EXHIBIT 4.8
DOT VN, INC.
2009 STOCK OPTION
PLAN
This 2009 Stock Option Plan (the
“Plan”) provides for the grant of options to acquire
shares of common stock, $0.001 par value per share (the
“Common Stock”), of Dot VN, Inc, a Delaware corporation
(the “Company”). Stock options granted under
this Plan that qualify under Section 422 of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), are
referred to in this Plan as “Incentive Stock
Options.” Incentive Stock Options and stock
options that do not qualify under Section 422 of the Code
(“Non-Qualified Stock Options”) granted under this Plan
are referred to collectively as “Options.”
The purposes of this Plan are to retain the
services of valued key employees and consultants of the Company and
such other persons as the Plan Administrator shall select in
accordance with Section 3 below, to encourage such persons to
acquire a greater proprietary interest in the Company, thereby
strengthening their incentive to achieve the objectives of the
shareholders of the Company, and to serve as an aid and inducement
in the hiring of new employees and to provide an equity incentive
to consultants and other persons selected by the Plan
Administrator.
This Plan shall be administered initially by two
(2) or more persons appointed by the Board of Directors to
administer the Plan, which committee (the “Committee”)
shall be especially created for this purpose. The
Committee shall have the powers and authority vested in the Board
hereunder (including the power and authority to interpret any
provision of the Plan or of any Option). The members of
any such Committee shall serve at the pleasure of the
Board. A majority of the members of the Committee shall
constitute a quorum, and all actions of the Committee shall be
taken by a majority of the members present. Any action
may be taken by a written instrument signed by all of the members
of the Committee and any action so taken shall be fully effective
as if it had been taken at a meeting. The Board or, if
applicable, the Committee is referred to herein as the “Plan
Administrator.”
At such time as is required by applicable law or
regulation, the Plan shall be administered by the Board or by the
Committee which, for the purposes hereof, shall be composed of two
(2) or more members of the Board who are “Non-Employee
Directors” (as defined below), and, as applicable, outside
directors. The term “outside director” shall
have the meaning assigned to it under Section 162(m) of the
Code (as amended from time to time) and the regulations (or any
successor regulations) promulgated thereunder
(“Section 162(m) of the Code”). The
term “Non-Employee Director” shall have the meaning
assigned to it under Rule 16b-3 (as amended from time to time)
promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended
(the “Exchange Act”) or any successor rule or
regulatory requirement.
Subject to the provisions of this Plan, and with
a view to effecting its purpose, the Plan Administrator shall have
sole authority, in its absolute discretion, to (i) construe
and interpret this Plan; (ii) define the terms used in the
Plan; (iii) prescribe, amend and rescind the rules and
regulations relating to this Plan; (iv) correct any defect,
supply any omission or reconcile any inconsistency in this Plan;
(v) grant Options under this Plan; (vi) determine the
individuals to whom Options shall be granted under this Plan and
whether the Option is an Incentive Stock Option or a Non-Qualified
Stock Option or a combination of both; (vii) determine the
time or times at which Options shall be granted under this Plan;
(viii) determine the number of shares of Common Stock subject
to each Option, the exercise price of each Option, the duration of
each Option and the times at which each Option shall become
exercisable; (ix) determine all other terms and conditions of
the Options; (x) determine exercise payment terms and
(xi) make all other determinations and interpretations
necessary and advisable for the administration of the
Plan. All decisions, determinations and interpretations
made by the Plan Administrator shall be binding and conclusive on
all participants in the Plan and on their legal representatives,
heirs and beneficiaries.
The Board or, if applicable, the Committee may
delegate to one or more executive officers of the Company the
authority to grant Options under this Plan to employees of the
Company who, on the Date of Grant, are not subject to
Section 16 of the Exchange Act with respect to the Common
Stock (“Non-Insiders”), and are not “covered
employees” as such term is defined for purposes of
Section 162(m) of the Code (“Non-Covered
Employees”), and in connection therewith the authority to
determine: (i) the number of shares of Common Stock subject to
such Options; (ii) the duration of the Option; (iii) the
vesting schedule for determining the times at which such Option
shall become exercisable; and (iv) all other terms and
conditions of such Options. The exercise price for any
Option granted by action of an executive officer or officers
pursuant to such delegation of authority shall not be less than the
fair market value per share of the Common Stock on the Date of
Grant, or, in the case of Control Persons (> 10%) shareholders
of the Company (as determined with reference to Section 424(d)
of the Code) not be less than 110% of the fair market value per
share of the Common Stock on the Date of Grant. Unless
expressly approved in advance by the Board or the Committee, such
delegation of authority shall not include the authority to
accelerate vesting, extend the period for exercise or otherwise
alter the terms of outstanding Options. The term
“Plan Administrator” when used in any provision of this
Plan other than Sections 2, 5(f), 5(m), and 11 shall be deemed
to refer to the Board or the Committee, as the case may be, and an
executive officer who has been authorized to grant Options pursuant
thereto, insofar as such provisions may be applied to persons that
are Non-Insiders and Non-Covered Employees and Options granted to
such persons.
Incentive Stock Options may be granted to any
individual who, at the time the Option is granted, is an employee
of the Company or any Related Corporation (as defined below)
(“Employees”). Non-Qualified Stock Options
may be granted to Employees and to such other persons who are not
Employees as the Plan Administrator shall
select. Options may be granted in substitution for
outstanding Options of another corporation in connection with the
merger, consolidation, acquisition of property or stock or other
reorganization between such other corporation and the Company or
any subsidiary of the Company. Any person to whom an
Option is granted under this Plan is referred to as an
“Optionee.” Any person who is the owner of an Option is
referred to as a “Holder.”
As used in this Plan, the term “Related
Corporation” shall mean any corporation (other than the
Company) that is a “Parent Corporation” of the Company
or “Subsidiary Corporation” of the Company, as those
terms are defined in Sections 424(e) and 424(f), respectively,
of the Code (or any successor provisions) and the regulations
thereunder (as amended from time to time).
The Plan Administrator is authorized to grant
Options to acquire up to a total of twenty-five million
(25,000,000) shares of the Company’s authorized but unissued,
or reacquired, Common Stock. The number of shares with
respect to which Options may be granted hereunder is subject to
adjustment as set forth in Section 5(m) hereof. In
the event that any outstanding Option expires or is terminated for
any reason, the shares of Common Stock allocable to the unexercised
portion of such Option may again be subject to an Option granted to
the same Optionee or to a different person eligible under
Section 3 of this Plan; provided however, that any canceled
Options will be counted against the maximum number of shares with
respect to which Options may be granted to any particular person as
set forth in Section 3 hereof.
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TERMS AND
CONDITIONS OF OPTIONS.
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Each Option granted under this Plan shall be
evidenced by a written agreement approved by the Plan Administrator
(the “Agreement”). Agreements may contain
such provisions, not inconsistent with this Plan, as the Plan
Administrator in its discretion may deem advisable. All
Options also shall comply with the following
requirements:
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Number of
Shares and Type of Option.
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Each Agreement shall state the number of shares
of Common Stock to which it pertains and whether the Option is
intended to be an Incentive Stock Option or a Non-Qualified Stock
Option. In the absence of action to the contrary by the
Plan Administrator in connection with the grant of an Option, all
Options shall be Non-Qualified Stock Options. The
aggregate fair market value (determined at the Date of Grant, as
defined below) of the stock with respect to which Incentive Stock
Options are exercisable for the first time by the Optionee during
any calendar year (granted under this Plan and all other Incentive
Stock Option plans of the Company, a Related Corporation or a
predecessor corporation) shall not exceed $100,000, or such other
limit as may be prescribed by the Code as it may be amended from
time to time. Any portion of an Option which exceeds the
annual limit shall not be void but rather shall be a Non-Qualified
Stock Option.
Each Agreement shall state the date the Plan
Administrator has deemed to be the effective date of the Option for
purposes of this Plan (the “Date of Grant”).
Each Agreement shall state the price per share
of Common Stock at which it is exercisable. The exercise
price shall be fixed by the Plan Administrator at whatever price
the Plan Administrator may determine in the exercise of its sole
discretion; provided that the per share exercise price for
an Incentive Stock Option or any Option granted to a “covered
employee” as such term is defined for purposes of
Section 162(m) of the Code (“Covered Employee”)
shall not be less than the fair market value per share of the
Common Stock at the Date of Grant as determined by the Plan
Administrator in good faith; provided further , that with
respect to Incentive Stock Options granted to greater-than-ten
percent (> 10%) shareholders of the Company (as determined with
reference to Section 424(d) of the Code), the exercise price
per share shall not be less than one hundred ten percent (110%) of
the fair market value per share of the Common Stock at the Date of
Grant as determined by the Plan Administrator in good faith; and,
provided further , that Options granted in substitution for
outstanding options of another corporation in connection with the
merger, consolidation, acquisition of property or stock or other
reorganization involving such other corporation and the Company or
any subsidiary of the Company may be granted with an exercise price
equal to the exercise price for the substituted option of the other
corporation, with no change in the date at which the shares vest or
expire, subject to any adjustment consistent with the terms of the
transaction pursuant to which the substitution is to
occur.
At the time of the grant of the Option, the Plan
Administrator shall designate, subject to paragraph 5(g) below, the
expiration date of the Option, which date shall not be later than
ten (10) years from the Date of Grant in the case of Incentive
Stock Options; provided , that the expiration date of any
Incentive Stock Option granted to a greater-than-ten percent ( >
10%) shareholder of the Company (as determined with reference to
Section 424(d) of the Code) shall not be later than five (5)
years from the Date of Grant. In the absence of action
to the contrary by the Plan Administrator in connection with the
grant of a particular Option, and except in the case of Incentive
Stock Options as described above, all Options granted under this
Section 5 shall expire ten (10) years from the Date of
Grant.
No Option shall be exercisable until it has
vested. The vesting schedule for each Option shall be
specified by the Plan Administrator at the time of grant of the
Option prior to the provision of services with respect to which
such Option is granted; provided , that if no vesting
schedule is specified at the time of grant, the Option shall vest
according to the following schedule:
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One
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20%
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Two
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40%
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Three
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60%
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Four
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80%
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Five
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100%
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The Plan Administrator may specify a vesting
schedule for all or any portion of an Option in their sole
discretion. Furthermore should the option be based on
the achievement of performance objectives established in advance of
the commencement by the Optionee of services related to the
achievement of the performance objectives, the plan administrator
may make appropriate modifications to the
vesting. Performance objectives shall be expressed in
terms of one or more of the following: return on equity, return on
assets, share price, market share, sales, earnings per share,
costs, net earnings, net worth, inventories, cash and cash
equivalents, gross margin or the Company’s performance
relative to its internal business plan. Performance
objectives may be in respect of the performance of the Company as a
whole (whether on a consolidated or unconsolidated basis), a
Related Corporation, or a subdivision, operating unit, product or
product line of either of the foregoing.
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