EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT CHANGE IN CONTROL SEVERANCE AGREEMENT

EX-10.4 5 dex104.htm FORM OF SEVERANCE AGREEMENT Form of Severance Agreement

Exhibit 10.4

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT

CHANGE IN CONTROL SEVERANCE AGREEMENT

THIS AGREEMENT, dated , 2007, is made by and between XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and (the “Executive”).

WHEREAS, the Company considers it essential to the best interests of its stockholders to foster the continued employment of key management personnel; and

WHEREAS, the Board recognizes that, as is the case with many publicly held corporations, the possibility of a Change in Control exists and that such possibility, and the uncertainty and questions which it may raise among management, may result in the departure or distraction of management personnel to the detriment of the Company and its stockholders; and

WHEREAS, the Board has determined that appropriate steps should be taken to reinforce and encourage the continued attention and dedication of members of the Company’s management, including the Executive, to their assigned duties without distraction in the face of potentially disturbing circumstances arising from the possibility of a Change in Control;

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and the mutual covenants herein contained, the Company and the Executive hereby agree as follows:

1. Defined Terms. The definitions of capitalized terms used in this Agreement are provided in the last Section hereof.

2. Term of Agreement. The Term of this Agreement shall commence on the date hereof and shall continue in effect through December 31, 2008; provided, however, that commencing on January 1, 2008 and each January 1 thereafter, the Term shall automatically be extended for one additional year unless, not later than September 30 of the preceding year, the Company or the Executive shall have given notice not to extend the Term; and further provided, however, that if a Change in Control shall have occurred during the Term, the Term shall expire twelve (12) months beyond the month in which such Change in Control occurred.

3. Company’s Covenants Summarized. In order to induce the Executive to remain in the employ of the Company, the Company agrees, under the conditions described herein, to pay the Executive the Severance Payments and the other payments and benefits described herein. Except as provided in Section 8.1 hereof, no Severance Payments shall be payable under this Agreement unless there shall have been (or, under the terms of the second sentence of Section 5.1 hereof, there shall be deemed to have been) a termination of the Executive’s employment with the Company following a Change in Control and during the Term. This Agreement shall not be construed as creating an express or implied contract of employment and, except as otherwise agreed in writing between the Executive and the Company, the Executive shall not have any right to be retained in the employ of the Company.

4. Compensation Other Than Severance Payments.

4.1 Following a Change in Control and during the Term, during any period that the Executive fails to perform the Executive’s full-time duties with the Company as a result of incapacity due to physical or mental illness, the Company shall pay the Executive’s full salary to the Executive at the rate in effect at the commencement of any such period, together with all compensation and benefits payable to the Executive under the terms of any compensation or benefit plan,

program or arrangement maintained by the Company during such period (other than any disability plan), until the Executive’s employment is terminated by the Company for Disability.

4.2 If the Executive’s employment shall be terminated for any reason following a Change in Control and during the Term, the Company shall pay the Executive’s full salary to the Executive through the Date of Termination at the rate in effect immediately prior to the Date of Termination or, if higher, the rate in effect immediately prior to the first occurrence of an event or circumstance constituting Good Reason, together with all compensation and benefits payable to the Executive through the Date of Termination under the terms of the Company’s compensation and benefit plans, programs or arrangements as in effect immediately prior to the Date of Termination or, if more favorable to the Executive, as in effect immediately prior to the first occurrence of an event or circumstance constituting Good Reason.

4.3 If the Executive’s employment shall be terminated for any reason following a Change in Control and during the Term, the Company shall pay to the Executive the Executive’s normal post-termination compensation and benefits as such payments become due. Such post-termination compensation and benefits shall be determined under, and paid in accordance with, the Company’s retirement, insurance and other compensation or benefit plans, programs and arrangements as in effect immediately prior to the Date of Termination or, if more favorable to the Executive, as in effect immediately prior to the occurrence of the first event or circumstance constituting Good Reason.

5. Severance Payments.

5.1 If the Executive’s employment is terminated following a Change in Control and during the Term, other than (A) by the Company for Cause, (B) by reason of death or Disability, or (C) by the Executive without Good Reason, then the Company shall pay the Executive the amounts, and provide the Executive the benefits, described in this Section 5.1 (“Severance Payments”) and Section 5.2, in addition to any payments and benefits to which the Executive is entitled under Section 4 hereof. For purposes of this Agreement, the Executive’s employment shall be deemed to have been terminated following a Change in Control by the Company without Cause or by the Executive with Good Reason, if (i) the Executive’s employment is terminated by the Company without Cause prior to a Change in Control (whether or not a Change in Control ever occurs) and such termination was at the request or direction of a Person (other than the Company) who has entered into an agreement with the Company the consummation of which would constitute a Change in Control, (ii) the Executive terminates his employment for Good Reason prior to a Change in Control (whether or not a Change in Control ever occurs) and the circumstance or event which constitutes Good Reason occurs at the request or direction of such Person, or (iii) the Executive’s employment is terminated by the Company without Cause or by the Executive for Good Reason and such termination or the circumstance or event which constitutes Good Reason is otherwise in connection with or in anticipation of a Change in Control (whether or not a Change in Control ever occurs). Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement, to the extent required in order to avoid accelerated taxation and/or tax penalties under Section 409A of the Code, amounts that would otherwise be payable and benefits that would otherwise be provided pursuant to this Agreement during the six-month period immediately following the Date of Termination shall instead be paid on the first business day after the date that is six months following the Executive’s “separation from service” within the meaning of Section 409A of the Code.

(A) In lieu of any further salary payments to the Executive for periods subsequent to the Date of Termination and in lieu of any severance benefit otherwise payable to the Executive, the Company shall pay to the Executive a lump sum severance payment, in cash, equal to two times the sum of (i) the Executive’s base salary as in effect immediately prior to the Date of Termination or, if higher, in effect immediately prior to the first occurrence of an event or circumstance constituting Good Reason, and (ii) the Executive’s target annual bonus under any annual bonus or incentive plan maintained by the Company in respect of the fiscal year in which occurs the Date of Termination or, if higher, the fiscal year in which occurs the first event or circumstance constituting Good Reason.

(B) For the twenty-four (24) month period immediately following the Date of Termination, the Company shall arrange to provide the Executive and his dependents health, medical, dental, and similar insurance benefits substantially similar to those provided to the Executive and his dependents immediately prior to the Date of Termination or, if more favorable to the Executive, those provided to the Executive and his dependents immediately prior to the first occurrence of an event or circumstance constituting Good Reason, at no greater after-tax cost to the Executive than the after-tax cost to the Executive immediately prior to such date or occurrence; provided, however, that, unless the Executive consents to a different method, such health insurance benefits shall be provided through a third-party insurer. Benefits otherwise receivable by the Executive pursuant to this Section 5.1(B) shall be reduced to the extent benefits of the same type are received by or made available to the Executive during the twenty-four (24) month period following the Executive’s termination of employment (and any such benefits received by or made available to the Executive shall be reported to the Company by the Executive); provided, however, that the Company shall reimburse the Executive for the excess, if any, of the after-tax cost of such benefits to the Executive over such cost immediately prior to the Date of Termination or, if more favorable to the Executive, the first occurrence of an event or circumstance constituting Good Reason.

(C) Notwithstanding any provision of any annual or long term incentive plan to the contrary, the Company shall pay to the Executive a lump sum amount, in cash, equal to the sum of (i) any unpaid incentive compensation which has been allocated or awarded to the Executive for a completed fiscal year or other measuring period preceding the Date of Termination under any such plan and which, as of the Date of Termination, is contingent only upon the continued employment of the Executive to a subsequent date, and (ii) a pro rata portion to the Date of Termination of the aggregate value of all contingent cash incentive compensation awards to the Executive for all then uncompleted periods under any such plan, calculated as to each such award by multiplying the award that the Executive would have earned on the last day of the performance award period, assuming the achievement, at the target level, of the individual and corporate performance goals established with respect to such award, by the fraction obtained by dividing the number of full months and any fractional portion of a month during such performance award period through the Date of Termination by the total number of months contained in such performance award period.

(D) The Company shall provide the Executive with outplacement services suitable to the Executive’s position for a period of two years or, if earlier, until the first acceptance by the Executive of an offer of employment.

(E) All restrictions relating to the sale or disposal of restricted shares of Company common stock granted to the Executive on March 14, 2006, as set forth in a letter agreement between the Company and the Executive dated May 18, 2006, shall lapse notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in the award agreement, letter agreement, or otherwise.

5.2 (A) Whether or not the Executive becomes entitled to the Severance Payments, if any of the payments or benefits received or to be received by the Executive (including any payment or benefit received or to be received in connection with a Change in Control or the Executive’s termination of employment, whether pursuant to the terms of this Agreement or any other plan, arrangement or agreement) (all such payments and benefits, excluding the Gross-Up Payment, being hereinafter referred to as the “Total Payments”) will be subject to the Excise Tax, the Company shall pay to the Executive an additional amount (the “Gross-Up Payment”) such that the net amount retained by the Executive, after deduction of any Excise Tax on the Total Payments and any federal, state and local income and employment taxes and Excise Tax upon the Gross-Up Payment, and after taking into account the phase out of itemized deductions and personal exemptions attributable to the Gross-Up Payment, shall be equal to the Total Payments.

(B) For purposes of determining whether any of the Total Payments will be subject to the Excise Tax and the amount of such Excise Tax, (i) all of the Total Payments shall be treated as “parachute payments” (within the meaning of section 280G(b)(2) of the Code) unless, in the opinion of tax counsel (“Tax Counsel”) reasonably acceptable to the Executive and selected by the accounting firm which was, immediately prior to the Change in Control, the Company’s independent auditor (the “Auditor”), such payments or benefits (in whole or in part) do not constitute parachute payments, including by reason of section 280G(b)(4)(A) of the Code, (ii) all “excess parachute payments” within the meaning of section 280G(b)(l) of the Code shall be treated as subject to the Excise Tax unless, in the opinion of Tax Counsel, such excess parachute payments (in whole or in part) represent reasonable compensation for services actually rendered (within the meaning of section 280G(b)(4)(B) of the Code) in excess of the Base Amount allocable to such reasonable compensation, or are otherwise not subject to the Excise

Tax, and (iii) the value of any noncash benefits or any deferred payment or benefit shall be determined by the Auditor in accordance with the principles of sections 280G(d)(3) and (4) of the Code. For purposes of determining the amount of the Gross-Up Payment, (1) the Executive shall be deemed to pay federal income tax at the highest marginal rate of federal income taxation in the calendar year in which the Gross-Up Payment is to be made and state and local income taxes at the highest marginal rate of taxation in the state and locality of the Executive’s residence on the Date of Termination (or if there is no Date of Termination, then the date on which the Gross-Up Payment is calculated for purposes of this Section 5.2), net of the maximum reduction in federal income taxes which could be obtained from deduction of such state and local taxes and (2) the Executive shall be deemed to be subject to the loss of itemized deductions and personal exemptions to the maximum extent provided by the Code for each dollar of incremental income.

(C) In the event that the Excise Tax is finally determined to be less than the amount taken into account hereunder in calculating the Gross-Up Payment, the Executive shall repay to the Company, within five (5) business days following the time that the amount of such reduction in the Excise Tax is finally determined, the portion of the Gross-Up Payment attributable to such reduction (plus that portion of the Gross-Up Payment attributable to the Excise Tax and federal, state and local income and employment taxes imposed on the Gross-Up Payment being repaid by the Executive), to the extent that such repayment results in a reduction in the Excise Tax and a dollar-for-dollar reduction in the Executive’s taxable income and wages for purposes of federal, state and local income and employment taxes, plus interest on the amount of such repayment at 120% of the rate provided in section 1274(b)(2)(B) of the Code. In the event that the Excise Tax is determined to exceed the amount taken into account hereunder in calculating the Gross-Up Payment (including by reason of any payment the existence or amount of which cannot be determined at the time of the Gross-Up Payment), the Company shall

make an additional Gross-Up Payment in respect of such excess (plus any interest, penalties or additions payable by the Executive with respect to such excess) within five (5) business days following the time that the amount of such excess is finally determined. The Executive and the Company shall each reasonably cooperate with the other in connection with any administrative or judicial proceedings concerning the existence or amount of liability for Excise Tax with respect to the Total Payments.

5.3 The payments provided in subsections (A) and (C) of Section 5.1 hereof and in Section 5.2 hereof shall be made not later than the fifth day following the Date of Termination (or if there is no Date of Termination, then the date on which the Gross-Up Payment is calculated for purposes of Section 5.2 hereof); provided, however, that if the amounts of such payments cannot be finally determined on or before such day, the Company shall pay to the Executive on such day an estimate, as determined in good faith by the Executive or, in the case of payments under Section 5.2 hereof, in accordance with Section 5.2 hereof, of the minimum amount of such payments to which the Executive is clearly entitled and shall pay the remainder of such payments (together with interest on the unpaid remainder (or on all such payments to the extent the Company fails to make such payments when due) at 120% of the rate provided in section 1274(b)(2)(B) of the Code) as soon as the amount thereof can be determined but in no event later than the thirtieth (30th) day after the Date of Termination. In the event that the amount of the estimated payments exceeds the amount subsequently determined to have been due, such excess shall constitute a loan by the Company to the Executive, payable on the fifth (5th) business day after demand by the Company (together with interest at 120% of the rate provided in section 1274(b)(2)(B) of the Code). At the time that payments are made under this Agreement, the Company shall provide the Executive with a written statement setting forth the manner in which such payments were calculated and the basis for such calculations including, without limitation, any

opinions or other advice the Company has received from Tax Counsel, the Auditor or other advisors or consultants (and any such opinions or advice which are in writing shall be attached to the statement).

5.4 The Company also shall pay to the Executive all legal fees and expenses incurred by the Executive in disputing in good faith any issue hereunder relating to the termination of the Executive’s employment, in seeking in good faith to obtain or enforce any benefit or right provided by this Agreement or in connection with any tax audit or proceeding to the extent attributable to the application of section 4999 of the Code to any payment or benefit provided hereunder. Such payments shall be made within five (5) business days after delivery of the Executive’s written requests for payment accompanied with such evidence of fees and expenses incurred as the Company reasonably may require.

5.5 Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company’s obligations to pay or provide any benefits, other than as required by Section 4, shall (1) cease as of the date the Executive breaches any of the provisions of Section 14 and (2) be conditioned on the Executive signing a release of claims in favor of the Company, substantially in the form attached hereto as Exhibit A, and the expiration of any revocation period provided for in such release.

6. Termination Procedures and Compensation During Dispute.

6.1 Notice of Termination. After a Change in Control and during the Term, any purported termination of the Executive’s employment (other than by reason of death) shall be communicated by written Notice of Termination from one party hereto to the other party hereto in accordance with Section 9 hereof. For purposes of this Agreement, a “Notice of Termination” shall mean a notice which shall indicate the specific termination provision in this Agreement relied upon and

shall set forth in reasonable detail the facts and circumstances claimed to provide a basis for termination of the Executive’s employment under the provision so indicated. Further, a Notice of Termination for Cause is required to include a copy of a resolution duly adopted by the affirmative vote of not less than three-quarters (3/4) of the entire membership of the Board at a meeting of the Board which was called and held for the purpose of considering such termination (after reasonable notice to the Executive and an opportunity for the Executive, together with the Executive’s counsel, to be heard before the Board) finding that, in the good faith opinion of the Board, the Executive was guilty of conduct set forth in clause (i) or (ii) of the definition of Cause herein, and specifying the particulars thereof in detail.

6.2 Date of Termination. “Date of Termination,” with respect to any purported termination of the Executive’s employment after a Change in Control and during the Term, shall mean (i) if the Executive’s employment is terminated for Disability, thirty (30) days after Notice of Termination is given (provided that the Executive shall not have returned to the full-time performance of the Executive’s duties during such thirty (30) day period), and (ii) if the Executive’s employment is terminated for any other reason, the date specified in the Notice of Termination (which, in the case of a termination by the Company, shall not be less than thirty (30) days (except in the case of a termination for Cause) and, in the case of a termination by the Executive, shall not be less than fifteen (15) days nor more than sixty (60) days, respectively, from the date such Notice of Termination is given).

6.3 Dispute Concerning Termination. If within fifteen (15) days after any Notice of Termination is given, or, if later, prior to the Date of Termination (as determined without regard to this Section 6.3), the party receiving such Notice of Termination notifies the other party that a dispute exists concerning the termination, the Date of Termination shall be extended until the earlier of (i) the date on which the Term ends or (ii) the date on which the dispute is finally resolved, either by

mutual written agreement of the parties or by a final judgment, order or decree of an arbitrator or a court of competent jurisdiction (which is not appealable or with respect to which the time for appeal therefrom has expired and no appeal has been perfected); provided, however, that the Date of Termination shall be extended by a notice of dispute given by the Executive only if such notice is given in good faith and the Executive pursues the resolution of such dispute with reasonable diligence.

6.4 Compensation During Dispute. If a purported termination occurs following a Change in Control and during the Term and the Date of Termination is extended in accordance with Section 6.3 hereof, the Company shall continue to pay the Executive the full compensation in effect when the notice giving rise to the dispute was given (including, but not limited to, salary) and continue the Executive as a participant in all compensation, benefit and insurance plans in which the Executive was participating when the notice giving rise to the dispute was given, until the Date of Termination, as determined in accordance with Section 6.3 hereof. Amounts paid under this Section 6.4 are in addition to all other amounts due under this Agreement (other than those due under Section 4.2 hereof) and shall not be offset against or reduce any other amounts due under this Agreement.

7. No Mitigation. The Company agrees that, if the Executive’s employment with the Company terminates during the Term, the Executive is not required to seek other employment or to attempt in any way to reduce any amounts payable to the Executive by the Company pursuant to Section 5 hereof or Section 6.4 hereof. Further, except as specifically provided in Section 5.1(B) hereof, no payment or benefit provided for in this Agreement shall be reduced by any compensation earned by the Executive as the result of employment following the Date of Termination by another employer, by retirement benefits, by offset against any amount claimed to be owed by the Executive to the Company, or otherwise.

8. Successors; Binding Agreement.

8.1 In addition to any obligations imposed by law upon any successor to the Company, the Company will require any successor (whether direct or indirect, by purchase, merger, consolidation or otherwise) to all or substantially all of the business and/or assets of the Company to expressly assume and agree to perform this Agreement in the same manner and to the same extent that the Company would be required to perform it if no such succession had taken place. Failure of the Company to obtain such assumption and agreement prior to the effectiveness of any such succession shall be a breach of this Agreement and shall entitle the Executive to compensation from the Company in the same amount and on the same terms as the Executive would be entitled to hereunder if the Executive were to terminate the Executive’s employment for Good Reason after a Change in Control, except that, for purposes of implementing the foregoing, the date on which any such succession becomes effective shall be deemed the Date of Termination.

8.2 This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be enforceable by the Executive’s personal or legal representatives, executors, administrators, successors, heirs, distributees, devisees and legatees. If the Executive shall die, all accrued but unpaid amounts, unless otherwise provided herein, shall be paid in accordance with the terms of this Agreement to the executor, personal representative or administrator of the severed employee’s estate.

9. Notices. For the purpose of this Agreement, notices and all other communications provided for in the Agreement shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given when delivered or mailed by United States registered mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid, addressed, if to the Executive, to the address inserted below the Executive’s signature on the final page

hereof and, if to the Company, to the address set forth below, or to such other address as either party may have furnished to the other in writing in accordance herewith, except that notice of change of address shall be effective only upon actual receipt:

To the Company:

XM Satellite Radio

1500 Eckington Place, N.E.

Washington, DC 20002

Attention: Walter B. Sanderson, III Vice President, Human

Resources

10. Miscellaneous. No provision of this Agreement may be modified, waived or discharged unless such waiver, modification or discharge is agreed to in writing and signed by the Executive and such officer as may be specifically designated by the Board. No waiver by either party hereto at any time of any breach by the other party hereto of, or of any lack of compliance with, any condition or provision of this Agreement to be performed by such other party shall be deemed a waiver of similar or dissimilar provisions or conditions at the same or at any prior or subsequent time. This Agreement supersedes any other agreements or representations, oral or otherwise, express or implied, with respect to the subject matter hereof which have been made by either party; provided, however, that this Agreement shall supersede any agreement setting forth the terms and conditions of the Executive’s employment with the Company only in the event that the Executive’s employment with the Company is terminated on or following a Change in Control, by the Company other than for Cause or by the Executive for Good Reason. The validity, interpretation, construction and performance of this Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Delaware. All references to sections of the Exchange Act or the Code shall be deemed also to refer to any successor provisions

to such sections. Any payments provided for hereunder shall be paid net of any applicable withholding required under federal, state or local law and any additional withholding to which the Executive has agreed. The obligations of the Company and the Executive under this Agreement which by their nature may require either partial or total performance after the expiration of the Term (including, without limitation, those under Sections 5 and 6 hereof) shall survive such expiration.

11. Validity. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this Agreement shall not affect the validity or enforceability of any other provision of this Agreement, which shall remain in full force and effect.

12. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original but all of which together will constitute one and the same instrument.

13. Settlement of Disputes; Arbitration. 13.1 All claims by the Executive for benefits under this Agreement shall be directed to and determined by the Board and shall be in writing. Any denial by the Board of a claim for benefits under this Agreement shall be delivered to the Executive in writing and shall set forth the specific reasons for the denial and the specific provisions of this Agreement relied upon. The Board shall afford a reasonable opportunity to the Executive for a review of the decision denying a claim and shall further allow the Executive to appeal to the Board a decision of the Board within sixty (60) days after notification by the Board that the Executive’s claim has been denied. Notwithstanding the above, in the event of any dispute, any decision by the Board hereunder shall be subject to a de novo review by the arbitrator.

13.2 Any further dispute or controversy arising under or in connection with this Agreement shall be settled exclusively by arbitration in

Washington, D.C. in accordance with the rules of the American Arbitration Association then in effect. Judgment may be entered on the arbitrator’s award in any court having jurisdiction. Notwithstanding any provision of this Agreement to the contrary, the Executive shall be entitled to seek specific performance of the Executive’s right to be paid until the Date of Termination during the pendency of any dispute or controversy arising under or in connection with this Agreement.

14. Restrictive Covenants.

14.1 Confidentiality.

(A) The Executive acknowledges and agrees that: (i) the Executive holds a position of trust and confidence with the Company and that his employment by the Company will require that the Executive have access to and knowledge of valuable and sensitive information, material, and devices relating to the Company and/or its business, activities, products, services, customers and vendors, including, but not limited to, the following, regardless of the form in which the same is accessed, maintained or stored: the identity of the Company’s actual and prospective customers and their representatives; prior, current or future research or development activities of the Company and/or its customers; the products and services provided or offered by the Company to customers or potential customers and the manner in which such services are performed or to be performed; the product and/or service needs of actual or prospective customers; pricing and cost information; information concerning the development, engineering, design, specifications, acquisition or disposition of products and/or services of the Company; unique and/or proprietary computer equipment, programs, software and source codes, licensing information, personnel information, vendor information, marketing plans and techniques, forecasts, and other trade secrets (“Confidential Information”); and (ii) the direct and indirect disclosure of any such Confidential Information would place the Company at a competitive disadvantage and would do damage, monetary or otherwise, to the Company’s business.

(B) During the Term and at all times thereafter, the Executive shall not, directly or indirectly, whether individually, as a director, stockholder, owner, partner, employee, consultant, principal or agent of any business, or in any other capacity, publish or make known, disclose, furnish, reproduce, make available, or utilize any of the Confidential Information without the prior express written approval of an officer of the Company, other than in the proper performance of the duties contemplated herein, unless and until such Confidential Information is or shall become general public knowledge through no fault of the Executive.

(C) In the event that the Executive is required by law to disclose any Confidential Information, the Executive agrees to give the Company prompt advance written notice thereof and to provide the Company with reasonable assistance in obtaining an order to protect the Confidential Information from public disclosure.

(D) The failure to mark any Confidential Information as confidential shall not affect its status as Confidential Information under this Agreement.

14.2 Non-Competition.

(A) The Executive acknowledges and agrees that: (i) the Business (as defined below) is intensely competitive and conducted by the Company throughout the world; and (ii) reasonable limits on the Executive’s ability to engage in activities which are competitive with the Company are warranted in order to,

among other things, reasonably protect trade secrets and proprietary information of the Company and to maintain and develop the Company’s reputation, customer relationships, goodwill and overall status in the marketplace.

(B) During the Term and for a period of one (1) year following the termination of the Executive’s employment for any reason, and provided that the Company is making or has made the payments, if any, required under Section 5.1 and 5.2, the Executive shall not engage in Competition (as defined below) with the Company.

14.3 Non-Solicitation; Non-Interference. During the Term and for a period of one (1) year following the termination of the Executive’s employment for any reason, and provided that the Company is making or has made the payments, if any, required under Section 5.1 and 5.2, the Executive agrees that he or she will not, directly or indirectly, for the Executive’s benefit or for the benefit of any other person, firm or entity, do any of the following:

(A) solicit from any customer doing business with the Company as of the Executive’s termination or within six (6) months prior to the Date of Termination, business of the same or of a similar nature to the Business;

(B) solicit from any known potential customer of the Company business of the same or of a similar nature to that which has been the subject of a known written or oral bid, offer or proposal by the Company, or of substantial preparation with a view to making such a bid, proposal or offer, within six (6) months prior to the Date of Termination;

(C) solicit the employment or services of, or hire or engage, any person who was known to be employed or engaged by the Company as of the Date of Termination, or within 6 months thereof; or

(D) otherwise interfere with the business or accounts of the Company, including, but not limited to, with respect to any relationship or agreement between the Company and any vendor or supplier.

14.4 Injunctive Relief; Indemnity of Company. The Executive agrees that any breach or threatened breach of this Section 14 would result in irreparable injury and damage to the Company for which an award of money to the Company would not be an adequate remedy. The Executive therefore also agrees that in the event of said breach or any reasonable threat of breach, the Company shall be entitled to seek an immediate injunction and restraining order to prevent such breach and/or threatened breach and/or continued breach by the Executive and/or any and all persons and/or entities acting for and/or with the Executive. The terms of this paragraph shall not prevent the Company from pursuing any other available remedies for any breach or threatened breach hereof, including, but not limited to, remedies available under this Agreement and the recovery of damages. The Executive and the Company further agree that the provisions of this Section 14 are reasonable. The Executive agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Company from and against all reasonable expenses (including reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel) which may be incurred by the Company in connection with, or arising out of, any violation of this Agreement by the Executive.

14.5 Definition of Company: For purposes of this Section 14, the “Company,” as used above, shall be construed to include the Company and its parent, subsidiaries and affiliates, including, without limitation, any divisions managed or supervised by the Executive.

14.6 Survival: The provisions of this Section 14 survive the termination of Executive’s employment with the Company, regardless of the reason for such termination, for the duration expressly stated in any such provision or, if no duration is stated, then indefinitely.

15. Definitions. For purposes of this Agreement, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated below:

(A) “Affiliate” shall have the meaning set forth in Rule 12b-2 promulgated under Section 12 of the Exchange Act.

(B) “Auditor” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 5.2 hereof.

(D) “Beneficial Owner” shall have the meaning set forth in Rule 13d-3 under the Exchange Act.

(E) “Board” shall mean the Board of Directors of the Company.

(F) “Business” shall mean the development, production, marketing, or selling of any product or service relating to the radio business.

(G) “Cause” for termination by the Company of the Executive’s employment shall mean (i) the willful and continued failure by the

Executive to substantially perform the Executive’s duties with the Company (other than any such failure resulting from the Executive’s incapacity due to physical or mental illness or any such actual or anticipated failure after the issuance of a Notice of Termination for Good Reason by the Executive pursuant to Section 6.1 hereof) that has not been cured within 30 days after a written demand for substantial performance is delivered to the Executive by the Board, which demand specifically identifies the manner in which the Board believes that the Executive has not substantially performed the Executive’s duties or (ii) the willful engaging by the Executive in conduct which is demonstrably and materially injurious to the Company or its subsidiaries, monetarily or otherwise. For purposes of clauses (i) and (ii) of this definition, (x) no act, or failure to act, on the Executive’s part shall be deemed “willful” unless done, or omitted to be done, by the Executive not in good faith and without reasonable belief that the Executive’s act, or failure to act, was in the best interest of the Company and (y) in the event of a dispute concerning the application of this provision, no claim by the Company that Cause exists shall be given effect unless the Company establishes to the Board by clear and convincing evidence that Cause exists.

(H) A “Change in Control” shall be deemed to have occurred if the event set forth in any one of the following paragraphs shall have occurred:

(I) any Person is or becomes, directly or indirectly, the Beneficial Owner of securities of the Company representing 40% or more of the combined voting power of the Company’s then outstanding securities; or

(II) individuals who at the beginning of any two-year period constitute the Board, plus new directors of the Company whose election or nomination for election by the Company’s shareholders is

approved by a vote of at least two-thirds of the directors of the Company still in office who were directors of the Company at the beginning of such two-year period, cease for any reason during such two-year period to constitute at least two-thirds of the members of the Board; or

(III) the consummation of a merger or consolidation of the Company with any other corporation or entity regardless of which entity is the survivor, other than a merger or consolidation which would result in the voting securities of the Company outstanding immediately prior thereto continuing to represent (either by remaining outstanding or being converted into voting securities of the surviving entity) at least 60% of the combined voting power of the voting securities of the Company, such surviving entity or any parent thereof outstanding immediately after such merger or consolidation; or

(IV) the stockholders of the Company approve a plan of complete liquidation or winding-up of the Company or an agreement for the sale or disposition by the Company of all or substantially all of the Company’s assets.

(I) “Code” shall mean the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time.

(J) “Company” shall mean XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. and, except in determining under Section 15(H) hereof whether or not any Change in Control of the Company has occurred, shall include any successor to its business and/or assets which assumes and agrees to perform this Agreement by operation of law, or otherwise.

(K) “Competition” by the Executive shall mean the Executive’s engaging in, or otherwise directly or indirectly being employed by or acting as a consultant or lender to, or being a director, officer, employee, principal, agent, stockholder, member, owner or partner of, or permitting the Executive’s name to be used in connection with the activities of any other business or organization anywhere in the United States of America which competes, directly or indirectly, with the Company in the Business; provided, however, it shall not be a violation of Section 14.2 hereof for the Executive (i) to become the registered or beneficial owner of up to three percent (3%) of any class of the capital stock of a corporation in Competition with the Company that is registered under the Exchange Act provided that the Executive does not otherwise participate in the business of such corporation, or (ii) to engage in, or otherwise directly or indirectly be employed by or act as a consultant or lender to, or be a director, officer, employee, principal, agent, stockholder, member, owner or partner of, or permit the Executive’s name to be used in connection with the activities of an individual, terrestrial radio station.

(L) “Date of Termination” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 6.2 hereof.

(M) “Disability” shall be deemed the reason for the termination by the Company of the Executive’s employment, if, as a result of the Executive’s incapacity due to physical or mental illness, the Executive shall have been absent from the full-time performance of the Executive’s duties with the Company for a period of six (6) consecutive months, the Company shall have given the Executive a Notice of Termination for Disability, and, within thirty (30) days after such Notice of Termination is given, the Executive shall not have returned to the full-time performance of the Executive’s duties.

(N) “Exchange Act” shall mean the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended from time to time.

(O) “Excise Tax” shall mean any excise tax imposed under section 4999 of the Code.

(P) “Executive” shall mean the individual named in the first paragraph of this Agreement.

(Q) “Good Reason” for termination by the Executive of the Executive’s employment shall mean the occurrence (without the Executive’s express written consent which specifically references this Agreement) after any Change in Control, or prior to a Change in Control under the circumstances described in clauses (ii) and (iii) of the second sentence of Section 5.1 hereof (treating all references in paragraphs (I) through (VI) below to a “Change in Control” as references to a “Potential Change in Control”), of any one of the following acts by the Company, or failures by the Company to act, unless, in the case of any act or failure to act described in paragraph (I), (V), or (VI) below, such act or failure to act is corrected prior to the Date of Termination specified in the Notice of Termination given in respect thereof:

(I) the assignment to the Executive of any duties inconsistent with the Executive’s status as an executive officer of the Company or a substantial adverse alteration in the Executive’s title, the Executive’s line of reporting, or nature or status of the Executive’s responsibilities from those in effect immediately prior to the Change in Control (it being agreed that (1) if the Executive reports to the Chief Executive Officer of the Company prior to the Change in Control, an alteration in the Executive’s line of reporting which causes the Executive to

report to a position other than the Chief Executive Officer of the Company shall be a substantial adverse alteration in the Executive’s line of reporting and (2) if the Executive reports to a position other than the Chief Executive Officer of the Company, an alteration in the Executive’s line of reporting which causes the Executive to report to a position other than the President of the Company (as distinguished from a division president) or the Chief Executive Officer of the Company shall also be a substantial adverse alteration in the Executive’s line of reporting);

(II) a reduction by the Company in the Executive’s annual base salary as in effect on the date hereof or as the same may be increased from time to time;

(III) the relocation of the Executive’s principal place of employment to a location more than 35 miles from the Executive’s principal place of employment immediately prior to the Change in Control or the Company’s requiring the Executive to be based anywhere other than such principal place of employment (or permitted relocation thereof) except for required travel on the Company’s business to an extent substantially consistent with the Executive’s present business travel obligations;

(IV) the failure by the Company to pay to the Executive any portion of the Executive’s base salary or annual bonus when due;

(V) the failure by the Company to continue in effect any compensation plan in which the Executive participates immediately prior to the Change in Control which is material to the Executive’s total compensation, including but not limited to the Company’s

equity-based long term incentive plans and annual incentive plans, unless an arrangement (embodied in an ongoing substitute or alternative plan) providing an equitable compensation opportunity has been made with respect to such plan, or the failure by the Company to provide the Executive with the opportunity to participate therein (or in such substitute or alternative plan) on a basis not materially less favorable, including in terms of the level of the Executive’s participation relative to other participants, as existed immediately prior to the Change in Control; or

(VI) the failure by the Company to continue to provide the Executive with benefits substantially similar to those enjoyed by the Executive under any of the Company’s pension, savings, life insurance, medical, health and accident, or disability plans in which the Executive was participating immediately prior to the Change in Control (except for across the board changes similarly affecting all executives of the Company and all executives of any Person in control of the Company), the taking of any other action by the Company which materially reduces any of such benefits or deprives the Executive of any material fringe benefit enjoyed by the Executive at the time of the Change in Control, or the failure by the Company to provide the Executive with the number of paid vacation days to which the Executive is entitled on the basis of years of service with the Company in accordance with the Company’s normal vacation policy in effect at the time of the Change in Control.

The Executive’s right to terminate the Executive’s employment for Good Reason shall not be affected by the Executive’s incapacity due to physical or mental illness. The Executive’s continued employment shall not constitute consent to, or a waiver of rights with respect to, any act or failure to act constituting Good Reason hereunder, provided that the Executive provides the Company with a written Notice of Termination within ninety (90) days following the occurrence of the event constituting Good Reason.

(R) “Gross-Up Payment” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 5.2 hereof.

(S) “Notice of Termination” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 6.1 hereof.

(T) “Person” shall have the meaning given in Section 3(a)(9) of the Exchange Act, as modified and used in Sections 13(d) and 14(d) thereof, except that such term shall not include (i) the Company or any of its subsidiaries, (ii) a trustee or other fiduciary holding securities under an employee benefit plan of the Company or any of its Affiliates, (iii) an underwriter temporarily holding securities pursuant to an offering of such securities, or (iv) a corporation owned, directly or indirectly, by the stockholders of the Company in substantially the same proportions as their ownership of stock of the Company.

(U) “Potential Change in Control” shall be deemed to have occurred if the event set forth in any one of the following paragraphs shall have occurred:

(I) the Company enters into an agreement, the consummation of which would result in the occurrence of a Change in Control;

(II) the Company or any Person publicly announces an intention to take or to consider taking actions which, if consummated, would constitute a Change in Control;

(III) any Person becomes the Beneficial Owner, directly or indirectly, of securities of the Company representing 20% or more of either the then outstanding shares of common stock of the Company or the combined voting power of the Company’s then outstanding securities (not including in the securities beneficially owned by such Person any securities acquired directly from the Company or its affiliates); or

(IV) the Board adopts a resolution to the effect that, for purposes of this Agreement, a Potential Change in Control has occurred.

(V) “Retirement” shall be deemed the reason for the termination by the Executive of the Executive’s employment if such employment is terminated in accordance with the Company’s retirement policy, including early retirement, generally applicable to its salaried employees.

(W) “Severance Payments” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 5.1 hereof.

(X) “Tax Counsel” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 5.2 hereof.

(Y) “Term” shall mean the period of time described in Section 2 hereof (including any extension, continuation or termination described therein).

(Z) “Total Payments” shall mean those payments so described in Section 5.2 hereof.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this Agreement as of the date first above written.


XM SATELLITE RADIO HOLDINGS INC.

By:
Name:
Title:


EXECUTIVE

Address:






(Please print carefully)