Registration Under the Securities Act (a) To the extent not prohibited by any applicable law or applicable interpretations of the Staff, the Company and the Guarantors shall use their reasonable best efforts to (i) cause to be filed with the SEC an Exchange Offer Registration Statement covering an offer to the Holders to exchange all the Registrable Securities for Exchange Securities and (ii) have such Registration Statement remain effective until 180 days after the last Exchange Date for use by one or more Participating Broker-Dealers. The Company and the Guarantors shall commence the Exchange Offer promptly after the Exchange Offer Registration Statement is declared effective by the SEC and use their reasonable best efforts to complete the Exchange Offer not later than 45 days after such effective date. The Company and the Guarantors shall commence the Exchange Offer by mailing the related Prospectus, appropriate letters of transmittal and other accompanying documents to each Holder stating, in addition to such other disclosures as are required by applicable law, substantially the following:
(i) that the Exchange Offer is being made pursuant to this Agreement and that all Registrable Securities validly tendered and not properly withdrawn will be accepted for exchange;
(ii) the dates of acceptance for exchange (which shall be a period of at least 20 Business Days from the date such notice is mailed) (the “Exchange Dates”);
(iii) that any Registrable Security not tendered will remain outstanding and continue to accrue interest but will not retain any rights under this Agreement, except as otherwise specified herein;
(iv) that any Holder electing to have a Registrable Security exchanged pursuant to the Exchange Offer will be required to (A) surrender such Registrable Security, together with the appropriate letters of transmittal, to the institution and at the address (located in the Borough of Manhattan, The City of New York) and in the manner specified in the notice, or (B) effect such exchange otherwise in compliance with the applicable procedures of the depositary for such Registrable Security, in each case prior to the close of business on the last Exchange Date; and
(v) that any Holder will be entitled to withdraw its election, not later than the close of business on the last Exchange Date, by (A) sending to the institution and at the address (located in the Borough of Manhattan, The City of New York) specified in the notice, a telegram, telex, facsimile transmission or letter setting forth the name of such Holder, the principal amount of Registrable Securities delivered for exchange and a statement that such Holder is withdrawing its election to have such Securities exchanged or (B) effecting such withdrawal in compliance with the applicable procedures of the depositary for the Registrable Securities. As a condition to participating in the Exchange Offer, each Holder will be required to represent to the Company and the Guarantors prior to the consummation of the Exchange Offer (which representation may be contained in the letter of transmittal contemplated by the Exchange Offer Registration Statement) that (i) any Exchange Securities to be received by it will be acquired in the ordinary course of its business, (ii) at the time of the commencement of the Exchange Offer it is not engaged in, and does not intend to engage in, and has no arrangement or understanding with any Person to participate in the distribution (within the meaning of the Securities Act) of the Exchange Securities in violation of the provisions of the Securities Act, (iii) it is not an “affiliate” (within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act) of the Company or any Guarantor and (iv) if such Holder is a broker-dealer that will receive Exchange Securities for its own account in exchange for Registrable Securities that were acquired as a result of market-making or other trading activities, then such Holder will deliver a Prospectus (or, to the extent permitted by law, make available a Prospectus to purchasers) in connection with any resale of such Exchange Securities. As soon as practicable after the last Exchange Date, the Company and the Guarantors shall:
(i) accept for exchange Registrable Securities or portions thereof validly tendered and not properly withdrawn pursuant to the Exchange Offer; and
(ii) deliver, or cause to be delivered, to the Trustee for cancellation all Registrable Securities or portions thereof so accepted for exchange by the Company and issue, and cause the Trustee to promptly authenticate and deliver to each Holder, Exchange Securities equal in principal amount to the principal amount of the Registrable Securities validly tendered by such Holder and accepted for exchange pursuant to the Exchange Offer. The Company and the Guarantors shall use their reasonable best efforts to complete the Exchange Offer as provided above and shall comply with the applicable requirements of the Securities Act, the Exchange Act and other applicable laws and regulations in connection with the Exchange Offer. The Exchange Offer shall not be subject to any conditions, other than that the Exchange Offer does not violate any applicable law or applicable interpretations of the Staff.
(b) In the event that (i) the Company and the Guarantors determine that the Exchange Offer Registration provided for in Section 2(a) above is not available or may not be completed as soon as practicable after the last Exchange Date because it would violate any applicable law or applicable interpretations of the Staff, (ii) the Exchange Offer is not for any other reason completed by the 450th day after the issuance of the Securities (the “Target Registration Date”) or (iii) upon receipt of a written request (a “Shelf Request”) from any Initial Purchaser representing that it holds Registrable Securities that are or were ineligible to be exchanged in the Exchange Offer, the Company and the Guarantors shall use their reasonable best efforts to cause to be filed as soon as practicable after such determination, date or Shelf Request, as the case may be, a Shelf Registration Statement providing for the sale of all the Registrable Securities by the Holders thereof and to have such Shelf Registration Statement become effective (“Shelf Registration”). In the event that the Company and the Guarantors are required to file a Shelf Registration Statement pursuant to clause (iii) of the preceding sentence, the Company and the Guarantors shall use their reasonable best efforts to file and have become effective both an Exchange Offer Registration Statement pursuant to Section 2(a) with respect to all Registrable Securities and a Shelf Registration Statement (which may be a combined Registration Statement with the Exchange Offer Registration Statement) with respect to offers and sales of Registrable Securities held by the Initial Purchasers after completion of the Exchange Offer. The Company and the Guarantors agree to use their reasonable best efforts to keep the Shelf Registration Statement continuously effective (i) until the expiration of the time period referred to in Rule 144(b)(i) under the Securities Act or (ii) for such shorter period that will terminate when all the Registrable Securities covered by the Shelf Registration Statement (x) have been sold pursuant to the Shelf Registration Statement or (y) cease to be outstanding (the “Shelf Effectiveness Period”). The Company and the Guarantors further agree to supplement or amend the Shelf Registration Statement and the related Prospectus if required by the rules, regulations or instructions applicable to the registration form used by the Company for such Shelf Registration Statement or by the Securities Act or by any other rules and regulations thereunder or if reasonably requested by a Holder of Registrable Securities with respect to information relating to such Holder, and to use their reasonable best efforts to cause any such amendment to become effective, if required, and such Shelf Registration Statement and Prospectus to become usable as soon as thereafter practicable. The Company and the Guarantors agree to furnish to the Holders of Registrable Securities copies of any such supplement or amendment promptly after its being used or filed with the SEC.
(c) The Company and the Guarantors shall pay all Registration Expenses in connection with any registration pursuant to Section 2(a) or Section 2(b) hereof. Each Holder shall pay all underwriting discounts and commissions, brokerage commissions and transfer taxes, if any, relating to the sale or disposition of such Holder’s Registrable Securities pursuant to the Shelf Registration Statement.
(d) An Exchange Offer Registration Statement pursuant to Section 2(a) hereof will not be deemed to have become effective unless it has been declared effective by the SEC. A Shelf Registration Statement pursuant to Section 2(b) hereof will not be deemed to have become effective unless it has been declared effective by the SEC or is automatically effective upon filing with the SEC as provided by Rule 462 under the Securities Act. In the event that either the Exchange Offer is not completed or the Shelf Registration Statement, if required pursuant to Section 2(b)(i) or 2(b)(ii) hereof, has not become effective on or prior to the Target Registration Date, the interest rate on the Registrable Securities will be increased by (i) 0.25% per annum for the first 90-day period immediately following the Target Registration Date and (ii) an additional 0.25% per annum with respect to each subsequent 90-day period, in each case until the Exchange Offer is completed or the Shelf Registration Statement, if required hereby, becomes effective or the Securities become freely tradable under the Securities Act, up to a maximum total increase of 0.50% per annum. In the event that the Company receives a Shelf Request pursuant to Section 2(b)(iii), and the Shelf Registration Statement required to be filed thereby has not become effective by the later of (x) the Target Registration Date or (y) 90 days after delivery of such Shelf Request (such later date, the “Shelf Additional Interest Date”), then the interest rate on the Registrable Securities will be increased by (i) 0.25% per annum for the first 90-day period payable commencing from one day after the Shelf Additional Interest Date and (ii) an additional 0.25% per annum with respect to each subsequent 90-day period, in each case until the Shelf Registration Statement becomes effective or the Securities become freely tradable under the Securities Act, up to a maximum total increase of 0.50% per annum. If the Shelf Registration Statement, if required hereby, has become effective and thereafter either ceases to be effective or the Prospectus contained therein ceases to be usable, in each case whether or not permitted by this Agreement, at any time during the Shelf Effectiveness Period, and such failure to remain effective or usable exists for more than 75 days (whether or not consecutive) in any 12-month period, then the interest rate on the Registrable Securities will be increased commencing on the 75th day in such 12-month period by (i) 0.25% per annum for the first 90-day period immediately following such 75th day, and (ii) an additional 0.25% per annum with respect to each subsequent 90-day period, up to a maximum total increase of 0.50% per annum, and ending on such date that the Shelf Registration Statement has again become effective or the Prospectus again becomes usable.
(e) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, the increased interest rate described in Section 2(d) above is the sole and exclusive remedy available to Holders due to a registration default, so long as the Company and the Guarantors are acting in good faith hereunder, including, without limitation, with respect to satisfying their obligations.
(f) The Company represents, warrants and covenants that, unless it obtains the prior consent of counsel for the Majority Holders or the consent of the managing underwriter(s) in connection with any Underwritten Offering of Registrable Securities, it (including its agents and representatives) will not prepare, make, use, authorize, approve or refer to any “free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act) in connection with the Securities or the Exchange Securities, other than any communication pursuant to Rule 134 under the Securities Act or any document constituting an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy the Securities or the Exchange Securities that falls within the exception from the definition of prospectus in Section 2(a)(10)(a) of the Securities Act.
