MDC Acquisition Partners Inc. IPO Insider Letter Agreement with Wedbush Morgan Securities Inc.

Exhibit 10.16

                        , 2005

MDC Acquisition Partners Inc.
950 Tower Lane, Suite 800
Foster City, CA 94404

WEDBUSH MORGAN SECURITIES INC.
    As representative of the several Underwriters
1000 Wilshire Blvd., 10th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90017

Re:

MDC Acquisition Partners Inc. Initial Public Offering—Letter Agreement

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen:

        This letter is being delivered to you in accordance with the Underwriting Agreement (the "Underwriting Agreement") entered into by and between MDC Acquisition Partners Inc., a Delaware corporation (the "Company"), and Wedbush Morgan Securities Inc., as Representative (the "Representative") of the several underwriters named on Schedule I thereto (the "Underwriters"), relating to an underwritten initial public offering (the "IPO") of the Company's units (the "Units"), each comprised of one share of the Company's common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the "Common Stock"), and one warrant exercisable for one share of Common Stock (a "Warrant"). The capitalized terms set forth on Schedule 1 attached hereto are hereby incorporated by reference.

        In order to induce the Company and the Underwriters to enter into the Underwriting Agreement and to proceed with the IPO, and in recognition of the benefit that such IPO will confer upon the undersigned as a stockholder of the Company, and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the undersigned hereby agrees with the Company as follows:

1.

If the Company solicits approval of its stockholders for a Business Combination, the undersigned shall vote all Insider Shares owned by such person in accordance with the majority of the votes cast with respect to IPO Shares by the holders thereof, excluding any Insider Shares.

2.

If a Transaction Failure occurs, the undersigned shall take all reasonable actions within such person's power to cause (i) the Trust Fund to be liquidated and distributed to the holders of the IPO Shares as soon as practicable and in any event no later than the Termination Date, and (ii) the Company to dissolve and liquidate as soon as practicable (the earliest date on which the conditions in clauses (i) and (ii) are both satisfied being the "Liquidation Date").

3.

The undersigned hereby waives any and all right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any distribution of the Trust Fund with respect to such person's Insider Shares, but only to the extent that such Insider Shares are not IPO Shares acquired by the undersigned, and hereby waives any claim the undersigned may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any contracts or agreements with the Company and agrees not to seek recourse for any such claim against the Trust Fund for any reason whatsoever. The undersigned hereby agrees that the Company shall be entitled to reimbursement from the undersigned for any distribution of the Trust Fund received by the undersigned in respect to such person's Insider Shares to the extent that such Insider Shares are not IPO Shares acquired by the undersigned.

4.

[Upon a Transaction Failure, the undersigned agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, jointly and severally with [                        ], against any and all losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses whatsoever (including, but not limited to, any and all legal or other expenses reasonably incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, whether pending or

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threatened, or any claim whatsoever) actually incurred by the Company as a result or arising out of any claim by any vendor that is owed money by the Company for services rendered or products sold, in each case, to the Company, or by any target business with which the Company has entered into a written letter of intent, confidentiality agreement or other written agreement, provided, however, that the amount of such indemnification shall be limited to the amount by which such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (i) actually reduce the amount of funds in the Trust Fund and (ii) are not reimbursed by any insurance procured by the Company to cover such claims made against the Trust Fund.(1)]

(1)

Paragraph 3 to be included in the Letter Agreements for each of Messrs. Hellman, Carbone and McCown

5.

[In order to minimize potential conflicts of interest which may arise from multiple affiliations, the undersigned agrees to present to the Company for its consideration, prior to presentation to any other person or entity, any suitable opportunity to acquire all or substantially all of the outstanding equity securities of, or otherwise acquire (through merger, capital stock exchange, asset or stock acquisition or similar type of transaction or a combination of any of the foregoing), one or more operating business that may be reasonably required to be presented to the Company under Delaware law, until the earlier of the consummation by the Company of a Business Combination, the distribution of the Trust Fund or until such time as the undersigned ceases to be an officer or director of the Company; provided, however, that the presentation of such opportunities to the Company shall in each case be subject to any fiduciary obligation of the undersigned arising from a fiduciary relationship established prior to the undersigned's fiduciary relationship with the Company.(2)]

(2)

Paragraph 4 to be included in the Letter Agreements for all Officers and Directors of the Company.

6.

The undersigned acknowledges and agrees that the Company will not consummate any Business Combination which involves a company that is affiliated with any of the Insiders unless the Company obtains an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. that such a business combination is fair to the Company's stockholders from a financial perspective.

7.

The undersigned shall not, and shall cause the members of such person's Immediate Family and the affiliates of such person not to, accept any compensation for services rendered to the Company prior to, or in connection with, the Business Combination; provided, that commencing on the effective date of the Registration Statement, McCown De Leeuw & Co. LLC ("Related Party") shall be entitled to receive $10,000 per month for general and administrative services, including office space, utilities and secretarial support. The undersigned shall also be entitled to receive reimbursement from the Company for such person's out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with seeking and consummating a Business Combination to the extent contemplated in the Prospectus.

8.

The undersigned shall not, and shall cause the members of such person's Immediate Family and the affiliates of such person not to, accept a finder's fee or any other compensation in the event the undersigned, any member of such person's Immediate Family or any affiliate of such person originates a Business Combination.

9.

The undersigned hereby agrees to be [the                        of the Company][and][a member of the Board of Directors] of the Company until the earlier of (i) the Business Combination Date and (ii) the Liquidation Date.(3)

(3)

Paragraph 8 to be included in the Letter Agreements for all Officers and Directors.

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10.

The undersigned represents and warrants that (i) the biographical information furnished to the Company and the Representative and attached hereto as Exhibit A is true and accurate in all respects (other than de minimis errors or omissions), does not omit any material information with respect to the undersigned's background and contains all of the information required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 401 of Regulation S-K, promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, (ii) the questionnaires furnished by the undersigned to the Company and the Representative and attached hereto as Exhibit B are true and accurate in all respects (other than de minimis errors or omissions), and (iii) the undersigned has full right and power, without violating any agreement by which the undersigned is bound (including, without limitation, any non-competition or non-solicitation agreement with any employer or former employer), to enter into this letter agreement and to serve as [                        ][and][a member of the Board of Directors] of the Company. The undersigned further represents and warrants that:

(a)

The undersigned is not subject to, or a respondent in any legal action for, any injunction, cease-and-desist order or order or stipulation to desist or refrain from any act or practice relating to the offering of securities in any jurisdiction;

(b)

The undersigned has never been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any crime (i) involving any fraud, (ii) relating to any financial transaction or handling of funds of another person, or (iii) pertaining to any dealings in any securities and such person is not currently a defendant in any such criminal proceeding;

(c)

The undersigned has never been suspended or expelled from membership in any securities or commodities exchange or association or had a securities or commodities license or registration denied, suspended or revoked; and

(d)

The undersigned consents to being named in the Registration Statement as a[n] [Officer] [Director] [Management Council Member] of the Company.

        The undersigned understands that the Representative may conduct a reasonable background check with respect to the undersigned; provided, that the Representative agrees to maintain the confidentiality of any information received pursuant thereto, and further agrees not to transfer, or cause or permit the transfer of, such information to any other person or party, or use such information other than in connection with the IPO, in each case without the express written consent of the undersigned.

        The undersigned acknowledges and understands that the Underwriters and the Company will rely upon the agreements, representations and warranties set forth herein in proceeding with the IPO. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to render the Representative (or any of the Underwriters) a representative of, or a fiduciary with respect to, the Company, its stockholders, or any creditor or vendor of the Company with respect to the subject matter hereof.

        This letter agreement shall be binding on the undersigned and such person's respective successors, heirs, personal representatives and assigns. This letter agreement shall terminate on the earlier of (i) the Business Combination Date and (ii) the Termination Date; provided that such termination shall not relieve the undersigned from liability resulting from or arising out of any breach of this agreement or covenant hereunder prior to its termination.

        This letter agreement shall be governed by and interpreted and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York applicable to contracts formed and to be performed entirely within the State of New York, without regard to the conflicts of law provisions thereof to the extent such principles or rules would require or permit the application of the laws of another jurisdiction.

        No term or provision of this letter agreement may be amended, changed, waived, altered or modified except by written instrument executed and delivered by the party against whom such amendment, change, waiver, alteration or modification is to be enforced.

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Schedule 1

SUPPLEMENTAL COMMON DEFINITIONS

        Unless the context shall otherwise require, the following terms shall have the following respective meanings for all purposes, and the following definitions are equally applicable to both the singular and the plural forms and the feminine, masculine and neuter forms of the terms defined.

        "Business Combination" shall mean the acquisition by the Company, whether by merger, capital stock exchange, asset or stock acquisition or other similar type of transaction or a combination of any of the foregoing, of one or more operating businesses, collectively having a fair market value (as calculated in accordance with requirements set forth in the Company's Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation) of at least 80% of the Company's net assets at the time of such acquisition provided, however, that any acquisition of multiple operating businesses shall occur contemporaneously with one another.

        "Business Combination Date" shall mean the date upon which a Business Combination is consummated.

        "Effective Date" shall mean the date upon which the Registration Statement is declared effective under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, by the SEC.

        "Immediate Family" shall mean, with respect to any person, such person's spouse, lineal descendents, father, mother, brothers or sisters (including any such relatives by adoption or marriage).

        "Insiders" shall mean all of the officers, directors and stockholders of the Company immediately prior to the Company's IPO.

        "Insider Shares" shall mean all shares of Common Stock of the Company then owned by an Insider.

        "IPO Shares" shall mean all shares of Common Stock issued by the Company in its IPO, regardless of whether such shares were issued to an Insider or otherwise.

        "Prospectus" shall mean the final prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and included in the Registration Statement.

        "Registration Statement" shall mean the registration statement filed by the Company on Form S-1 (No. 333-126379) with the SEC on July 5, 2005, and any amendment or supplement thereto, in connection with the Company's IPO.

        "SEC" shall mean the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

        "Termination Date" shall mean the date that is sixty (60) calendar days immediately following the Transaction Failure Date.

        "Transaction Failure" shall mean the earlier of (i) the failure to enter into a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement with respect to a Business Combination on any day during the eighteen-month period immediately following the Effective Date, and (ii) the failure to consummate a Business Combination on any day during the twenty-four-month period immediately following the Effective Date.

        "Transaction Failure Date" shall mean if a Transaction Failure first occurs as a result of the failure described in clause (i) of the definition of "Transaction Failure," the date eighteen (18) months following the Effective Date, and if a Transaction Failure first occurs as a result of the failure described in clause (ii) of the definition of "Transaction Failure," the date twenty-four (24) months following the Effective Date.

        "Trust Fund" shall mean that certain trust account established with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as trustee, and in which the Company deposited the "funds to be held in trust," as described in the Prospectus.

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Exhibit A

BIOGRAPHY

[Insert Bio here]

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QuickLinks

Exhibit 10.16

Schedule 1

Exhibit A