such repository in the English language promptly after
creation by employees of such Party, its Existing Entities and its wholly-owned
Subsidiaries assigned to an SOW. Such repositories in Micron
facilities shall be accessible to employees of NTC, its Existing Entities and
its wholly-owned Subsidiaries assigned to perform work under any SOW(s) as
reasonably required for such employees to perform their assigned
work. Such repositories in NTC shall be accessible to employees of
Micron, its Existing Entities and its wholly-owned Subsidiaries assigned to
perform work under any SOW as reasonably required for such employees to perform
their assigned work. The JDP Co-Chairmen and JDP Committee Members
shall have full access to such repositories. Once both such
repositories are operational electronic databases that can be synchronized at
least with the other database to contain the same content as that stored in such
other database, the Parties shall use commercially reasonable efforts to have
the databases automatically and electronically synchronized at least once per
day.
(b)
Without
limiting the foregoing
Section 3.8(a)
, the
Parties shall also use their respective commercially reasonable efforts to
accomplish the following within the time frames described below:
1)
|
Establish
secure network connectivity between Micron and NTC within [***] after the
Effective Date.
|
2)
|
Establish
secure email between Micron and NTC within [***] after the Effective
Date.
|
3)
|
Establish
a FTP environment to allow download of data between Micron and NTC within
[***] after the Effective Date.
|
1)
|
Establish
an initial repository for the JDP Work Product described on
Schedules 3
,
7
,
8
or
9
with a
publishing document process between Micron and NTC within [***] after the
Effective Date. The replication process between Micron's and
NTC's repositories would occur every twelve (12) to twenty-four (24)
hours.
|
2)
|
Provide
a single remote access point for approved users within [***] after the
Effective Date. This access point will allow real time equal access to all
individuals assigned to an SOW.
|
1)
|
For
the remote access point from NTC each approved NTC user will be provided
access to approved Micron secured operational applications. The
first group of secured operational applications will be provided within
[***] after the Effective Date.
|
ARTICLE
4
PAYMENTS
4.1
Development Cost
Sharing
. Micron and NTC shall share SOW Costs as specified on
Schedule
4
.
4.2
Payments
. All
amounts owed by a Party under this Agreement are stated, calculated and shall be
paid in United States Dollars ($ U.S.).
4.3
Interest
. Any
amounts payable to Micron hereunder and not paid within the time period provided
shall accrue interest, from the time such payment was due until the time payment
is actually received, at the rate of [***], or the highest rate permitted by
Applicable Law, whichever is lower.
4.4
Taxes
.
(a)
All
sales, use and other transfer Taxes imposed directly on or solely as a result of
the services or technology transfers or the payments therefor provided herein
shall be stated separately on the service provider’s or technology transferor’s
invoice, collected from the service provider or technology transferor and shall
be remitted by service provider or technology transferor to the appropriate
Taxing Authority (“
Recoverable
Taxes
”), unless the service recipient or technology transferee provides
valid proof of tax exemption prior to the Effective Date or otherwise as
permitted by law prior to the time the service provider or technology transferor
is required to pay such taxes to the appropriate Taxing
Authority. When property is delivered and/or services are provided or
the benefit of services occurs within jurisdictions in which collection and
remittance of Taxes by the service recipient or technology transferee is
required by law, the service recipient or technology transferee shall have sole
responsibility for payment of said Taxes to the appropriate Taxing
Authority. In the event any Taxes are Recoverable Taxes and the
service provider or technology transferor does not collect such Taxes from the
service recipient or technology transferee or pay such Taxes to the appropriate
Governmental Entity on a timely basis, and is subsequently audited by any Taxing
Authority, liability of the service recipient or technology transferee will be
limited to the Tax assessment for such Recoverable Taxes, with no reimbursement
for penalty or interest charges or other amounts incurred in connection
therewith. Except as provided in
Section 4.4(b)
, Taxes
other than Recoverable Taxes shall not be reimbursed by the service recipient or
technology transferee, and each Party is responsible for its own respective
income Taxes (including franchise and other Taxes based on net income or a
variation thereof), Taxes based upon gross revenues or receipts, and Taxes with
respect to general overhead, including but not limited to business and
occupation Taxes, and such Taxes shall not be Recoverable Taxes.
(b)
In the
event that the service recipient or technology transferee is prohibited by
Applicable Law from making payments to the service provider or technology
transferor unless the service recipient or technology transferee deducts or
withholds Taxes therefrom and remits such Taxes to the local Taxing Authority,
[***].
ARTICLE
5
INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY
5.1
Existing
IP
. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to transfer
ownership of or grant a license under any IP Rights, Patent Rights or other
intellectual property or technology of a Party existing as of the Effective Date
from one Party to the other Party. Any license to any of the
foregoing shall be governed by the Technology Transfer and License
Agreement.
5.2
[***] Procedures;
Inventorship; Authorship
.
(a)
Within
forty-five (45) days of the Effective Date, each of the Parties shall introduce
procedures to encourage and govern the submission of disclosures of JDP
Inventions by their respective Representative(s) involved in a SOW, whether as
Representatives of NTC, of Micron or of a Joint Venture Company, to the JDP
Co-Chairmen for subsequent submission to the JDP Committee. Such
procedures shall include (i) a policy statement encouraging the submission of
such invention disclosures, (ii) appropriate invention disclosure forms, and
(iii) a commitment on the part of each of NTC and Micron to obtain relevant
invention disclosure forms from their respective Representatives with respect to
JDP Inventions and to submit such forms for review by the Patent Review
Committee. Each of the Parties shall actively administer such procedures and
submit and cause their respective Representatives promptly to complete and
submit invention disclosures on JDP Inventions to the Patent Review
Committee.
(b)
Inventorship
for JDP Inventions shall be determined in accordance with United States
patent laws.
(c)
Authorship
for all JDP Work Product, whether registered or not, shall be determined in
accordance with United States copyright laws and laws concerning Mask Work
Rights, as applicable.
5.3
JDP Inventions; Pool and
Draft.
[***]
5.4
Ownership of JDP Inventions
and JDP Work Product.
(a)
As
between the Parties, [***].
(b)
Except as
provided in
Sections
5.3
and
5.4(a)
, all JDP
Designs, JDP Inventions, JDP Process Nodes, JDP Work Product, and all IP Rights
associated with any of the foregoing, shall be, [***]. Subject to any
applicable provisions of the Joint Venture Documents, each of Micron and NTC may
exploit their interest in any JDP Designs, JDP Inventions, JDP Process Nodes,
JDP Work Product, and IP Rights associated therewith without a duty of
accounting to any other Party.
(c)
[***]
5.5
Costs
. All
out-of-pocket costs and expenses relating to Patent Prosecution, including
attorneys’ fees, incurred by a Party pursuant to this Agreement shall be borne
solely by the owner thereof. In the case of Works Registrations for
JDP Work Product, such joint owners shall split the costs thereof
equally.
5.6
Cooperation
. With
respect to all Patent Prosecution and Works Registration activities under this
Agreement, each Party shall:
(a)
execute
all further instruments to document their respective ownership consistent with
this
Article 5
as reasonably requested by any other Party, including causing its respective
Representatives to execute written assignments of JDP Inventions and JDP Work
Product to Micron, NTC or both of them jointly as provided herein (at no cost to
the assignee); and
(b)
using
commercially reasonable efforts to make its Representatives available to the
other Party (or to the other Party’s authorized attorneys, agents or
Representatives), to the extent reasonably necessary to enable the appropriate
Party hereunder to undertake Patent Prosecution and Works
Registration.
5.7
Third Party
Infringement.
(a)
The sole
owner of the Patent Rights with respect to any JDP Invention shall have the
exclusive right to institute and direct legal proceedings against any Third
Party believed to be infringing or otherwise violating any such Patent
Rights.
(b)
If any
Party takes action pursuant to
Section 5.7(a),
then
the other Party shall cooperate to the extent reasonably necessary and at the
first Party’s sole expense and subject to the first Party’s
request. To the extent required by Applicable Law, such other Party
shall join the action and, if such other Party elects, may choose to be
represented in any such legal proceedings using counsel of its own choice, and
at its own expense. Each Party shall assert and not waive the joint
defense privilege with respect to all communications between the Parties
reasonably the subject thereof.
(c)
The
Parties shall keep each other informed of the status of any litigation or
settlement thereof initiated by a Third Party concerning a Party’s manufacture,
production, use, development, sale, offer for sale, importation, exportation or
distribution of Stack DRAM Products manufactured by a Joint Venture Company;
provided, however
, that
no settlement or consent judgment or other voluntary final disposition of a suit
under this
Section 5.7(c)
may be undertaken by a Party without the consent of another Party (which consent
not to be unreasonably withheld) if such settlement would require such other
Party or a Joint Venture Company to be subject to an injunction, subject to a
requirement to alter a Process Node or Stack DRAM Design, admit wrongdoing or
make a monetary payment. The Party sued by the Third Party as
contemplated by this Section shall not object to joinder in such action by the
other Party to the extent such joinder is permitted by Applicable
Law.
5.8
No Other Rights or
Licenses
. Except for the allocation of ownership of JDP
Inventions and JDP Work Product, and the ownership of their corresponding Patent
Rights and IP Rights therein, as stated in this
Article 5
, no right,
license, title or interest under any intellectual property is granted under this
Agreement, whether by implication, estoppel or otherwise. Certain
rights, licenses and covenants not to sue under Intellectual Property of Micron
and NTC are granted in other Joint Venture Documents.
ARTICLE
6
CONFIDENTIALITY
6.1
Confidentiality
Obligations.
(a)
All
information (including JDP Work Product, JDP Inventions, JDP Process Nodes and
JDP Designs and Foundational Know-How) provided, disclosed, created or obtained
in connection with this Agreement or the performance of any of the Parties’
activities under this Agreement, including the performance of activities under a
SOW, shall be deemed “Confidential Information” subject to all applicable
provisions of the Mutual Confidentiality Agreement. The terms and
conditions of this Agreement shall also be considered “Confidential Information”
under the Mutual Confidentiality Agreement for which each Party shall be
considered a “Receiving Party” under such agreement.
(b)
Additionally,
notwithstanding whether one of the Parties solely or jointly owns JDP
Inventions, JDP Work Product, JDP Process Nodes and JDP Designs and IP Rights or
Patent Rights therein in accordance with this Agreement, each of the Parties
shall be deemed a “Receiving Party” under the Mutual Confidentiality Agreement
with respect to information embodied therein and no Party may contribute,
transfer or disclose any JDP Inventions, JDP Work Product, JDP Process Nodes,
JDP Designs or IP Rights or Patent Rights therein to any Third Party except as
provided in
Section
6.2
.
6.2
Permitted
Disclosures
. Notwithstanding the restrictions in
Section
6.1
:
(a)
NTC and
Micron may contribute, transfer and disclose any Confidential Information
described in
Section
6.1(b)
to their respective Existing Entities and wholly owned
Subsidiaries,
provided
that
, at the time of such contribution, transfer or disclosure, such
Existing Entity is an Affiliate of the Party seeking to contribute, transfer or
disclose such Confidential Information.
(b)
Each of
Micron and NTC may disclose the JDP Inventions and related Confidential
Information, as the case may be, to its patent attorneys and patent agents and
any Governmental Entity as deemed by Micron or NTC necessary to conduct Patent
Prosecution on the JDP Inventions owned by such Party.
(c)
Micron
may disclose any Confidential Information described in
Section 6.1
to any
Third Party who is not a manufacturer of [***],
provided that
each such
disclosure shall not grant or purport to grant, explicitly, by implication by
estoppel or otherwise, to the Third Party any right, title or interest in, to or
under any Patent Rights of NTC, including Patent Rights of NTC in JDP Inventions
and shall be subject to a written obligation of confidentiality that is no less
restrictive than that applicable to the Parties under the Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement.
(d)
NTC may
disclose any Confidential Information described in
Section 6.1(b)
to any
Third Party who is not a manufacturer of [***],
provided that
each such
disclosure shall not grant or purport to grant, explicitly, by implication by
estoppel or otherwise, to the Third Party any right, title or interest in, to or
under any Patent Rights of Micron, its Existing Entities or Intel Corporation,
including Patent Rights of Micron on JDP Inventions and shall be subject to a
written obligation of confidentiality that is no less restrictive than that
applicable to the Parties under the Mutual Confidentiality Agreement.
[***].
(e)
[***]
6.3
Conflicts
. To
the extent there is a conflict between this Agreement and the Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement, the terms of this Agreement shall
control.
ARTICLE
7
WARRANTIES;
DISCLAIMERS
7.1
No Implied
Obligation
. Nothing contained in this Agreement shall be
construed as:
(a)
a
warranty or representation that any manufacture, sale, lease, use or other
disposition of any products based upon JDP Work Product or JDP Inventions will
be free from infringement, misappropriation or other violation of any Patent
Rights, IP Rights or other intellectual property rights of any
Person;
(b)
an
agreement to bring or prosecute proceedings against Third Parties for
infringement or conferring any right to bring or prosecute proceedings against
Third Parties for infringement; or
(c)
conferring
any right to use in advertising, publicity, or otherwise, any trademark, trade
name or names, or any contraction, abbreviation or simulation thereof, of either
Party.
7.2
Third Party
Software
. Use of any JDP Inventions or JDP Work Product
exchanged between the Parties under this Agreement may require use of Software
owned by a Third Party and not subject to any license granted under any of the
Joint Venture Documents. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed
as granting to any Party, any right, title or interest in, to or under any
Software owned by any Third Party. Except as may be specified
otherwise in any of the other Joint Venture Documents, any such Software so
required is solely the responsibility of the each of the
Parties. Moreover, should a Party who transfers technology under this
Agreement discover after such transfer that it has provided Software to the
other Party that it was not entitled to provide, such providing Party shall
promptly notify the other Party and the recipient shall return such Software to
the providing Party and not retain any copy thereof.
7.3
Disclaimer
. [***].
ARTICLE 8
INDEMNIFICATION; LIMITATION
OF LIABILITY
8.1
Indemnification
.
(a)
Micron
shall indemnify and hold harmless NTC, its Affiliates and their respective
directors, officers, employees, agents and other representatives (“
NTC Indemnitees
”) from and
against any and all Losses suffered by the NTC Indemnitees relating to personal
injury (including death) or property damage to the extent such injury or damage
was caused by the gross negligence or willful misconduct of any employee of
Micron or its Affiliate while at any facilities of NTC or its Affiliate and such
gross negligence, willful misconduct or Losses were not caused by any NTC
Indemnitee.
(b)
NTC shall
indemnify and hold harmless Micron, its Affiliates and their respective
directors, officers, employees, agents and other representatives (“
Micron Indemnitees
”) from and
against any and all Losses suffered by the Micron Indemnitees relating to
personal injury (including death) or property damage to the extent such injury
or damage was caused by the gross negligence or willful misconduct of any
employee of NTC or its Affiliate while at any facilities of Micron or its
Affiliate and such gross negligence, willful misconduct or Losses were not
caused by any Micron Indemnitee.
8.2
Indemnity
Procedure
.
(a)
Any
Person who or which is entitled to seek indemnification under
Section 8.1
(an
“
Indemnified Party
”)
shall promptly notify the other Party (“
Indemnifying Party
”) of any
such Losses for which it seeks indemnification hereunder. Failure of
the Indemnified Party to give such notice shall not relieve the Indemnifying
Party from Losses on account of this indemnification, except if and only to the
extent that the Indemnifying Party is actually prejudiced
thereby. Thereafter, the Indemnified Party shall deliver to the
Indemnifying Party, promptly after the Indemnified Party’s receipt thereof,
copies of all notices and documents (including court papers) received by the
Indemnified Party relating to the Losses and underlying facts and
circumstances. The Indemnifying Party shall have the right to assume
the defense of the Indemnified Party with respect to any legal action relating
to such Losses (“
Indemnified
Claim
”) upon written notice to the Indemnified Party delivered within
thirty (30) days after receipt of the particular notice from the Indemnified
Party.
(b)
So long
as the Indemnifying Party has assumed the defense of the Indemnified Claim in
accordance herewith and notified the Indemnified Party in writing thereof, (1)
the Indemnified Party may retain separate co-counsel, at its sole cost and
expense, and participate in the defense of the Indemnified Claim, it being
understood that the Indemnifying Party shall pay all reasonable costs and
expenses of counsel for the Indemnified Party after such time as the Indemnified
Party has notified the Indemnifying Party of such Indemnified Claim and prior to
such time as the Indemnifying Party has notified the Indemnified Party that it
has assumed the defense of such Indemnified Claim, (2) the Indemnified Party
shall not consent to the entry of any judgment or enter into any settlement with
respect to a Indemnified Claim without the prior written consent of the
Indemnifying Party (not to be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed) and
(3) the Indemnifying Party will not consent to the entry of any judgment or
enter into any settlement with respect to the Indemnified Claim to be paid by an
Indemnifying Party (other than a judgment or settlement that is solely for money
damages and is accompanied by a release of all indemnifiable claims against the
Indemnified Party) without the prior written consent of the Indemnified Party
(not to be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed).
(c)
The
Indemnified Party and Indemnifying Party shall cooperate in the defense of each
Indemnified Claim (and the Indemnified Party and the Indemnifying Party agree
with respect to all such Indemnified Claims that a common interest privilege
agreement exists between them), including by (1) permitting the Indemnifying
Party to discuss the Indemnified Claim with such officers, employees,
consultants and representatives of the Indemnified Party as the Indemnifying
Party reasonably requests, (2) providing to the Indemnifying Party copies of
documents and samples of products as the Indemnifying Party reasonably requests
in connection with defending such Indemnified Claim, (3) preserving all
properties, books, records, papers, documents, plans, drawings, electronic mail
and databases relating to matters pertinent to the Indemnified Claim and under
the Indemnified Party’s custody or control in accordance with such Party’s
corporate documents retention policies, or longer to the extent reasonably
requested by the Indemnified Party, (4) notifying the Indemnifying Party
promptly of receipt by the Indemnified Party of any subpoena or other third
party request for documents or interviews and testimony, and (5) providing to
the Indemnifying Party copies of any documents produced by the Indemnified Party
in response to, or compliance with, any subpoena or other third party request
for documents. In connection with any claims, unless otherwise
ordered by a court, the Indemnified Party shall not produce documents to a Third
Party until the Indemnifying Party has been provided a reasonable opportunity to
review, copy and assert privileges covering such documents, except to the extent
(x) inconsistent with the Indemnified Party’s obligations under Applicable Law
and (y) where to do so would subject the Indemnified Party or its employees,
agents or representatives to criminal or civil sanctions.
8.3
Limitation of
Liability
. [***].
ARTICLE
9
TERM AND
TERMINATION
9.1
Term
. The
term of this Agreement commences on the Effective Date and continues in effect
until terminated in accordance with
Section 9.2
;
provided, however
, that the
amendments made to the Original Agreement by this Agreement commence upon the
Amendment Date. (The period from the Effective Date until termination
is the “
Term
”).
9.2
Termination of this
Agreement
.
(a)
Unless
otherwise mutually agreed, [***].
(b)
Either
Party may terminate this Agreement [***].
(c)
Either
Party may terminate this Agreement by notice to the other Party if
the other Party commits a material breach of this Agreement and such breach
remains uncured [***].
(d)
Either
Party may terminate this Agreement immediately upon notice to the other Party in
the event of either (i) a Change of Control of the other Party; (ii) the other
Party becomes bankrupt or insolvent, or files a petition in bankruptcy or makes
a general assignment for the benefit of creditors or otherwise acknowledges in
writing insolvency, or is adjudged bankrupt, and such Party (A) fails to assume
this Agreement in any such bankruptcy proceeding within thirty (30) days after
filing or (B) assumes and assigns this Agreement to a Third Party in violation
of
Section
10.3
; (iii) the other
Party goes into or is placed in a process of complete liquidation; (iv) a
trustee or receiver is appointed for any substantial portion of the business of
the other Party and such trustee or receiver is not discharged within sixty (60)
days after appointment; (v) any case or proceeding shall have been commenced or
other action taken against the other Party in bankruptcy or seeking liquidation,
reorganization, dissolution, a winding-up arrangement, composition or
readjustment of its debts or any other relief under any bankruptcy, insolvency,
reorganization or similar act or law of any jurisdiction now or hereafter in
effect and is not dismissed or converted into a voluntary proceeding governed by
clause (ii) above within sixty (60) days after filing; or (vi) there shall have
been issued a warrant of attachment, execution, distraint or similar process
against any substantial part of the property of the other Party and such event
shall have continued for a period of sixty (60) days and none of the following
has occurred: (A) it is dismissed, (B) it is bonded in a manner
reasonably satisfactory to the other of Micron or NTC, or (C) it is
discharged.
(e)
The [***]
may terminate this Agreement in accordance with
Section III.D.5
of
Schedule
2
.
(f)
Any
provision in this Agreement that contains any obligation to “each Joint Venture
Company”, “a Joint Venture Company”, “the Joint Venture Company”, or MeiYa
shall, subject to
Section 9.4
,
terminate as such provision is applicable to MeiYa upon the first to occur of
(i) the MeiYa Roll-Up and (ii) six (6) months after the Amendment
Date.
9.3
SOWs
.
(a)
The term
of any SOW (together with the portions of this Agreement applicable to such
SOW(s)) commences upon the effective date set forth in the SOW and continues in
effect until the first to occur of: (i) completion of the work to be
performed thereunder, as determined in accordance with the applicable SOW and
(ii) the JDP Committee agrees to terminate the work under a SOW or the
SOW.
(b)
Micron or
NTC may terminate any SOW by notice to the other Party if such other Party
commits a material breach of this Agreement with respect to such SOW and such
breach remains uncured for more than thirty (30) days after notice of the
breach.
(c)
Termination
of any or all SOW(s) does not automatically terminate this
Agreement. Termination of this Agreement automatically terminates all
SOW(s), unless otherwise mutually agreed by Micron and NTC.
9.4
Effects of
Termination
.
(a)
Termination
of this Agreement shall not affect any of the Parties’ respective rights accrued
or obligations owed before termination. In addition, the following
shall survive termination of this Agreement for any reason:
Articles 1
,
4
,
6
,
7
,
8
and
10
and
Sections 5.1
,
5.2(b)
and
5.2(c)
,
5.3
through
5.6
,
5.8
and
9.4
.
(b)
Upon
termination of any SOW for any reason, each Party’s delivery obligation with
respect to any JDP Work Product produced thereunder before such termination
shall survive such termination. Moreover, termination of a SOW shall
not affect payment obligations accrued prior to the date of such termination in
connection with such SOW.
(c)
The JDP
Committee and the Patent Review Committee shall continue to exist and operate in
accordance with
Schedule 2
after
termination as long as necessary to continue to carryout the provisions of this
Agreement that survive termination in accordance therewith.
(d)
Upon
termination of this Agreement by a Deadlock Terminating Party, each of the
Parties shall have those post-termination obligations specified in
Section III.D.5
of
Schedule 2
for
the Post Termination Funding Period, if applicable.
ARTICLE
10
MISCELLANEOUS
10.1
Notices
. All
notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be
deemed given upon (a) transmitter’s confirmation of a receipt of a
facsimile transmission, (b) confirmed delivery by a standard overnight carrier
or when delivered by hand, or (c) delivery in person, addressed at the following
addresses (or at such other address for a party as shall be specified by like
notice):
If to
NTC
: Nanya
Technology Corporation
Hwa-Ya Technology Park
669
Fuhsing 3 RD. Kueishan
Taoyuan, Taiwan, ROC
Attention: Legal
Department
Fax: 886.3.396.2226
If to
Micron
: Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000 S. Federal Way
Mail Stop 1-507
Boise, ID 83716
Attention: General
Counsel
Fax: 208.368.4537
10.2
Waiver
. The
failure at any time of a Party to require performance by the other Party of any
responsibility or obligation required by this Agreement shall in no way affect a
Party’s right to require such performance at any time thereafter, nor shall the
waiver by a Party of a breach of any provision of this Agreement by the other
Party constitute a waiver of any other breach of the same or any other provision
nor constitute a waiver of the responsibility or obligation itself.
10.3
Assignment
. [***].
10.4
Third Party
Rights
. Nothing in this Agreement, whether express or implied,
is intended or shall be construed to confer, directly or indirectly, upon or
give to any Person, other than the Parties hereto, any legal or equitable right,
remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any covenant, condition
or other provision contained herein.
10.5
Force
Majeure
. The Parties shall be excused from any failure to
perform any obligation hereunder to the extent such failure is caused by a Force
Majeure Event.
10.6
Choice of
Law
. Except as provided in
Sections 5.2 (b)
and
(c)
, this
Agreement shall be construed and enforced in accordance with and governed by the
laws of the State of Delaware, USA, without giving effect to the principles of
conflict of laws thereof.
10.7
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Agreement shall be brought in a state or federal court of competent jurisdiction
located in the State of California, USA, and each of the Parties to this
Agreement hereby consents and submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of such
courts (and of the appropriate appellate courts therefrom) in any such suit,
action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by
Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying
of the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding in any such court or that
any such suit, action or proceeding which is brought in any such court has been
brought in an inconvenient forum.
10.8
Headings
. The
headings of the Articles and Sections in this Agreement are provided for
convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part
hereof.
10.9
Export
Control
. Each Party agrees that it will not
knowingly: (a) export or re-export, directly or indirectly, any
technical data (as defined by the U.S. Export Administration Regulations)
provided by the other Party or (b) disclose such technical data for use in, or
export or re-export directly or indirectly, any direct product of such technical
data, including Software, to any destination to which such export or re-export
is restricted or prohibited by United States or non-United States law,
without obtaining prior authorization from the U.S. Department of Commerce and
other competent Government Entities to the extent required by Applicable
Laws.
10.10
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement, together with its Schedules and
SOWs and the agreements and instruments expressly provided for herein, including
the applicable terms of the other Joint Venture Documents, constitute the entire
agreement of the Parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof and
supersede all prior agreements and understandings, oral and written, between the
Parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof.
10.11
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Agreement be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Agreement shall remain in
full force in all other respects. Should any provision of this
Agreement be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Laws or
interpretations thereof, or should this Agreement fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the Parties hereto shall negotiate in good faith appropriate
modifications to this Agreement to reflect those changes that are required by
Applicable Law.
10.12
Counterparts
. This
Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed
an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
[Signature
pages follow.]
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been executed and delivered as of the
Amendment Date.
|
NANYA
TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Jih
Lien
|
|
Name:
|
Jih
Lien
|
|
Title:
|
President
|
[Signature
page follows.]
THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE AMENDED AND RESTATED JOINT DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
AGREEMENT ENTERED INTO BY AND BETWEEN NTC AND MICRON
|
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
|
|
By:
|
/s/
D. Mark
Durcan
|
|
Name:
|
D.
Mark Durcan
|
|
Title:
|
President
and Chief Operating Officer
|
THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE AMENDED AND RESTATED JOINT DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
AGREEMENT ENTERED INTO BY AND BETWEEN NTC AND MICRON
- 25
-
EXHIBIT
10.76
[***]
DENOTES CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS OMITTED AND FILED SEPARATELY WITH THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO A REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT
AMENDED
AND RESTATED
TECHNOLOGY
TRANSFER AND LICENSE AGREEMENT
This
AMENDED AND RESTATED
TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AND LICENSE
AGREEMENT
(this “
Agreement
”), is made and
entered into as of this 26th day of November, 2008 (“
Amendment Date
”), by and
between Micron Technology, Inc, a Delaware corporation (“
Micron
”), and Nanya Technology
Corporation
Nanya
Technology Corporation [Translation from Chinese]
, a company incorporated
under the laws of the Republic of China (“
NTC
”). (Micron and
NTC are referred to in this Agreement individually as a “
Party
” and collectively as the
“
Parties
”).
RECITALS
A. Micron
currently designs and manufactures Stack DRAM Products (as defined herein) and
develops Process Technology (as defined herein) therefor. NTC and Micron desire
to engage in joint development and/or optimization of Process Technology for
process nodes of 68 nm, 50nm and other dimensions and joint development of Stack
DRAM Designs (as defined herein) for Stack DRAM Products to be manufactured on
such process nodes, as the Parties may agree in the JDP Agreement (as defined
herein).
B. To
effectuate their desires contemporaneously with their formation of their joint
venture MeiYa Technology Corporation, a company limited by shares organized
under the laws of the Republic of China (“
MeiYa
”), Micron licensed NTC
under Background IP for the design, development and manufacture of certain Stack
DRAM Products pursuant to that certain Technology Transfer and License Agreement
between Micron and NTC dated April 21, 2008 (“
Original
Agreement
”). Pursuant to the Original Agreement, Micron and
NTC have also transferred each other Foundational Know-How and licensed each
other thereunder for the design, development and manufacture of certain Stack
DRAM Products.
C. An
Affiliate of Micron and NTC have become parties to that certain Joint Venture
Agreement dated as of the Amendment Date involving the ownership and operations
of Inotera Memories, Inc., a company limited by shares under the laws of the
Republic of China (“
IMI
”), and in connection with
therewith are combining their ownership and operations of MeiYa with that of IMI
such that MeiYa will cease to exist.
D. Accordingly,
the Parties desire to amend and restate the Original Agreement to account for
the transactions contemplated by the Joint Venture Documents (as defined below)
related to IMI upon the terms and conditions set forth herein.
AGREEMENT
NOW,
THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises and agreements herein set
forth, the Parties, intending to be legally bound, hereby agree as
follows.
ARTICLE
1
DEFINITIONS; CERTAIN
INTERPRETATIVE MATTERS
1.1
Definitions
.
“
Adjusted Revenues
” means
[***].
“
Affiliate
” means, with respect
to any specified Person, any other Person that directly or indirectly, including
through one or more intermediaries, controls, or is controlled by, or is under
common control with such specified Person; and the term “
affiliated
” has a meaning
correlative to the foregoing.
“
Agreement
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Applicable Law
” means any
applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances, orders, codes,
arbitration awards, judgments, decrees or other legal requirements of any
Governmental Entity.
“
Amendment Date
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Background IP
” means
[***].
“
BEOL Costs
” means [***].
“
Burn-In
” means
[***].
“
Burn-In Documen
t” means a
document that describes the specification of voltage and test pattern settings
in the Burn-In test program. The Burn-In Document also describes the
methodology of how the voltage and test pattern settings are
optimized.
“
Closing
” means June 6, 2008,
the date of closing of formation of MeiYa.
“Commodity Stack DRAM Products”
means Stack DRAM Products for system main memory for computing or Mobile
Devices, in each case that are fully compliant with one or more Industry
Standard(s).
“
Confidential Information
”
means that information described in
Section 8.1
deemed to
be “Confidential Information” under the Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement.
“
Contractor
” means a Third
Party who (a) is contracted by a Party in connection with work to be conducted
by such Party under a SOW, (b) has agreed to assign to such contracting Party
all rights in and to any inventions, discoveries, improvements, processes,
copyrightable works, mask works, trade secrets or other technology that are
conceived or first reduced to practice, whether patentable or not, as a result
of any performance by such Third Party of any obligations of such Party under a
SOW, and all Patent Rights, IP Rights and other intellectual property rights in
the foregoing, and (c) has agreed to grant a license to such contracting Party,
with the right to sublicense of sufficient scope that includes the other Party,
under all Patent Rights, IP Rights and other rights of the Third Party
reasonably necessary for such contracting Party and the other Party to exploit
the work product created by the Third Party consistent with the rights granted
by the contracting Party to the other Party under the Joint Venture
Documents.
“
Control
” (whether capitalized
or not) means the power or authority, whether exercised or not, to direct the
business, management and policies of a Person, directly or indirectly, whether
through the ownership of voting securities, by contract or otherwise, which
power or authority shall conclusively be presumed to exist upon possession of
beneficial ownership or power to direct the vote of [***] of the votes entitled
to be cast at a meeting of the members, shareholders or other equity holders of
such Person or power to control the composition of a majority of the board of
directors or like governing body of such Person; and the terms “
controlling
” and “
controlled
” have meanings
correlative to the foregoing.
“
Design Qualification
” means,
[***].
“Design SOW”
means
[***].
“
DRAM Product
” means any
stand-alone semiconductor device that is a dynamic random access memory device
and that is designed or developed primarily for the function of storing data, in
die, wafer or package form.
“
Effective Date
” means April
21, 2008, the effective date of the Original Agreement.
“Existing Entity”
means
[***].
“
Force Majeure Event
” means the
occurrence of an event or circumstance beyond the reasonable control of a Party
and includes, without limitation, (a) explosions, fires, flood, earthquakes,
catastrophic weather conditions, or other elements of nature or acts of God; (b)
acts of war (declared or undeclared), acts of terrorism, insurrection, riots,
civil disorders, rebellion or sabotage; (c) acts of federal, state, local or
foreign Governmental Entity; (d) labor disputes, lockouts, strikes or other
industrial action, whether direct or indirect and whether lawful or unlawful;
(e) failures or fluctuations in electrical power or telecommunications service
or equipment; and (f) delays caused by the other Party or third-party
nonperformance (except for delays caused by a Party’s Contractors,
subcontractors or agents).
“
Foundational Know-How
” means,
with respect to each Party, [***].
“
Foundry Customer
” means a
Third Party customer for Stack DRAM Products for which [***].
“
Foundry Customer Adjusted
Revenues
” means [***].
“
Foundry Customer Products
”
means [***].
“
FT
” means [***].
“
GAAP
” means, with respect to
Micron, United States generally accepted accounting principles, and with respect
to NTC, Republic of China generally accepted accounting principles, in each
case, as consistently applied by the Party for all periods at
issue.
“
Gross Revenues
” means,
[***].
“
Governmental Entity
” means any
governmental authority or entity, including any agency, board, bureau,
commission, court, municipality, department, subdivision or instrumentality
thereof, or any arbitrator or arbitration panel.
“
IMI
” has the meaning set forth
in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“Industry Standard”
means the
documented technical specifications that set forth the pertinent technical and
operating characteristics of a DRAM Product if such specifications are publicly
available for use by DRAM manufacturers, and if [***]
“
IP Rights
” means copyrights,
rights in trade secrets, Mask Work Rights and pending applications or
registrations of any of the foregoing anywhere in the world. The term
“IP Rights” does not include any Patent Rights or rights in
trademarks.
“
JDP Agreement
” means that
certain Amended and Restated Joint Development Program Agreement by and between
Micron and NTC effective as of the Amendment Date.
“
JDP Committee
” means the
committee formed and operated by Micron and NTC to govern the performance of the
Parties under the JDP Agreement.
“JDP Inventions”
means all
discoveries, improvements, inventions, developments, processes or other
technology, whether patentable or not, that is/are conceived by one or more
Representatives of one or more of the Parties in the course of activities
conducted under the JDP Agreement.
“
JDP IP Royalties
” means
[***].
“
JDP Process Node
” means any
Primary Process Node or Optimized Process Node resulting from the research and
development activities of the Parties pursuant the JDP Agreement.
“
JDP Work Product
” means
[***].
“
Joint Venture Company
” means
either IMI or MeiYa, as the context dictates.
“
Joint Venture Documents
” means
(a) with respect to IMI, that certain Joint Venture Agreement between MNL and
NTC dated as of the Amendment Date relating to the Joint Venture Company and
those documents listed on
Schedule A
to that
certain Joint Venture Agreement; and (b) with respect to MeiYa, that
certain Master Agreement by and between Micron and NTC dated as of the Effective
Date, the Master Agreement Disclosure Letter by and between Micron and NTC dated
as of the Effective Date, and the documents listed on
Schedules 2.1
through
2.5
of such
disclosure letter, each as amended.
“
Mask Data Processing
” means
[***].
“
Mask Work Rights
" means rights
under the United States Semiconductor Chip Protection Act of 1984, as amended
from time to time, or under any similar equivalent laws in countries other than
the United States.
“
MeiYa
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
MeiYa Roll-Up
” means the first
to occur of the following events, whether through a single transaction or series
of related transactions: (a) any consolidation or merger of MeiYa
with or into another Person; (b) the sale of all or substantially all of MeiYa’s
non-cash assets to another Person; (c) the sale of all or substantially all of
MeiYa 's voting equity to any other Persons; and (d) the voluntary or
involuntary liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the affairs of
MeiYa.
“Micron
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Micron IP Royalties
” mean any
royalties owed by NTC to Micron under the TTLA 68-50.
“
Micron Qualified Fab
” means
[***].
“
Micron Products”
means
[***].
“
MNL
” means Micron
Semiconductor B.V., a private limited liability company organized under the laws
of the Netherlands.
“
MTT
” means Micron Technology
Asia Pacific, Inc., an Idaho corporation.
“Mobile Device”
means a
handheld or portable device using as its main memory one or more Stack DRAM
Products that is/are compliant with an Industry Standard [***].
“
Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement
” means that certain Second Amended and Restated Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement dated as of the Amendment Date among NTC, Micron, MNL,
MeiYa and IMI.
“
NTC
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
NTC Products
” means
[***].
“
NTC Qualified Fab
” means
[***].
“
OPC
” means optical proximity
correction of the circuit layout patterns, which is important in Mask Data
Processing.
“Optimized Process Node”
means
[***].
“
Original Agreement
” shall have
the meaning set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Party
” and “
Parties
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Patent Rights
” means all
rights associated with any and all issued and unexpired patents and pending
patent applications in any country in the world, together with any and all
divisionals, continuations, continuations-in-part, reissues, reexaminations,
extensions, foreign counterparts or equivalents of any of the foregoing,
wherever and whenever existing.
“
Person
” means any natural
person, corporation, joint stock company, limited liability company,
association, partnership, firm, joint venture, organization, business, trust,
estate or any other entity or organization of any kind or
character.
“
Primary Process Node
” means
[***].
“
Probe Testing
” means testing,
using a wafer test program as set forth in the applicable specifications, of a
wafer that has completed all processing steps deemed necessary to complete the
creation of the desired Stack DRAM integrated circuits in the die on such wafer,
the purpose of which test is to determine how many and which of the die meet the
applicable criteria for such die set forth in the specifications.
“
Process Development
Contractor
” means [***].
“
Process Node
” means
[***].
“
Process Qualification
” means,
[***].
“Process SOW”
means
[***].
“Process Technology
” means
that process technology developed before expiration of the Term and utilized in
the manufacture of Stack DRAM wafers, including Probe Testing and technology
developed through Product Engineering thereof
,
regardless of the form in
which any of the foregoing is stored, but excluding any Patent Rights and any
technology, trade secrets or know-how that relate to and are used in any
back-end operations (after Probe Testing).
“
Product Engineering
” means any
one or more of the engineering activities described on
Schedule 7
to the JDP
Agreement as applied to Stack DRAM Products or Stack DRAM Modules.
“
RASL
” means that certain
Amended and Restated Restricted Activities Side Letter agreement by and between
the Parties effective as of the Amendment Date.
“
Recoverable Taxes
” shall have
the meaning set forth in
Section
4.7(a)
.
“
Representative
” means with
respect to a Party, any director, officer, employee, agent or Contractor of such
Party or a professional advisor to such Party, such as an attorney, banker or
financial advisor of such Party who is under an obligation of confidentiality to
such Party by contract or ethical rules applicable to such Person.
“
Royalties
” means
[***].
“
Shares
” means the ordinary
shares of IMI, each having a par value of NT$10.
“
Software
” means computer
program instruction code, whether in human-readable source code form,
machine-executable binary form, firmware, scripts, interpretive text, or
otherwise. The term “Software” does not include databases and other
information stored in electronic form, other than executable instruction codes
or source code that is intended to be compiled into executable instruction
codes.
“
SOW
” means a statement of the
work that describes research and development work to be performed under the JDP
Agreement and that has been adopted by the JDP Committee pursuant to the
procedures set forth therein.
“
Stack DRAM
” means dynamic
random access memory cell that functions by using a capacitor arrayed
predominantly above the semiconductor substrate.
“
Stack DRAM
Design
” means, with respect to
a Stack DRAM Product, the corresponding design components, materials and
information listed on
Schedule 3
of
the JDP Agreement or as otherwise determined by the JDP Committee in a
SOW.
“Stack DRAM Module”
means one
or more Stack DRAM Products in a JEDEC-compliant package or module (whether as
part of a SIMM, DIMM, multi-chip package, memory card or other memory module or
package).
“Stack DRAM Product”
means any
memory comprising Stack DRAM, whether in die or wafer form.
“
Subsidiary
”
means, with
r
espect to any specified Person, any other
Person that, directly or indirectly, including through one or more
intermediaries, is controlled by such specified Person.
“
Supply Agreement
”
means that
certain Supply Agreement by and among NTC, Micron and IMI da
ted as of the Amendment Date.
“
Tax
” or “
Taxes
” means any federal,
state, local or foreign net income, gross income, gross receipts, sales, use ad
valorem, transfer, franchise, profits, service, service use, withholding,
payroll, employment, excise, severance, stamp, occupation, premium, property,
customs, duties or other type of fiscal levy and all other taxes, governmental
fees, registration fees, assessments or charges of any kind whatsoever, together
with any interest and penalties, additions to tax or additional amounts imposed
or assessed with respect thereto.
“
Taxing Authority
” means any
Governmental Entity exercising any authority to impose, regulate or administer
the imposition of Taxes.
“
Term
” shall have the meaning
set forth in
Section 9.1
.
“
Third Party
” means any Person
other than NTC or Micron.
“
TTLA 68-50
” means that certain
Technology Transfer and License Agreement for 68-50nm Process Nodes by and
between the Parties dated as of the Effective Date.
[***]
1.2 Certain
Interpretive Matters.
(a) Unless
the context requires otherwise, (1) all references to Sections, Articles,
Exhibits, Appendices or Schedules are to Sections, Articles, Exhibits,
Appendices or Schedules of or to this Agreement, (2) each accounting term
not otherwise defined in this Agreement has the meaning commonly applied to it
in accordance with GAAP, (3) words in the singular include the plural and
vice versa, (4) the term “
including
” means “including
without limitation,” and (5) the terms “
herein
,” “
hereof
,” “
hereunder
” and words of
similar import shall mean references to this Agreement as a whole and not to any
individual section or portion hereof. Unless otherwise denoted, all
references to $ or dollar amounts will be to lawful currency of the United
States of America. All references to “
day
” or “
days
” will mean calendar
days.
(b) No
provision of this Agreement will be interpreted in favor of, or against, either
Party by reason of the extent to which (1) such Party or its counsel
participated in the drafting thereof or (2) any such provision is inconsistent
with any prior draft of this Agreement or such provision.
ARTICLE
2
LICENSES
2.1
Micron Grant to
NTC
. Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement and
the applicable terms of the Joint Venture Documents, Micron grants to NTC
[***]:
[***]
2.2
NTC Grant to
Micron
. Subject to the terms and conditions of this
Agreement and the applicable terms of the Joint Venture Documents, NTC grants to
Micron a [***]:
[***]
2.3
Rights Following Termination
of JDP Agreement
. Upon termination of the JDP Agreement,
[***].
2.4
Reservations of
Rights.
[***]
ARTICLE
3
SERVICES
3.1
Assistance For Qualification
of Second Source for Mask Purchases
. As reasonably requested
by NTC and to the extent fulfilling such request would not cause disruption of
Micron’s operations, Micron will use commercially reasonable efforts to assist
NTC in providing the JDP Committee the information necessary for it to qualify a
second source [***].
3.2 [***]
As reasonably requested by NTC and to the extent fulfilling such request would
not cause disruption of Micron’s operations, [***].
ARTICLE
4
PAYMENTS
4.1
Royalties for JDP Process
Nodes of [
***]
4.2 [***]
4.3
Royalty Reporting and
Payment
. Within sixty (60) days following the end of [***] for
so long as any Royalties are payable hereunder, NTC shall submit to Micron a
written report, which is certified by NTC’s chief financial officer as complete
and correct, setting forth in reasonable detail, [***]. NTC shall pay
to Micron all Royalties due for such [***] contemporaneously with the submission
of such report in accordance with
Section
4.5
. NTC shall cause each of its Affiliates who dispose of
Stack DRAM Product in a manner that causes Royalties to be due to provide a
written report, which is certified by the Affiliate’s chief financial officer as
complete and correct, setting forth in reasonable detail such Affiliate’s
dispositions of Stack DRAM Product and corresponding Royalties for the [***]
that is the subject of each of the foregoing reports of NTC. NTC
shall provide a copy of each report from an Affiliate to Micron with submission
of NTC’s report.
4.4
Audit Rights and
Records
. Micron shall have the right to have an independent
Third Party auditor audit [***], upon reasonable advance written notice, during
normal business hours and on a confidential basis subject to the Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement, all records and accounts of NTC relevant to the
calculation of Royalties in the [***] of the audit;
provided however
, NTC shall
not be obligated to provide any records and book of accounts existing prior to
the Effective Date. NTC shall, and shall cause its Affiliates to, for
at least a period of [***] their creation, keep complete and accurate records
and books of accounts concerning all transactions relevant to calculation of
Royalties in sufficient detail to enable a complete and detailed audit to be
conducted. NTC shall cause any Affiliate that disposes of Stack DRAM
Product in a manner that causes Royalties to be due to keep records and permit
an audit of such records consistent with the obligations of NTC hereunder.
[***].
4.5
Reports and Invoices;
Payments
.
(a) All
reports and invoices under this Agreement may be sent by any method described in
Section 10.1
or
electronically with hardcopy confirmation sent promptly thereafter by any method
described in
Section
10.1
. Such reports and invoices should be sent to the
following contacts or such other contact as may be specified hereafter pursuant
to a notice sent in accordance with
Section
10.1
:
(i) Invoices
to NTC:
[***]
Nanya
Technology Corp.
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park 669, Fuhsing 3 Rd. Kueishan, Taoyuan, Taiwan, R. O.
C.
[***]
(ii) Reports
to Micron:
[***]
8000 S.
Federal Way
P.O. Box
6, MS 1-720
Boise,
Idaho, USA 83707-0006
[***]
(b) All
amounts owed by a Party under this Agreement are stated, calculated and shall be
paid in United States Dollars ($ U.S.).
(c) Payment
is due on all amounts properly invoiced within thirty (30) days of receipt of
invoice. All payments made under this Agreement shall be made by wire
transfer to a Micron bank account designated by the following person or by such
other person designated by notice:
Payments to
Micron:
[***]
8000 S.
Federal Way
P.O. Box
6, MS 1-107
Boise,
Idaho, USA 83707-0006
[***]
4.6
Interest
. Any
amounts payable to Micron hereunder and not paid within the time period provided
shall accrue interest, from the time such payment was due until the time payment
is actually received, at the rate of [***] or the highest rate permitted by
Applicable Law, whichever is lower.
4.7
Taxes
.
(a) All
sales, use and other transfer Taxes imposed directly on or solely as a result of
the services, rights licensed or technology transfers or the payments therefor
provided herein shall be stated separately on the service provider’s, licensor’s
or technology transferor’s invoice, collected from the service recipient,
licensee or technology transferee and shall be remitted by service provider,
licensor or technology transferor to the appropriate Taxing Authority (“
Recoverable Taxes
”), unless
the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee provides valid proof of
tax exemption prior to the Effective Date or otherwise as permitted by law prior
to the time the service provider, licensor or technology transferor is required
to pay such taxes to the appropriate Taxing Authority. When property
is delivered, rights granted and/or services are provided or the benefit of
services occurs within jurisdictions in which collection and remittance of Taxes
by the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee is required by law,
the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee shall have
sole responsibility for payment of said Taxes to the appropriate Taxing
Authority. In the event any Taxes are Recoverable Taxes and the
service provider, licensor or technology transferor does not collect such Taxes
from the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee or pay such Taxes
to the appropriate Governmental Entity on a timely basis, and is subsequently
audited by any Taxing Authority, liability of the service recipient, licensee or
technology transferee will be limited to the Tax assessment for such Recoverable
Taxes, with no reimbursement for penalty or interest charges or other amounts
incurred in connection therewith. Except as provided in
Section 4.7(b)
, Taxes
other than Recoverable Taxes shall not be reimbursed by the service recipient,
licensee or technology transferee, and each Party is responsible for its own
respective income Taxes (including franchise and other Taxes based on net income
or a variation thereof), Taxes based upon gross revenues or receipts, and Taxes
with respect to general overhead, including but not limited to business and
occupation Taxes, and such Taxes shall not be Recoverable Taxes.
(b) In
the event that the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee is
prohibited by Applicable Law from making payments to the service provider,
licensor or technology transferor unless the service recipient, licensee or
technology transferee deducts or withholds Taxes therefrom and remits such Taxes
to the local Taxing Authority, [***].
4.8 Payment
Delay. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement, if
requested by Micron by notice in accordance with
Section 10.1
, NTC
will [***] until notified by Micron in accordance with
Section
10.1
.
ARTICLE
5
OTHER INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
MATTERS
5.1
Intellectual Properties
Retained
. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to
transfer ownership of any intellectual property rights from one Party to another
Party.
5.2
Cooperation In Claims Of
Patent Infringement
. [***].
ARTICLE
6
WARRANTIES;
DISCLAIMERS
6.1
No Implied Obligation or
Rights
. Nothing contained in this Agreement shall be
construed as:
(a) a
warranty or representation that any manufacture, sale, lease, use or other
disposition of any products based upon any of the IP Rights licensed or
technology transferred hereunder will be free from infringement,
misappropriation or other violation of any Patent Rights, IP Rights or other
intellectual property rights of any Person;
(b) an
agreement to bring or prosecute proceedings against Third Parties for
infringement, misappropriation or other violation of rights or conferring any
right to bring or prosecute proceedings against Third Parties for infringement,
misappropriation or other violation of rights; or
(c) conferring
any right to use in advertising, publicity, or otherwise, any trademark, trade
name or names, or any contraction, abbreviation or simulation thereof, of either
Party.
6.2
Third Party
Software
. Exploitation of any of the rights licensed or
technology transferred hereunder may require use of Software owned by a Third
Party and not subject to any license granted under any of the Joint Venture
Documents. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as granting
to any Party, any right, title or interest in, to or under any Software owned by
any Third Party. Except as may be specified otherwise in any of the
other Joint Venture Documents, any such Software so required is solely the
responsibility of the each of the Parties. Moreover, should a Party
who transfers technology under this Agreement discover after such transfer that
it has provided Software to the other Party that it was not entitled to provide,
such providing Party shall promptly notify the other Party and the recipient
shall return such Software to the providing Party and not retain any copy
thereof.
6.3
Disclaimer
. [***].
6.4
Background
IP
. Micron represents and warrants to NTC that the Transferred
Technology transferred to NTC pursuant to
Section 3.1
of the
TTLA 68-50 [***]
ARTICLE
7
LIMITATION OF
LIABILITY
7.1
LIMITATION OF
LIABILITY
. [***].
ARTICLE
8
CONFIDENTIALITY
8.1
Confidentiality
Obligations
. Subject to the rights expressly granted to the
Parties hereunder and any applicable restrictions under the other Joint Venture
Documents, all information provided, disclosed or obtained in connection with
this Agreement, the TTLA 68-50 or the performance of any of the Parties’
activities under this Agreement or the TTLA 68-50 shall be deemed “Confidential
Information” subject to all applicable provisions of the Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement. The terms and conditions of this Agreement and the TTLA
68-50 shall be considered “Confidential Information” under the Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement for which Micron and NTC shall be
considered a “Receiving Party” under such agreement. The Parties
acknowledge that Process Technology, JDP Process Nodes, JDP Inventions, JDP Work
Product and other information exchanged pursuant to the JDP Agreement are
subject to restrictions on disclosure set forth therein.
8.2
Additional Controls For
Certain Information
. To the extent any layout and schematics
data/databases, scribe line test patterns, internal architecture specifications,
test modes and configurations, or similarly sensitive information is provided to
a Party under this Agreement, such subject matter shall be stored solely on
secure servers and password protected, and such Party shall limit access to such
data exclusively to those of its Representatives who have a need to access such
data for the purposes of exercising its rights hereunder
.
8.3
Micron Background IP and
Foundational Know-How.
[***]
8.4
NTC Foundational
Know-How.
[***]
8.5
Conflicts
. To
the extent there is a conflict between this Agreement and the Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement, the terms of this Agreement shall
control. To the extent there is a conflict between this Agreement and
the JDP Agreement, the JDP Agreement shall control.
ARTICLE
9
TERM AND
TERMINATION
9.1
Term
. The
term of this Agreement commences on the Effective Date and continues in effect
until terminated by mutual agreement;
provided, however
, that the
amendments made to the Original Agreement by this Agreement commence on the
Amendment Date. (The period from the Effective Date until termination
is the “
Term
”).
9.2
Termination of
License.
(a)
In the
event either [***], the other party may terminate [***]
An inadvertent
disclosure by one Party or a Party’s Representative of the other Party’s
Confidential Information in violation of this Agreement or the Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement, as applicable, shall not be considered a material
breach of this Agreement provided that (i) such Party takes prompt action to
retract the disclosure and prevent further similar violations, and (ii) the
disclosure was not in intentional or willful disregard of the non-disclosure
obligations set forth in this Agreement or in the Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement.
[***]
9.3
Effects of
Termination.
(a) Termination
of this Agreement or a Party’s license hereunder shall not affect any of the
Parties’ respective rights accrued or obligations owed before
termination. In addition, the following shall survive termination for
any reason: Articles 1, 6, 7 and 10 and Sections 2.4, 4.3
through 4.7, 5.1, 8.1, 8.2, 8.3(b), 8.4(b), 8.5 and 9.3.
(b) Upon
termination of a Party’s license under this Agreement pursuant to Section
9.2(a), the Party whose license was terminated shall:
[***]
(c) Upon
termination of NTC’s license under this Agreement pursuant to Section 9.2(b),
NTC shall:
[***]
ARTICLE
10
MISCELLANEOUS
10.1
Notices
. All
notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be
deemed given upon (a) transmitter’s confirmation of a receipt of a
facsimile transmission, (b) confirmed delivery by a standard overnight carrier
or when delivered by hand, or (c) delivery in person, addressed at the following
addresses (or at such other address for a party as shall be specified by like
notice):
If to
NTC
: Nanya
Technology Corporation
Hwa-Ya Technology Park
669
Fuhsing 3 RD. Kueishan
Taoyuan, Taiwan, ROC
Attention: Legal
Department
Fax: 886.3.396.2226
If to
Micron
: Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000 S. Federal Way
Mail Stop 1-507
Boise, ID 83716
Attention: General
Counsel
Fax: 208.368.4537
10.2
Waiver
. The
failure at any time of a Party to require performance by the other Party of any
responsibility or obligation required by this Agreement shall in no way affect a
Party’s right to require such performance at any time thereafter, nor shall the
waiver by a Party of a breach of any provision of this Agreement by the other
Party constitute a waiver of any other breach of the same or any other provision
nor constitute a waiver of the responsibility or obligation itself.
10.3
Assignment
. [***].
10.4
Third Party
Rights
. Nothing in this Agreement, whether express or implied,
is intended or shall be construed to confer, directly or indirectly, upon or
give to any Person, other than the Parties hereto, any legal or equitable right,
remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any covenant, condition
or other provision contained herein.
10.5
Force
Majeure
. The Parties shall be excused from any failure to
perform any obligation hereunder to the extent such failure is caused by a Force
Majeure Event.
10.6
Choice of
Law
. This Agreement shall be construed and enforced in
accordance with and governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, USA, without
giving effect to the principles of conflict of laws thereof.
10.7
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Agreement shall be brought in a state or federal court of competent jurisdiction
located in the State of California, USA, and each of the Parties to this
Agreement hereby consents and submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of such
courts (and of the appropriate appellate courts therefrom) in any such suit,
action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by
Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying
of the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding in any such court or that
any such suit, action or proceeding which is brought in any such court has been
brought in an inconvenient forum.
10.8
Headings
. The
headings of the Articles and Sections in this Agreement are provided for
convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part
hereof.
10.9
Export
Control
. Each Party agrees that it will not
knowingly: (a) export or re-export, directly or indirectly, any
technical data (as defined by the U.S. Export Administration Regulations)
provided by the other Party or (b) disclose such technical data for use in, or
export or re-export directly or indirectly, any direct product of such technical
data, including Software, to any destination to which such export or re-export
is restricted or prohibited by United States or non-United States law,
without obtaining prior authorization from the U.S. Department of Commerce and
other competent Government Entities to the extent required by Applicable
Laws.
10.10
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement, together with its Schedules and the
agreements and instruments expressly provided for herein, including the
applicable terms of the other Joint Venture Documents, constitute the entire
agreement of the Parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof and
supersede all prior agreements and understandings, oral and written, between the
Parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof.
10.11
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Agreement be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Agreement shall remain in
full force in all other respects. Should any provision of this
Agreement be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Laws or
interpretations thereof, or should this Agreement fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the Parties hereto shall negotiate in good faith appropriate
modifications to this Agreement to reflect those changes that are required by
Applicable Law.
10.12
Counterparts
. This
Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed
an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
[Signature
pages follow.]
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been executed and delivered as of the
Amendment Date.
|
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
|
|
By:
|
/s/
D. Mark
Durcan
|
|
Name:
|
D.
Mark Durcan
|
|
Title:
|
President
and Chief Operating Officer
|
[Signature
page follows.]
THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE AMENDED AND RESTATED TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AND LICENSE
AGREEMENT ENTERED INTO BY AND BETWEEN MICRON AND NTC
|
NANYA
TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Jih
Lien
|
|
Name:
|
Jih
Lien
|
|
Title:
|
President
|
THIS
IS A SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE AMENDED AND RESTATED TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AND LICENSE
AGREEMENT ENTERED INTO BY AND BETWEEN MICRON AND NTC
- 17
-
EXHIBIT 10.77
[***]
DENOTES CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS OMITTED AND FILED SEPARATELY WITH THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO A REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL
TREATMENT
TECHNOLOGY
TRANSFER AGREEMENT
This
TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AGREEMENT
(this “
Agreement
”), is made and
entered into as of this 26th day of November, 2008 (“
Effective Date
”), by and among
Nanya Technology Corporation
Nanya Technology Corporation
[Translation from Chinese]
, a company incorporated under the laws of the
Republic of China (“
NTC
”), Micron Technology, Inc,
a Delaware corporation (“
Micron
”), and Inotera
Memories, Inc., a company-limited-by-shares incorporated under the laws of the
Republic of China (“
Joint
Venture Company
”). (NTC, Micron and Joint Venture Company are
referred to in this Agreement individually as a “
Party
” and collectively as the
“
Parties
”).
RECITALS
A. Pursuant
to the Joint Venture Documents (as defined hereinafter) and the transactions
contemplated thereby, an Affiliate of Micron, Micron Semiconductor B.V., a
private limited liability company organized under the laws of the Netherlands
(“
MNL
”), has purchased
an ownership interest in the Joint Venture Company to manufacture Stack DRAM
Products (as defined hereinafter) for supply and delivery solely to Micron and
NTC.
B. The
Parties desire to outline the procedures under which Micron and NTC will
transfer certain technology related to Process Nodes (as defined hereafter) to
the Joint Venture Company that will be used by the Joint Venture Company to
manufacture Stack DRAM Products for Micron and NTC.
AGREEMENT
NOW,
THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises and agreements herein set
forth, the Parties, intending to be legally bound, hereby agree as
follows.
ARTICLE
1
DEFINITIONS; CERTAIN
INTERPRETATIVE MATTERS
1.1
Definitions
.
“
Affiliate
” means, with respect
to any specified Person, any other Person that directly or indirectly, including
through one or more intermediaries, controls, or is controlled by, or is under
common control with such specified Person; and the term “
affiliated
” has a meaning
correlative to the foregoing.
“
Agreement
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Applicable Law
” means any
applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances, orders, codes,
arbitration awards, judgments, decrees or other legal requirements of any
Governmental Entity.
“
Assigned Employees
” shall,
with respect to Micron, have the meaning set forth in the Micron Assigned
Employee Agreement by and between Micron and the Joint Venture Company dated as
of the Effective Date and, with respect to NTC, have the meaning set forth in
the NTC Assigned Employee Agreement by and between NTC and the Joint Venture
Company dated as of Effective Date.
“
Business Day
” means a day that
is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banking institutions
in either the Republic of China or the State of New York
are authorized or
required by Applicable Law to be closed.
“
Confidential Information
”
means that information described in
Section 5.1
deemed to
be “Confidential Information” under the Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement.
“
Contractor
” means a Third
Party who (a) is contracted by a Party in connection with work to be conducted
by such Party under a SOW, (b) has agreed to assign to such contracting Party
all rights in and to any inventions, discoveries, improvements, processes,
copyrightable works, mask works, trade secrets or other technology that are
conceived or first reduced to practice, whether patentable or not, as a result
of any performance by such Third Party of any obligations of such Party under a
SOW, and all Patent Rights, IP Rights and other intellectual property rights in
the foregoing, and (c) has agreed to grant a license to such contracting Party,
with the right to sublicense of sufficient scope that includes the other Party,
under all Patent Rights, IP Rights and other rights of the Third Party
reasonably necessary for such contracting Party and the other Party to exploit
the work product created by the Third Party consistent with the rights granted
by the contracting Party to the other Party under the Joint Venture
Documents.
“
Control
” (whether capitalized
or not) means the power or authority, whether exercised or not, to direct the
business, management and policies of a Person, directly or indirectly, whether
through the ownership of voting securities, by contract or otherwise, which
power or authority shall conclusively be presumed to exist upon possession of
beneficial ownership or power to direct the vote of [***] of the votes entitled
to be cast at a meeting of the members, shareholders or other equity holders of
such Person or power to control the composition of a majority of the board of
directors or like governing body of such Person; and the terms “
controlling
” and “
controlled
” have meanings
correlative to the foregoing.
“
Effective Date
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Force Majeure Event
” means the
occurrence of an event or circumstance beyond the reasonable control of a Party
and includes, without limitation, (a) explosions, fires, flood, earthquakes,
catastrophic weather conditions, or other elements of nature or acts of God; (b)
acts of war (declared or undeclared), acts of terrorism, insurrection, riots,
civil disorders, rebellion or sabotage; (c) acts of federal, state, local or
foreign Governmental Entity; (d) labor disputes, lockouts, strikes or other
industrial action, whether direct or indirect and whether lawful or unlawful;
(e) failures or fluctuations in electrical power or telecommunications service
or equipment; and (f) delays caused by the other Party or Third-Party
nonperformance (except for delays caused by a Party’s contractors,
subcontractors or agents).
“
GAAP
” means, with respect to
Micron, United States generally accepted accounting principles, and with respect
to NTC and the Joint Venture Company, Republic of China generally accepted
accounting principles, in each case, as consistently applied by the Party for
all periods at issue.
“
Governmental Entity
” means any
governmental authority or entity, including any agency, board, bureau,
commission, court, municipality, department, subdivision or instrumentality
thereof, or any arbitrator or arbitration panel.
“
IP Rights
” means copyrights,
rights in trade secrets, Mask Work Rights and pending applications or
registrations of any of the foregoing anywhere in the world. The term
“IP Rights” does not include any Patent Rights or rights in
trademarks.
“
JDP Agreement
” means that
certain Amended and Restated Joint Development Program Agreement by and between
Micron and NTC effective as of the Effective Date.
“
JDP Co-Chairman
” and “
JDP Co-Chairmen
” means the JDP
Co-Chairman or JDP Co-Chairmen, respectively, appointed by Micron or NTC under
the JDP Agreement, as such individuals are communicated to the Joint Venture
Company from time to time.
“
JDP Committee
” means the
committee formed and operated by Micron and NTC to govern the performance of the
Parties under the JDP Agreement.
“
JDP Design
” means any Stack
DRAM Design resulting from the research and development activities of the
Parties pursuant to the JDP Agreement.
“JDP Inventions”
means all
discoveries, improvements, inventions, developments, processes or other
technology, whether patentable or not, that is/are conceived by one or more
Representatives of one or more of the Parties in the course of activities
conducted under the JDP Agreement.
“
JDP Process Node
” means any
Primary Process Node or Optimized Process Node resulting from the research and
development activities of the Parties pursuant the JDP Agreement.
“
JDP Work Product
” means
[***].
“
Joint Venture Company
” shall
have the meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Joint Venture Documents
” means
that certain Joint Venture Agreement between MNL and NTC dated as of the
Effective Date relating to the Joint Venture Company and the agreements listed
on
Schedule A
of that agreement.
“
Mask Work Rights
" means rights
under the United States Semiconductor Chip Protection Act of 1984, as amended
from time to time, or under any similar equivalent laws in countries other than
the United States.
“
MeiYa
” means MeiYa Technology
Corporation, a company-limited-by-shares incorporated under the laws of the
Republic of China.
“
Micron
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement
“
MNL
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the Recitals to this Agreement.
“
Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement
” means that certain Second Amended and Restated Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement dated as of the Effective Date among NTC, Micron, MNL,
MeiYa and the Joint Venture Company.
“Optimized Process Node”
means
[***].
“
NTC
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Party
” and “
Parties
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement
“
Patent Prosecution
” means (a)
preparing, filing and prosecuting patent applications (of all types), and (b)
managing any interference, reexamination, reissue, or opposition proceedings
relating to the foregoing.
“
Patent Rights
” means all
rights associated with any and all issued and unexpired patents and pending
patent applications in any country in the world, together with any and all
divisionals, continuations, continuations-in-part, reissues, reexaminations,
extensions, foreign counterparts or equivalents of any of the foregoing,
wherever and whenever existing.
“
Person
” means any natural
person, corporation, joint stock company, limited liability company,
association, partnership, firm, joint venture, organization, business, trust,
estate or any other entity or organization of any kind or
character.
“
Primary Process Node
” means
[***].
“
Probe Testing
” means testing,
using a wafer test program as set forth in the applicable specifications, of a
wafer that has completed all processing steps deemed necessary to complete the
creation of the desired Stack DRAM integrated circuits in the die on such wafer,
the purpose of which test is to determine how many and which of the die meet the
applicable criteria for such die set forth in the specifications.
“
Process Node
” means
[***].
“Process Technology
” means
that process technology developed before expiration of the Term and utilized in
the manufacture of Stack DRAM wafers, including Probe Testing and technology
developed through Product Engineering thereof
,
regardless of the form in
which any of the foregoing is stored, but excluding any Patent Rights and any
technology, trade secrets or know-how that relate to and are used in any
back-end operations (after Probe Testing).
“
Product Engineering
” means any
one or more of the engineering activities described on
Schedule 7
to the JDP
Agreement as applied to Stack DRAM Products or Stack DRAM Modules.
“
Recoverable Taxes
”
shall
have the meaning set forth in
Section
3.5(a).
“
Representative
”
means with respect to a Party, any director, officer, employee, agent
or Contractor of such Party or a professional advisor to such Party, such as an
attorney, banker or financial advisor of such Party who is under an obligation
of confidentiality to such Party by contract or ethical rules applicable to such
Person.
“
Software
” means computer
program instruction code, whether in human-readable source code form,
machine-executable binary form, firmware, scripts, interpretive text, or
otherwise. The term “Software” does not include databases and other
information stored in electronic form, other than executable instruction codes
or source code that is intended to be compiled into executable instruction
codes.
“
SOW
” means a statement of the
work that describes research and development work to be performed under JDP
Agreement and that has been adopted by the JDP Committee pursuant to the
procedures set forth therein.
“
Stack DRAM
” means dynamic
random access memory cell that functions by using a capacitor arrayed
predominantly above the semiconductor substrate.
“
Stack DRAM
Design
” means, with respect to
a Stack DRAM Product, the corresponding design components, materials and
information listed on
Schedule 1
or as
otherwise determined by the JDP Committee in a SOW.
“Stack DRAM Module”
means one
or more Stack DRAM Products in a JEDEC-compliant package or module (whether as
part of a SIMM, DIMM, multi-chip package, memory card or other memory module or
package).
“Stack DRAM Product”
means any
memory comprising Stack DRAM, whether in die or wafer form.
“
Tax
” or “
Taxes
” means any federal,
state, local or foreign net income, gross income, gross receipts, sales, use ad
valorem, transfer, franchise, profits, service, service use, withholding,
payroll, employment, excise, severance, stamp, occupation, premium, property,
customs, duties or other type of fiscal levy and all other taxes, governmental
fees, registration fees, assessments or charges of any kind whatsoever, together
with any interest and penalties, additions to tax or additional
amounts imposed or assessed with respect thereto.
“
Taxing Authority
” means any
Governmental Entity exercising any authority to impose, regulate or administer
the imposition of Taxes.
“
Term
” shall have the meaning
set forth in
Section
8.1
.
“
Third Party
” means any Person
other than Micron, NTC or the Joint Venture Company.
“
TTA 68-50
” means the
Technology Transfer Agreement For 68-50nm Process Nodes by and between Micron
and the Joint Venture Company signed on October 11, 2008 but effective as of the
Effective Date.
“
TTLA
” means the Amended and
Restated Technology Transfer and License Agreement dated as of the Effective
Date by and between Micron and NTC.
“
Works Registration
” means any
registrations of any JDP Work Product.
1.2
Certain Interpretive
Matters
.
(a)
Unless
the context requires otherwise, (1) all references to Sections, Articles,
Exhibits, Appendices or Schedules are to Sections, Articles, Exhibits,
Appendices or Schedules of or to this Agreement, (2) each accounting term
not otherwise defined in this Agreement has the meaning commonly applied to it
in accordance with GAAP, (3) words in the singular include the plural and
vice versa, (4) the term “
including
” means “including
without limitation,” and (5) the terms “
herein
,” “
hereof
,” “
hereunder
” and words of
similar import shall mean references to this Agreement as a whole and not to any
individual section or portion hereof. Unless otherwise denoted, all
references to $ or dollar amounts will be to lawful currency of the United
States of America. All references to “
day
” or “
days
” will mean calendar
days.
(b)
No
provision of this Agreement will be interpreted in favor of, or against, any of
the Parties by reason of the extent to which (1) any such Party or its counsel
participated in the drafting thereof or (2) any such provision is inconsistent
with any prior draft of this Agreement or such provision.
ARTICLE
2
TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY TO
JOINT VENTURE COMPANY
2.1
Delivery of JDP Process
Nodes and JDP Designs to Joint Venture Company
. Micron and NTC
shall transfer to the Joint Venture Company JDP Work Product associated with JDP
Process Nodes and JDP Designs in the form and at the time(s) and manner as
mutually agreed in writing by NTC and Micron and as approved by the Board of
Directors of the Joint Venture Company.
2.2
Mask
Purchases
. As reasonably requested by the Joint Venture
Company and to the extent fulfilling such request would not cause disruption of
Micron’s operations, Micron will use commercially reasonable efforts to assist
the Joint Venture Company [***].
2.3
On-Site
Visitations
. Each Party and its Representatives shall observe
and be subject to all safety, security and other policies and regulations
regarding visitors and contractors while on site at a facility of the other
Party or its Affiliate. A Party's Representatives who access any
facility of the other Party or its Affiliate shall not interfere with, and
except as otherwise agreed by the Parties, shall not participate in, the
business or operations of the facility accessed.
ARTICLE
3
PAYMENTS
3.1
Technology Transfers of
Primary Process Nodes to Joint Venture Company
. Upon the
completion of the transfer to the Joint Venture Company of each Primary Process
Node that is a JDP Process Node [***], as such completion is defined in the
applicable Process SOW or otherwise agreed by Micron and NTC, the Joint Venture
Company shall pay to each of Micron and NTC an amount [***].
3.2
Joint Venture Company
Development Costs
. [***].
3.3
Invoices;
Payments
.
(a)
All
invoices under this Agreement may be sent by any method described in
Section 8.1
or
electronically with hardcopy confirmation sent promptly thereafter by any method
described in
Section
8.1
. Such invoices should be sent to the following contacts or
such other contact as may be specified hereafter pursuant to a notice sent in
accordance with
Section
8.1
:
Invoices to Joint Venture
Company:
[***]
Inotera
Memories, Inc.
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park
667,
Fuhsing 3 Rd., Kueishan, Taoyuan
Taiwan,
R.O.C.
[***]
Invoices to
NTC
:
[***]
Nanya
Technology Corp.
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park 669, Fuhsing 3 Rd. Kueishan, Taoyuan, Taiwan, R. O.
C.
[***]
Invoices to
Micron:
[***]
8000 S.
Federal Way
P.O. Box
6, MS 1-107
Boise,
Idaho, USA 83707-0006
[***]
(b)
All
amounts owed by a Party under this Agreement are stated, calculated and shall be
paid in United States Dollars ($ U.S.).
(c)
Payment
is due on all amounts properly invoiced within thirty (30) days of receipt of
invoice. All payments made under this Agreement shall be made by
check sent to the following person or by such other manner designated by such
person:
Payments to
Micron:
[***]
8000 S.
Federal Way
P.O. Box
6, MS 1-107
Boise,
Idaho, USA 83707-0006
[***]
Payments to
NTC
:
[***]
Nanya
Technology Corp.
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park 669, Fuhsing 3 Rd. Kueishan, Taoyuan, Taiwan, R. O.
C.
[***]
Payment to Joint Venture
Company:
[***]
Inotera
Memories, Inc.
Hwa-Ya
Technology Park
667,
Fuhsing 3 Rd., Kueishan, Taoyuan
Taiwan,
R.O.C.
[***]
3.4
Interest
. Any
amounts payable to a Party hereunder and not paid within the time period
provided shall accrue interest, from the time such payment was due until the
time payment is actually received, at the rate of [***].
3.5
Taxes
.
(a)
All
sales, use and other transfer Taxes imposed directly on or solely as a result of
the services, rights licensed or technology transfers or the payments therefor
provided herein shall be stated separately on the service provider’s, licensor’s
or technology transferor’s invoice, collected from the service recipient,
licensee or technology transferee and shall be remitted by service provider,
licensor or technology transferor to the appropriate Taxing Authority (“
Recoverable Taxes
”), unless
the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee provides valid proof of
tax exemption prior to the Effective Date or otherwise as permitted by law prior
to the time the service provider, licensor or technology transferor is required
to pay such taxes to the appropriate Taxing Authority. When property
is delivered, rights granted and/or services are provided or the benefit of
services occurs within jurisdictions in which collection and remittance of Taxes
by the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee is required by law,
the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee shall have sole
responsibility for payment of said Taxes to the appropriate Taxing
Authority. In the event any Taxes are Recoverable Taxes and the
service provider, licensor or technology transferor does not collect such Taxes
from the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee or pay such Taxes
to the appropriate Governmental Entity on a timely basis, and is subsequently
audited by any Taxing Authority, liability of the service recipient, licensee or
technology transferee will be limited to the Tax assessment for such Recoverable
Taxes, with no reimbursement for penalty or interest charges or other amounts
incurred in connection therewith. Except as provided in
Section 3.5(b)
, Taxes
other than Recoverable Taxes shall not be reimbursed by the service recipient,
licensee or technology transferee, and each Party is responsible for its own
respective income Taxes (including franchise and other Taxes based on net income
or a variation thereof), Taxes based upon gross revenues or receipts, and Taxes
with respect to general overhead, including but not limited to business and
occupation Taxes, and such Taxes shall not be Recoverable Taxes.
(b)
In the
event that the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee is
prohibited by Applicable Law from making payments to the service provider,
licensor or technology transferor unless the service recipient, licensee or
technology transferee deducts or withholds Taxes therefrom and remits such Taxes
to the local Taxing Authority, [***].
3.6
Payment
Delay
. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this
Agreement, if requested by Micron by notice in accordance with
Section 9.1
, Inotera
will [***] when due until notified by Micron in accordance with
Section
9.1
.
ARTICLE
4
INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY
4.1
No Transfer of
IP
Rights
.
Nothing in
this
Agreement [***].
4.2
Invention Disclosure
Procedures; Inventorship; Authorship
.
(a)
As soon
as reasonably practicable [***], the Joint Venture Company shall, and Micron and
NTC shall cause the Joint Venture Company to, introduce procedures to encourage
and govern the submission of disclosures of inventions by its Representative(s)
to [***]. Such procedures shall include (i) a policy statement
encouraging the submission of such invention disclosures, (ii) appropriate
invention disclosure forms, (iii) a commitment on the part of the Joint Venture
Company to obtain relevant invention disclosure forms from its Representatives
and to submit such forms to the [***], (iv) the formation and operation of a
Patent Review Committee to evaluate invention disclosures and steer the filing
and prosecution of patent applications with respect thereto, and (v)
[***].
(b)
Inventorship
for any inventions conceived by the Joint Venture Company or any of its
Representatives, including JDP Inventions, shall be determined in accordance
with United States patent laws.
(c)
Authorship
for all works of authorship and mask works created by or made by or for the
Joint Venture Company or any of its Representatives, including JDP Work Product,
whether registered or not, shall be determined in accordance with United States
copyright laws and laws concerning Mask Work Rights, as applicable.
4.3
Ownership of Inventions and
Work Product
.
[***]
4.4
[***]
[***]
ARTICLE
5
CONFIDENTIALITY
5.1
Confidentiality
Obligations
. All information (including JDP Work Product, JDP
Inventions, JDP Process Nodes and JDP Designs) provided, disclosed, created or
obtained in connection with this Agreement, the TTA 68-50 or the performance of
any of the Parties’ activities under this Agreement, the TTA 68-50 or the JDP
Agreement, including the performance of activities under a SOW, shall be deemed
“Confidential Information” subject to all applicable provisions of the Mutual
Confidentiality Agreement. The terms and conditions of this Agreement
shall be considered “Confidential Information” under the Mutual Confidentiality
Agreement for which each Party shall be considered a “Receiving Party” under
such agreement. The Joint Venture Company shall be deemed a
“Receiving Party” under such agreement with respect to any inventions and works
owned by the Joint Venture Company or assigned by or that should be assigned by
the Joint Venture Company to Micron or to Micron and NTC under this
Agreement.
ARTICLE
6
WARRANTIES;
DISCLAIMERS
6.1
No Implied
Obligation
. Nothing contained in this Agreement shall be
construed as:
(a)
a
warranty or representation that any manufacture, sale, lease, use or other
disposition of any products based upon JDP Work Product, JDP Inventions, JDP
Process Nodes or JDP Designs or other technology transferred hereunder will be
free from infringement, misappropriation or other violation of any Patent
Rights, IP Rights or other intellectual property rights of any
Person;
(b)
an
agreement to bring or prosecute proceedings against Third Parties for
infringement, misappropriation or other violation of rights or conferring any
right to bring or prosecute proceedings against Third Parties for infringement,
misappropriation or other violation of rights; or
(c)
conferring
any right to use in advertising, publicity, or otherwise, any trademark, trade
name or names, or any contraction, abbreviation or simulation thereof, of either
Party.
6.2
Third Party
Software
. Use of any inventions or works exchanged among any
of the Parties under this Agreement may require use of Software owned by a Third
Party and not subject to any license granted under any of the Joint Venture
Documents. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as granting
to any Party, any right, title or interest in, to or under any Software owned by
any Third Party. Except as may be specified otherwise in any of the
other Joint Venture Documents, any such Software so required is solely the
responsibility of the each of the Parties. Moreover, should a Party
who transfers technology under this Agreement discover after such transfer that
it has provided Software to the other Party that it was not entitled to provide,
such providing Party shall promptly notify the other Party and the recipient
shall return such Software to the providing Party and not retain any copy
thereof.
6.3
DISCLAIMER
.
[***]
ARTICLE
7
LIMITATION OF
LIABILITY
7.1
LIMITATION OF
LIABILITY
. [***]
ARTICLE
8
TERM AND
TERMINATION
8.1
Term
. The
term of this Agreement commences on the Effective Date and continues in effect
until terminated in accordance with
Section
8.2
. (The period from the Effective Date until termination is
the “
Term
”).
8.2
Termination of this
Agreement
.
(a)
This
Agreement and the TTA 68-50 shall terminate automatically if:
[***]
(b)
Either
Micron or NTC may terminate this Agreement and/or the TTA 68-50 by notice to the
other Parties if either of the other Parties commits a material breach of this
Agreement or if Micron or the Joint Venture Company commits a material breach of
TTA 68-50, and any such breach remains uncured for more than [***] of the breach
from Micron or NTC.
(c)
[***].
8.3
Effects of
Termination
.
(a)
Termination
of this Agreement shall not affect any of the Parties’ respective rights accrued
or obligations owed before termination. In addition, the following
shall survive termination of this Agreement for any reason:
Articles 1
,
3
,
5
,
6
,
7
and
9
and
Sections 4.1
,
4.2(b)
and
(c)
,
4.4
and
8.3
.
Section 4.3
shall
survive solely with respect to inventions and works of authorship made or
created by the Joint Venture Company before termination and the right to claim
reimbursement.
(b)
At such
time when this Agreement, the TTA 68-50 and the TTLA have been terminated, the
Joint Venture Company shall:
[***]
ARTICLE
9
MISCELLANEOUS
9.1
Notices
. All
notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be
deemed given upon (a) transmitter’s confirmation of a receipt of a
facsimile transmission, (b) confirmed delivery by a standard overnight carrier
or when delivered by hand, or (c) delivery in person, addressed at the following
addresses (or at such other address for a party as shall be specified by like
notice):
If to
NTC
: Nanya
Technology Corporation
Hwa-Ya Technology Park
669
Fuhsing 3 RD. Kueishan
Taoyuan, Taiwan, ROC
Attention: Legal
Department
Fax: 886.3.396.2226
If to
Micron
: Micron
Technology, Inc.
8000 S. Federal Way
Mail Stop 1-507
Boise, ID 83716
Attention: General
Counsel
Fax: 208.368.4537
If to the Joint Venture
Company
:
Inotera Memories, Inc.
667, Fuhsing 3rd Road,
Haw-Ya Technology Park Kueishan,
Taoyuan 333
Taiwan, ROC
Attention: Legal
Department
Fax: +886 3 327 2988 ext
3385
with a copy to each of
Micron and NTC as identified above.
9.2
Waiver
. The
failure at any time of a Party to require performance by another Party of any
responsibility or obligation required by this Agreement shall in no way affect a
Party’s right to require such performance at any time thereafter, nor shall the
waiver by a Party of a breach of any provision of this Agreement by another
Party constitute a waiver of any other breach of the same or any other provision
nor constitute a waiver of the responsibility or obligation itself.
9.3
Assignment
. [***]
9.4
Third Party
Rights
. Nothing in this Agreement, whether express or implied,
is intended or shall be construed to confer, directly or indirectly, upon or
give to any Person, other than the Parties hereto, any legal or equitable right,
remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any covenant, condition
or other provision contained herein.
9.5
Force
Majeure
. The Parties shall be excused from any failure to
perform any obligation hereunder to the extent such failure is caused by a Force
Majeure Event.
9.6
Choice of
Law
. Except as provided in
Sections 4.2 (b)
and
(c)
, this
Agreement shall be construed and enforced in accordance with and governed by the
laws of the State of Delaware, USA, without giving effect to the principles of
conflict of laws thereof.
9.7
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Agreement shall be brought in a state or federal court of competent jurisdiction
located in the State of California, USA, and each of the Parties to this
Agreement hereby consents and submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of such
courts (and of the appropriate appellate courts therefrom) in any such suit,
action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by
Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying
of the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding in any such court or that
any such suit, action or proceeding which is brought in any such court has been
brought in an inconvenient forum.
9.8
Headings
. The
headings of the Articles and Sections in this Agreement are provided for
convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part
hereof.
9.9
Export
Control
. Each Party agrees that it will not
knowingly: (a) export or re-export, directly or indirectly, any
technical data (as defined by the U.S. Export Administration Regulations)
provided by the other Party or (b) disclose such technical data for use in, or
export or re-export directly or indirectly, any direct product of such technical
data, including Software, to any destination to which such export or re-export
is restricted or prohibited by United States or non-United States law,
without obtaining prior authorization from the U.S. Department of Commerce and
other competent Government Entities to the extent required by Applicable
Laws.
9.10
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement, together with its Schedules and the
agreements and instruments expressly provided for herein, including the
applicable terms of the other Joint Venture Documents, constitute the entire
agreement of the Parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof and
supersede all prior agreements and understandings, oral and written, between the
Parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof.
9.11
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Agreement be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Agreement shall remain in
full force in all other respects. Should any provision of this
Agreement be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Laws or
interpretations thereof, or should this Agreement fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the Parties hereto shall negotiate in good faith appropriate
modifications to this Agreement to reflect those changes that are required by
Applicable Law.
9.12
Counterparts
. This
Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed
an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
[Signature
pages follow.]
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been executed and delivered as of the
Effective Date.
|
NANYA
TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Jih
Lien
|
|
Name:
|
Jih
Lien
|
|
Title:
|
President
|
[Signature
pages follow.]
THIS IS A
SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AGREEMENT ENTERED INTO BY AND AMONG
NTC, MICRON AND THE JOINT VENTURE COMPANY
|
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC.
|
|
By:
|
/s/
D. Mark
Durcan
|
|
Name:
|
D.
Mark Durcan
|
|
Title:
|
President
and Chief Operating Officer
|
[Signature
page follows.]
THIS IS A
SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AGREEMENT ENTERED INTO BY AND AMONG
NTC, MICRON AND THE JOINT VENTURE COMPANY
|
INOTERA
MEMORIES, INC.
|
|
By:
|
/s/
Joseph
Hsieh
|
|
Name:
|
Joseph
Hsieh
|
|
Title:
|
Supervisor
|
THIS IS A
SIGNATURE PAGE FOR THE TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AGREEMENT ENTERED INTO BY AND AMONG
NTC, MICRON AND THE JOINT VENTURE COMPANY
- 17
-
EXHIBIT
10.78
[***]
DENOTES CONFIDENTIAL MATERIALS OMITTED AND FILED SEPARATELY WITH THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO A REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL
TREATMENT
CONFIDENTIAL
TECHNOLOGY
TRANSFER AGREEMENT
FOR
68-50NM PROCESS NODES
This
TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AGREEMENT
FOR 68-50NM PROCESS NODES
(this “
Agreement
”), is executed on
this 11
th
day of
October, 2008 (“
Execution
Date
”), by and between Micron Technology, Inc., a Delaware corporation
(“
Micron
”) and Inotera
Memories, Inc., a company-limited-by-shares incorporated under the laws of the
Republic of China (“
Joint
Venture Company
”). (Micron and the Joint Venture Company are
referred to in this Agreement individually as a “
Party
” and collectively as the
“
Parties
”). This
Agreement shall take effect as of the date of the 2
nd
Closing. In the event the 2
nd
Closing
does not occur, this Agreement shall not take effect and neither Party shall
have any rights or obligations hereunder.
RECITALS
A. Micron
has developed technology for 68nm and 50nm Process Nodes for the manufacture of
Stack DRAM Products.
B. The
Joint Venture Company desires to have such technology transferred to the Joint
Venture Company for its use in the manufacture of Stack DRAM Products, and
Micron intends to so transfer such technology to the Joint Venture
Company.
AGREEMENT
NOW,
THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises and agreements herein set
forth, the Parties, intending to be legally bound, hereby agree as
follows.
ARTICLE
1
DEFINITIONS; CERTAIN
INTERPRETATIVE MATTERS
1.1
Definitions
.
“
2
nd
Closing
”
shall have the meaning
set forth in the Share Purchase Agreement.
“
Agreement
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Applicable Law
” means any
applicable laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances, orders, codes,
arbitration awards, judgments, decrees or other legal requirements of any
Governmental Entity.
“
Effective Dat
e” shall mean, if
the 2
nd
Closing
occurs, the date that the 2
nd
Closing
occurs.
“
Force Majeure Event
” means the
occurrence of an event or circumstance beyond the reasonable control of a Party
and includes, without limitation, (a) explosions, fires, flood, earthquakes,
catastrophic weather conditions, or other elements of nature or acts of God; (b)
acts of war (declared or undeclared), acts of terrorism, insurrection, riots,
civil disorders, rebellion or sabotage; (c) acts of federal, state, local or
foreign Governmental Entity; (d) labor disputes, lockouts, strikes or other
industrial action, whether direct or indirect and whether lawful or unlawful;
(e) failures or fluctuations in electrical power or telecommunications service
or equipment; and (f) delays caused by the other Party or Third-Party
nonperformance (except for delays caused by a Party’s contractors,
subcontractors or agents).
TTA68-50
(FINAL)_(PALIB2_4435751_1).DOC
“
GAAP
” means, with respect to
Micron, United States generally accepted accounting principles, and with respect
to the Joint Venture Company, Republic of China generally accepted accounting
principles, in each case, as consistently applied by the Party for all periods
at issue.
“
Governmental Entity
” means any
governmental authority or entity, including any agency, board, bureau,
commission, court, municipality, department, subdivision or instrumentality
thereof, or any arbitrator or arbitration panel.
“
IP Rights
” means copyrights,
rights in trade secrets, Mask Work Rights and pending applications or
registrations of any of the foregoing anywhere in the world. The term
“IP Rights” does not include any Patent Rights or rights in
trademarks.
“
Joint Venture Company
” shall
have the meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Mask Work Rights
" means rights
under the United States Semiconductor Chip Protection Act of 1984, as amended
from time to time, or under any similar equivalent laws in countries other than
the United States.
“
Micron
” shall have the meaning
set forth in the preamble to this Agreement.
“
Party
” and “
Parties
” shall have the
meaning set forth in the preamble to this Agreement
“
Patent Rights
” means all
rights associated with any and all issued and unexpired patents and pending
patent applications in any country in the world, together with any and all
divisionals, continuations, continuations-in-part, reissues, reexaminations,
extensions, foreign counterparts or equivalents of any of the foregoing,
wherever and whenever existing.
“
Person
” means any natural
person, corporation, joint stock company, limited liability company,
association, partnership, firm, joint venture, organization, business, trust,
estate or any other entity or organization of any kind or
character.
“
Process Node
” means
[***].
“
Recoverable Taxes
”
shall
have the meaning set forth in
Section
3.5(a).
“
Share
Purchase Agreement
” means that certain Share Purchase Agreement by and
between Micron and Qimonda AG entered into as of the Execution Date, as the same
may be amended from time to time.
“
Software
” means computer
program instruction code, whether in human-readable source code form,
machine-executable binary form, firmware, scripts, interpretive text, or
otherwise. The term “Software” does not include databases and other
information stored in electronic form, other than executable instruction codes
or source code that is intended to be compiled into executable instruction
codes.
TTA68-50
(FINAL)_(PALIB2_4435751_1).DOC
“
Stack DRAM
” means dynamic
random access memory cell that functions by using a capacitor arrayed
predominantly above the semiconductor substrate.
“
Stack DRAM
Design
” means, with respect to
a Stack DRAM Product, the corresponding design components, materials and
information listed on
Schedule 2
.
“Stack DRAM Product”
means any
memory comprising Stack DRAM, whether in die or wafer form.
“
Tax
” or “
Taxes
” means any federal,
state, local or foreign net income, gross income, gross receipts, sales, use ad
valorem, transfer, franchise, profits, service, service use, withholding,
payroll, employment, excise, severance, stamp, occupation, premium, property,
customs, duties or other type of fiscal levy and all other taxes, governmental
fees, registration fees, assessments or charges of any kind whatsoever, together
with any interest and penalties, additions to tax or additional
amounts imposed or assessed with respect thereto.
“
Taxing Authority
” means any
Governmental Entity exercising any authority to impose, regulate or administer
the imposition of Taxes.
“
Third Party
” means any Person
other than Micron or the Joint Venture Company.
“
Transferred Technology
” means
[***].
1.2
Certain Interpretive
Matters
.
(a)
Unless
the context requires otherwise, (1) all references to Sections, Articles,
Exhibits, Appendices or Schedules are to Sections, Articles, Exhibits,
Appendices or Schedules of or to this Agreement, (2) each accounting term
not otherwise defined in this Agreement has the meaning commonly applied to it
in accordance with GAAP, (3) words in the singular include the plural and
vice versa, (4) the term “
including
” means “including
without limitation,” and (5) the terms “
herein
,” “
hereof
,” “
hereunder
” and words of
similar import shall mean references to this Agreement as a whole and not to any
individual section or portion hereof. Unless otherwise denoted, all
references to $ or dollar amounts will be to lawful currency of the United
States of America. All references to “
day
” or “
days
” will mean calendar
days.
(b)
No
provision of this Agreement will be interpreted in favor of, or against, any of
the Parties by reason of the extent to which (1) any such Party or its counsel
participated in the drafting thereof or (2) any such provision is inconsistent
with any prior draft of this Agreement or such provision.
TTA68-50
(FINAL)_(PALIB2_4435751_1).DOC
ARTICLE
2
TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY TO
JOINT VENTURE COMPANY
2.1
Delivery of Transferred
Technology to Joint Venture Company
. On a delivery schedule
mutually agreed between the Parties, but no earlier than the Effective Date,
Micron shall provide to the Joint Venture Company the Transferred [***], which
process is outlined on
Schedule
3
. Except as provided in
Section 2.2
, the
foregoing obligation does not require Micron to create, make, adapt, develop,
modify and/or translate any such information or materials. The Joint
Venture Company may at any time request Micron in writing to supplement its
prior disclosures of such Transferred Technology with any items the Joint
Venture Company believes to be missing or incomplete from such disclosures;
however, with respect to the subject matter of any such requests made [***], the
Joint Venture Company shall be precluded from asserting that Micron is in breach
of its obligations under this Section.
2.2
Preproduction
Wafers
. On a delivery schedule mutually agreed between the
Parties, Micron shall, [***], provide to the Joint Venture Company
[***]. On a delivery schedule mutually agreed between the Parties,
Micron shall, at Micron’s cost, provide to the Joint Venture Company
[***].
2.3
Engineering
Services
. As reasonably requested by the Joint Venture Company
from time to time and to the extent fulfilling such request would not cause
disruption of their respective operations, Micron will provide to the Joint
Venture Company engineering support for its implementation of the Transferred
Technology transferred by Micron to the Joint Venture Company for use in the
Joint Venture Company’s facilities for the manufacture of Stack DRAM
wafers.
ARTICLE
3
PAYMENTS
3.1
Transfer of Technology to
Joint Venture Company
. For the transfer of the Transferred
Technology from Micron to the Joint Venture Company for the 68nm Process Node
and the 50nm Process Node, the Joint Venture Company shall pay to Micron the sum
of $50,000,000.00 (fifty million dollars) within ten (10) days of the Effective
Date, unless, prior to such time, MeiYa Technology Corporation (“
MeiYa
”) shall have paid to
Micron the technology transfer fees contemplated to be paid by it to Micron with
respect to the transfer by Micron to MeiYa of the 68 nm and 50 nm process
nodes. The Joint Venture Company shall have no further or other
obligation to make additional technology transfer payments with respect to the
transfer of such process nodes.
3.2
Engineering Service
Fees
. Micron shall charge Joint Venture Company for any
engineering services provided by Micron to Joint Venture Company under
Section 2.3
for all
out-of-pocket expenses reasonably incurred in connection therewith. [***]. If
any employee(s) of Micron are required to provide such services at a location
other than his/her/their normal working location, then [***]. Micron
will invoice Joint Venture Company for all such costs and expenses monthly as
incurred. Joint Venture Company will pay Micron the amount due within
thirty (30) days of receipt of invoice.
3.3
Invoices;
Payments
.
TTA68-50
(FINAL)_(PALIB2_4435751_1).DOC
(a)
All
invoices under this Agreement may be sent by any method described in
Section 8.1
or
electronically with hardcopy confirmation sent promptly thereafter by any method
described in
Section
8.1
. Such invoices should be sent to the following contacts or
such other contact as may be specified hereafter pursuant to a notice sent in
accordance with
Section
8.1
:
Invoices to Joint Venture
Company
:
To be
provided by notice.
(b)
All
amounts owed by a Party under this Agreement are stated, calculated and shall be
paid in United States Dollars ($ U.S.).
(c)
Payment
is due on all amounts properly invoiced within thirty (30) days of receipt of
invoice. All payments made under this Agreement shall be made by
check sent to the following person or by such other manner designated by such
person:
Payments to
Micron
:
[***]
8000 S.
Federal Way
P.O. Box
6, MS 1-107
Boise,
Idaho, USA 83707-0006
Fax: [***]
Email: [***]
3.4
Interest
. Any
amounts payable to a Party hereunder and not paid within the time period
provided shall accrue interest, from the time such payment was due until the
time payment is actually received, at the rate of [***] or the highest rate
permitted by Applicable Law, whichever is lower.
3.5
Taxes
.
(a)
All
sales, use and other transfer Taxes imposed directly on or solely as a result of
the services, rights licensed or technology transfers or the payments therefor
provided herein shall be stated separately on the service provider’s, licensor’s
or technology transferor’s invoice, collected from the service recipient,
licensee or technology transferee and shall be remitted by service provider,
licensor or technology transferor to the appropriate Taxing Authority (“
Recoverable Taxes
”), unless
the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee provides valid proof of
tax exemption prior to the Effective Date or otherwise as permitted by law prior
to the time the service provider, licensor or technology transferor is required
to pay such taxes to the appropriate Taxing Authority. When property
is delivered, rights granted and/or services are provided or the benefit of
services occurs within jurisdictions in which collection and remittance of Taxes
by the service recipient, licensee or
TTA68-50
(FINAL)_(PALIB2_4435751_1).DOC
technology
transferee is required by law, the service recipient, licensee or technology
transferee shall have sole responsibility for payment of said Taxes to the
appropriate Taxing Authority. In the event any Taxes are Recoverable
Taxes and the service provider, licensor or technology transferor does not
collect such Taxes from the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee
or pay such Taxes to the appropriate Governmental Entity on a timely basis, and
is subsequently audited by any Taxing Authority, liability of the service
recipient, licensee or technology transferee will be limited to the Tax
assessment for such Recoverable Taxes, with no reimbursement for penalty or
interest charges or other amounts incurred in connection
therewith. Except as provided in
Section 3.5(b)
, Taxes
other than Recoverable Taxes shall not be reimbursed by the service recipient,
licensee or technology transferee, and each Party is responsible for its own
respective income Taxes (including franchise and other Taxes based on net income
or a variation thereof), Taxes based upon gross revenues or receipts, and Taxes
with respect to general overhead, including but not limited to business and
occupation Taxes, and such Taxes shall not be Recoverable Taxes.
(b)
In the
event that the service recipient, licensee or technology transferee is
prohibited by Applicable Law from making payments to the service provider,
licensor or technology transferor unless the service recipient, licensee or
technology transferee deducts or withholds Taxes therefrom and remits such Taxes
to the local Taxing Authority, [***].
3.6
Payment
Delay
. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this
Agreement, if requested by Micron by notice in accordance with
Section 8.1
, Joint
Venture Company will [***] until notified by Micron in accordance with
Section
8.1
.
ARTICLE
4
INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY
4.1
[***] IP or Patent
Rights
. Nothing in this Agreement [***]. The transfers of
technology by Micron to the Joint Venture Company hereunder
[***]. The Joint Venture Company shall [***].
ARTICLE
5
WARRANTIES;
DISCLAIMERS
5.1
No Implied
Obligation
. Nothing contained in this Agreement shall be
construed as:
(a)
a
warranty or representation that any manufacture, sale, lease, use or other
disposition of any products based upon Transferred Technology or other
technology transferred hereunder will be free from infringement,
misappropriation or other violation of any Patent Rights, IP Rights or other
intellectual property rights of any Person;
(b)
an
agreement to bring or prosecute proceedings against Third Parties for
infringement, misappropriation or other violation of rights or conferring any
right to bring or prosecute proceedings against Third Parties for infringement,
misappropriation or other violation of rights; or
TTA68-50
(FINAL)_(PALIB2_4435751_1).DOC
(c)
conferring
any right to use in advertising, publicity, or otherwise, any trademark, trade
name or names, or any contraction, abbreviation or simulation thereof, of either
Party.
5.2
DISCLAIMER
. THE
TRANSFERRED TECHNOLOGY OR OTHER TECHNOLOGY OR MATERIALS TRANSFERRED OR DEVELOPED
UNDER THIS AGREEMENT, OR (B) MANUFACTURE OR HAVE MANUFACTURED ANY PRODUCTS BASED
THEREON. MICRON MAKES NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS, IMPLIED, STATUTORY OR
OTHERWISE, THAT THE USE, PRACTICE OR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITATION [***].
ARTICLE
6
LIMITATION OF
LIABILITY
6.1
LIMITATION OF
LIABILITY
. [***].
ARTICLE
7
TERM AND
TERMINATION
7.1
Term
. If
the 2
nd
Closing
occurs, the term of this Agreement shall commence on the Effective Date and
continue in effect until terminated in accordance with this Agreement or any
other agreement to which the Parties are parties. In the event the
2
nd
Closing does not occur, this Agreement shall not take effect and neither Party
shall have any rights or obligations hereunder.
7.2
Termination of this
Agreement
.
(a)
This
Agreement shall terminate automatically if [***].
(b)
Micron
may terminate this Agreement by notice to the Joint Venture Company if the Joint
Venture Company commits a material breach of this Agreement and such breach
remains uncured for [***] of the breach from Micron.
(c)
The Joint
Venture Company may not terminate this Agreement for any reason, including
breach by Micron.
7.3
Effects of
Termination
.
(a)
Termination
of this Agreement shall not affect any of the Parties’ respective rights accrued
or obligations owed before termination. In addition, the following
shall survive termination of this Agreement for any reason:
Articles 1
,
3
,
4
,
5
,
6
and
8
and
Section
7.3
.
(b)
Upon
termination of this Agreement, the Joint Venture Company shall:
[***]
TTA68-50
(FINAL)_(PALIB2_4435751_1).DOC
ARTICLE
8
MISCELLANEOUS
8.1
Notices
. All
notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be
deemed given upon (a) transmitter’s confirmation of a receipt of a
facsimile transmission, (b) confirmed delivery by a standard overnight carrier
or when delivered by hand, or (c) delivery in person, addressed at the following
addresses (or at such other address for a party as shall be specified by like
notice):
If to Joint Venture
Company
:
Inotera Memories, Inc.
667, Fuhsing 3rd Road,
Haw-Ya Technology Park Kueishan,
Taoyuan 333
Taiwan, ROC
Attention: Legal
Department
Fax: +886 3 327 2988 ext
3385
If to
Micron
: Micron
8000 S. Federal Way
Mail Stop 1-507
Boise, ID 83716
Attention: General
Counsel
Fax: 208.368.4537
8.2
Waiver
. The
failure at any time of a Party to require performance by the other Party of any
responsibility or obligation required by this Agreement shall in no way affect a
Party’s right to require such performance at any time thereafter, nor shall the
waiver by a Party of a breach of any provision of this Agreement by the other
Party constitute a waiver of any other breach of the same or any other provision
nor constitute a waiver of the responsibility or obligation itself.
8.3
Assignment
. [***].
8.4
Third Party
Rights
. Nothing in this Agreement, whether express or implied,
is intended or shall be construed to confer, directly or indirectly, upon or
give to any Person, other than the Parties hereto, any legal or equitable right,
remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any covenant, condition
or other provision contained herein.
8.5
Force
Majeure
. The Parties shall be excused from any failure to
perform any obligation hereunder to the extent such failure is caused by a Force
Majeure Event.
8.6
Choice of
Law
. This Agreement shall be construed and enforced in
accordance with and governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, USA, without
giving effect to the principles of conflict of laws thereof.
TTA68-50
(FINAL)_(PALIB2_4435751_1).DOC
8.7
Jurisdiction;
Venue
. Any suit, action or proceeding seeking to enforce any
provision of, or based on any matter arising out of or in connection with, this
Agreement shall be brought in a state or federal court of competent jurisdiction
located in the State of California, USA, and each of the Parties to this
Agreement hereby consents and submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of such
courts (and of the appropriate appellate courts therefrom) in any such suit,
action or proceeding and irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by
Applicable Law, any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying
of the venue of any such suit, action or proceeding in any such court or that
any such suit, action or proceeding which is brought in any such court has been
brought in an inconvenient forum.
8.8
Headings
. The
headings of the Articles and Sections in this Agreement are provided for
convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to constitute a part
hereof.
8.9
Export
Control
. Each Party agrees that it will not
knowingly: (a) export or re-export, directly or indirectly, any
technical data (as defined by the U.S. Export Administration Regulations)
provided by the other Party or (b) disclose such technical data for use in, or
export or re-export directly or indirectly, any direct product of such technical
data, including Software, to any destination to which such export or re-export
is restricted or prohibited by United States or non-United States law,
without obtaining prior authorization from the U.S. Department of Commerce and
other competent Government Entities to the extent required by Applicable
Laws.
8.10
Entire
Agreement
. This Agreement, together with its Schedules and the
agreements and instruments expressly provided for herein, including the
applicable terms of any other agreements to which Micron and the Joint Venture
Company are a Party, constitute the entire agreement of the Parties hereto with
respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede all prior agreements and
understandings, oral and written, between the Parties hereto with respect to the
subject matter hereof.
8.11
Severability
. Should
any provision of this Agreement be deemed in contradiction with the laws of any
jurisdiction in which it is to be performed or unenforceable for any reason,
such provision shall be deemed null and void, but this Agreement shall remain in
full force in all other respects. Should any provision of this
Agreement be or become ineffective because of changes in Applicable Laws or
interpretations thereof, or should this Agreement fail to include a provision
that is required as a matter of law, the validity of the other provisions of
this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. If such circumstances
arise, the Parties hereto shall negotiate in good faith appropriate
modifications to this Agreement to reflect those changes that are required by
Applicable Law.
8.12
Counterparts
. This
Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed
an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.
<
Signature page follows >
TTA68-50
(FINAL)_(PALIB2_4435751_1).DOC
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been executed as of the date first above
written.
|
MICRON
TECHNOLOGY, INC
|
|
By:
|
/s/ D. Mark Durcan
|
|
Name:
|
D.
Mark Durcan
|
|
Title:
|
President
and Chief Operating Officer
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
INOTERA
MEMORIES, INC.
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Charles Kau
|
|
Name:
|
Charles
Kau
|
|
Title:
|
President
|
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ Peter Bailey
|
|
Name:
|
Peter
Bailey
|
|
Title:
|
Executive
Vice President
|
THIS IS THE SIGNATURE
PAGE FOR THE TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AGREEMENT FOR 68-50NM PROCESS NODES ENTERED
INTO BY AND BETWEEN MICRON TECHNOLOGY AND THE JOINT VENTURE
COMPANY
EXHIBIT
31.1
RULE
13a-14(a) CERTIFICATION OF
CHIEF
EXECUTIVE OFFICER
I, Steven
R. Appleton, certify that:
1.
|
I
have reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-Q of Micron Technology,
Inc.;
|
2.
|
Based
on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a
material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the
statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements
were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this
report;
|
3.
|
Based
on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information
included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the
financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the
registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this
report;
|
4.
|
The
registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for
establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as
defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal
control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules
13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and
have:
|
|
a.
|
Designed
such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure
controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure
that material information relating to the registrant, including its
consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those
entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being
prepared;
|
|
b.
|
Designed
such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal
control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to
provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial
reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external
purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting
principles;
|
|
c.
|
Evaluated
the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures
and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of
the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period
covered by this report based on such evaluation;
and
|
|
d.
|
Disclosed
in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over
financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent
fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an
annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to
materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial
reporting; and
|
5.
|
The
registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed, based on
our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting,
to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s
board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent
functions):
|
|
a.
|
All
significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or
operation of internal control over financial reporting which are
reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record,
process, summarize and report financial information;
and
|
|
b.
|
Any
fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other
employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control
over financial reporting.
|
Date: January
13, 2009
|
/s/ Steven R.
Appleton
|
|
Steven
R. Appleton
Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer
|
EXHIBIT
31.2
RULE
13a-14(a) CERTIFICATION OF
CHIEF
FINANCIAL OFFICER
I, Ronald
C. Foster, certify that:
1.
|
I
have reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-Q of Micron Technology,
Inc.;
|
2.
|
Based
on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a
material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the
statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements
were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this
report;
|
3.
|
Based
on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information
included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the
financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the
registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this
report;
|
4.
|
The
registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for
establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as
defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal
control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules
13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and
have:
|
|
a.
|
Designed
such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure
controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure
that material information relating to the registrant, including its
consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those
entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being
prepared;
|
|
b.
|
Designed
such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal
control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to
provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial
reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external
purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting
principles;
|
|
c.
|
Evaluated
the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures
and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of
the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period
covered by this report based on such evaluation;
and
|
|
d.
|
Disclosed
in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over
financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent
fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an
annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to
materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial
reporting; and
|
5.
|
The
registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed, based on
our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting,
to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s
board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent
functions):
|
|
a.
|
All
significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or
operation of internal control over financial reporting which are
reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record,
process, summarize and report financial information;
and
|
|
b.
|
Any
fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other
employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control
over financial reporting.
|
Date: January
13, 2009
|
/s/ Ronald C.
Foster
|
|
Ronald
C. Foster
Vice
President of Finance and Chief Financial
Officer
|
EXHIBIT
32.1
CERTIFICATION
OF CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
PURSUANT
TO 18 U.S.C. 1350
I, Steven R. Appleton, certify,
pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, that the Quarterly Report of Micron Technology, Inc.
on Form 10-Q for the period ended December 4, 2008, fully complies with the
requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
and that information contained in the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q fairly
presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of
operations of Micron Technology, Inc.
Date: January
13, 2009
|
|
/s/ Steven R.
Appleton
|
|
|
Steven
R. Appleton
Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer
|
CERTIFICATION
OF CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
PURSUANT
TO 18 U.S.C. 1350
I, Ronald C. Foster, certify, pursuant
to 18 U.S.C. 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act
of 2002, that the Quarterly Report of Micron Technology, Inc. on Form 10-Q for
the period ended December 4, 2008, fully complies with the requirements of
Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and that
information contained in the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q fairly presents, in
all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of
Micron Technology, Inc.
Date: January
13, 2009
|
/s/ Ronald C.
Foster
|
|
Ronald
C. Foster
Vice
President of Finance and Chief Financial
Officer
|