Document:

veri-ex44_36.htm

Exhibit 4.4

DESCRIPTION OF THE REGISTRANT’S SECURITIES REGISTERED UNDER
SECTION 12 OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

As of December 31, 2019, Veritone, Inc. (“Veritone,” “Company,” “we,” “our,” and “us”) had one class of securities registered under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which is our common stock, par value $0.001 per share.  Our common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Global Market under the symbol “VERI.”  The transfer agent and registrar for our common stock is Computershare Trust Company, N.A.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes us to issue 75,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.001 per share, and 1,000,000 shares of undesignated preferred stock, par value $0.001 per share.  As of December 31, 2019, we had 25,670,737 shares of common stock issued and outstanding and no shares of preferred stock issued or outstanding.

The following descriptions of our common stock and certain provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws are summaries only and are qualified by reference to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws, each of which is an exhibit to the Annual Report on Form 10-K to which this description is an exhibit. 

Common Stock

The holders of our common stock are entitled to one vote per share on all matters submitted to a vote of stockholders. We have not provided for cumulative voting for the election of directors in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws provide for a classified board of directors consisting of three classes of approximately equal size, each serving staggered three-year terms. Subject to preferences that may apply to any shares of preferred stock outstanding at the time, the holders of our common stock are entitled to receive dividends out of funds legally available if our board of directors, in its discretion, determines to issue dividends and then only at the times and in the amounts that our board of directors may determine. We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock, and it is unlikely that any cash dividends will be declared or paid on any common stock in the foreseeable future. Instead, we plan to retain our cash for use in the operation of our business. Our common stock is not entitled to preemptive rights, and is not subject to conversion, redemption or sinking fund provisions. If we become subject to a liquidation, dissolution or winding-up, the assets legally available for distribution to our stockholders would be distributable ratably among the holders of our common stock and any participating preferred stock outstanding at that time, subject to prior satisfaction of all outstanding debt and liabilities and the preferential rights of and the payment of liquidation preferences, if any, on any outstanding shares of preferred stock.

Demand Registration Rights

Pursuant to the Investor Rights Agreement, dated as of July 15, 2014, as amended (the “Rights Agreement”), entered into by our company and certain stockholders, the holders of at least 30% of the following held by the holders of our then-outstanding Series A and A-1 preferred stock, and the holders of at least 30% of the following held by the holders of our then-outstanding Series B preferred stock: (i) shares of our common stock issued or issuable upon conversion of any of our securities by the parties to such agreement, and (ii) common stock issued as a dividend or other distribution with respect to the shares in (i), can request that we file up to two registration statements registering all or a portion of their registrable shares in a registration statement that would have an aggregate offering price of not less than $5 million. Under specified circumstances, we have the right to defer filing of a requested registration statement. These registration rights are subject to additional conditions and limitations, including the right of the underwriters to limit the number of shares included in any such registration under certain circumstances. We are required to pay all expenses relating to any demand registration by the holders of registrable securities under the Rights Agreement, subject to certain limitations. The registration rights described above will expire for each holder upon the earlier of (i) such time as such holder holds less than one percent of our common stock and Rule 144 or another similar exemption under the Securities Act is available for the sale of such holder’s shares without limitation during a three-month period without registration and (ii) May 2022, the fifth anniversary of our initial public offering.

Form S-3 Registration Rights

Pursuant to the Rights Agreement, the holders of at least 20% of the following held by the holders of our then-outstanding Series A and A-1 preferred stock, and the holders of at least 20% of the following held by the holders of our then-outstanding Series B preferred stock: (i) shares of our common stock issued or issuable upon conversion of any of our securities by the parties to such agreement, and (ii) common stock issued as a dividend or other distribution with respect to the shares in (i), have the right to demand that we file additional registration statements, including a shelf registration statement, registering all or a portion of their registrable shares pursuant to a registration statement on Form S-3 that would have an aggregate offering price, net of underwriting discounts and commissions, that exceeds $5 million. Under specified circumstances, we also have the right to defer filing of a requested registration statement. These registration rights are subject to additional conditions and limitations, including the right of the underwriters to limit the number of shares included in any such registration under certain circumstances, and to our right to decline to effect such registration if two such registrations have been effected within the twelve-month period prior to a request for such registration. We are required to pay all expenses relating to any Form S-3 registration by the holders of registrable securities under the Rights Agreement, subject to certain limitations. The registration rights described above will expire for each holder upon the earlier of (i) such time as such holder holds less than one percent of our common stock and Rule 144 or another similar exemption under the Securities Act is available for the sale of such holder’s shares without limitation during a three-month period without registration and (ii) May 2022, the fifth anniversary of our initial public offering.

Piggyback Registration Rights

Pursuant to the Rights Agreement, whenever we propose to file a registration statement under the Securities Act, other than with respect to a registration related to employee benefit or similar plans, or corporate reorganizations or other transactions under Rule 145 under the Securities Act, the holders of registrable (i) shares of our common stock issued or issuable upon conversion of any of our securities by the parties to such agreement, and common stock issued as a dividend or other distribution with respect to the shares in (i), are entitled to notice of the registration and have the right to include their registrable securities in such registration. The underwriters of any underwritten offering will have the right to limit the number of shares having registration rights to be included in the registration statement.  We are required to pay all expenses relating to any piggyback registration by the holders of registrable securities under the Rights Agreement, subject to certain limitations. The registration rights contained in the Rights Agreement will expire for each holder upon the earlier of (i) such time as such holder holds less than one percent of our common stock and Rule 144 or another similar exemption under the Securities Act is available for the sale of such holder’s shares without limitation during a three-month period without registration and (ii) May 2022, the fifth anniversary of our initial public offering.

Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Amended and Restated Bylaws

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and our amended and restated bylaws include a number of provisions that could deter hostile takeovers or delay or prevent changes in control of our company, as well as changes in our board of directors or management team, including the following:

Board of Directors Vacancies. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws authorize only our board of directors to fill vacant directorships, including newly created seats. In addition, the number of directors constituting our board of directors is only permitted to be set by a resolution adopted by a majority vote of our entire board of directors. These provisions prevent a stockholder from increasing the size of our board of directors and then gaining control of our board of directors by filling the resulting vacancies with its own nominees. This makes it more difficult to change the composition of our board of directors and will promote continuity of management.

Classified Board. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws provide that our board of directors shall be classified into three classes of directors of approximately equal size, each of which hold office for a three-year term. In addition, directors may only be removed from our board of directors for cause. The existence of a classified board could delay a potential acquirer from obtaining majority control of our board of directors, and the prospect of that delay might deter a potential acquirer.

Stockholder Action; Special Meeting of Stockholders. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that our stockholders may not take action by written consent, but may only take action at annual or special meetings of our stockholders. As a result, a holder controlling a majority of our capital stock would not be able to amend our amended and restated bylaws or remove directors without holding a meeting of our stockholders called in accordance with our amended and restated bylaws. Our amended and restated bylaws further provide that special meetings of our stockholders may be called only by a majority of our board of directors, thus prohibiting a stockholder from calling a special meeting. These provisions might delay the ability of our stockholders to force consideration of a proposal or for stockholders controlling a majority of our capital stock to take any action, including the removal of directors.

Advance Notice Requirements for Stockholder Proposals and Director Nominations. Our amended and restated bylaws provide advance notice procedures for stockholders seeking to bring business before our annual meeting of stockholders or to nominate candidates for election as directors at our annual meeting of stockholders. Our amended and restated bylaws also specify certain requirements regarding the form and content of a stockholder’s notice. These provisions might preclude our stockholders from bringing matters before our annual meeting of stockholders or from making nominations for directors at our annual meeting of stockholders if the proper procedures are not followed. We expect that these provisions may also discourage or deter a potential acquirer from conducting a solicitation of proxies to elect the acquirer’s own slate of directors or otherwise attempting to obtain control of our company.

No Cumulative Voting. The Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”), provides that stockholders are not entitled to cumulate votes in the election of directors unless a corporation’s certificate of incorporation provides otherwise. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation does not provide for cumulative voting.

Directors Removed Only for Cause. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that no member of our board of directors may be removed from office by our stockholders except for cause and, in addition to any other vote required by law, upon the approval of not less than two-thirds of the total voting power of all of our outstanding voting stock then entitled to vote in the election of directors.

Exclusive Venue. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware shall be the sole and exclusive forum for: (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of us; (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers or other employees or agents to us or our stockholders; (iii) any action asserting a claim against us arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or amended and restated bylaws; or (iv) any action asserting a claim against us governed by the internal affairs doctrine. The enforceability of similar choice of forum provisions in other companies’ certificates of incorporation has been challenged in legal proceedings, and it is possible that, in connection with any action, a court could find the choice of forum provisions contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to be inapplicable or unenforceable in such action.

Each of the foregoing provisions will make it more difficult for our existing stockholders to replace our board of directors as well as for another party to obtain control of our company by replacing our board of directors. Since our board of directors has the power to retain and discharge our officers, these provisions could also make it more difficult for existing stockholders or another party to effect a change in management. In addition, the authorization of undesignated preferred stock makes it possible for our board of directors to issue preferred stock with voting or other rights or preferences that could impede the success of any attempt to change the control of our company.

These provisions are intended to enhance the likelihood of continued stability in the composition of our board of directors and its policies and to discourage certain types of transactions that may involve an actual or threatened acquisition of our company. These provisions are also designed to reduce our vulnerability to an unsolicited acquisition proposal and to discourage certain tactics that may be used in proxy rights. However, these provisions could have the effect of discouraging others from making tender offers for our shares and may have the effect of deterring hostile takeovers or delaying changes in control of our company or our management. As a consequence, these provisions also may inhibit fluctuations in the market price of our stock that could result from actual or rumored takeover attempts.

Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law

We are subject to Section 203 of the DGCL, which prohibits a Delaware corporation from engaging in any business combination with any interested stockholder for a period of three years after the date that such stockholder became an interested stockholder, with the following exceptions:

	
 
	
•
	
before such date, the board of directors of the corporation approved either the business combination or the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder;

	
 
	
•
	
upon closing of the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, the interested stockholder owned at least 85% of the voting stock of the corporation outstanding at the time the transaction began, excluding for purposes of determining the voting stock outstanding (but not the outstanding voting stock owned by the interested stockholder) those shares owned by (1) persons who are directors and also officers and (2) employee stock plans in which employee participants do not have the right to determine confidentially whether shares held subject to the plan will be tendered in a tender or exchange offer; or

	
 
	
•
	
on or after such date, the business combination is approved by the board of directors and authorized at an annual or special meeting of the stockholders, and not by written consent, by the affirmative vote of at least 66 2/3% of the outstanding voting stock that is not owned by the interested stockholder.

In general, Section 203 defines “business combination” to include the following:

	
 
	
•
	
any merger or consolidation involving the corporation and the interested stockholder;

	
 
	
•
	
any sale, lease, exchange, mortgage, transfer, pledge or other disposition of 10% or more of the assets of the corporation involving the interested stockholder;

	
 
	
•
	
subject to certain exceptions, any transaction that results in the issuance or transfer by the corporation of any stock of the corporation to the interested stockholder;

	
 
	
•
	
any transaction involving the corporation that has the effect of increasing the proportionate share of the stock or any class or series of the corporation beneficially owned by the interested stockholder; or

	
 
	
•
	
the receipt by the interested stockholder of the benefit of any loss, advances, guarantees, pledges or other financial benefits by or through the corporation.

In general, Section 203 defines an “interested stockholder” as an entity or person who, together with the person’s affiliates and associates, beneficially owns, or within three years prior to the time of determination of interested stockholder status did own, 15% or more of the outstanding voting stock of the corporation.

Limitation of Liability and Indemnification

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and our amended and restated bylaws provide that we will indemnify our directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted under Delaware law, which prohibits our amended and restated certificate of incorporation from limiting the liability of our directors for the following:

	
 
	
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any breach of the director’s duty of loyalty to us or our stockholders;

	
 
	
•
	
acts or omissions not in good faith or that involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law;

	
 
	
•
	
unlawful payment of dividends or unlawful stock repurchases or redemptions; or

	
 
	
•
	
any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation also provides that if Delaware law is amended to authorize corporate action further eliminating or limiting the personal liability of a director, then the liability of our directors will be eliminated or limited to the fullest extent permitted by Delaware law, as so amended. This limitation of liability does not apply to liabilities arising under the federal securities laws and does not affect the availability of equitable remedies such as injunctive relief or rescission.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and our amended and restated bylaws also provide that we shall indemnify our employees and agents to the fullest extent permitted by law. Our amended and restated bylaws also permit us to secure insurance on behalf of any officer, director, employee or other agent for any liability arising out of his or her actions in this capacity, regardless of whether we would have the power to indemnify such person against such expense, liability or loss under the DGCL. We have obtained directors’ and officers’ liability insurance.

We have entered into separate indemnification agreements with our directors and executive officers, in addition to indemnification provided for in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws. These agreements, among other things, provide for indemnification of our directors and executive officers for expenses, judgments, fines and settlement amounts incurred by this person in any action or proceeding arising out of this person’s services as a director or executive officer or at our request. We believe that these provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws and indemnification agreements are necessary to attract and retain qualified persons as directors and executive officers.

The above description of the indemnification provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and our amended and restated bylaws is not complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to these documents, each of which is an exhibit to the Annual Report on Form 10-K to which this description is an exhibit.

The limitation of liability and indemnification provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against directors for breach of their fiduciary duties. They may also reduce the likelihood of derivative litigation against directors and officers, even though an action, if successful, might benefit us and our stockholders. A stockholder’s investment may be harmed to the extent we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against directors and officers pursuant to these indemnification provisions. Insofar as indemnification for liabilities under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling us pursuant to the foregoing provisions, we have been informed that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is therefore unenforceable. There is no pending litigation or proceeding naming any of our directors or officers as to which indemnification is being sought, nor are we aware of any pending or threatened litigation that may result in claims for indemnification by any director or officer.Exhibit 4.2

 

DESCRIPTION
OF THE REGISTRANT’S SECURITIES

REGISTERED
PURSUANT TO SECTION 12 OF THE 

SECURITIES
EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

As
of the end of the period covered by the Annual Report on Form 10-K of which this exhibit forms a part, the only class of securities
of American Public Education, Inc. (“we” and “our”) registered under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934, as amended, was our common stock, $0.01 par value per share.

 

COMMON
STOCK

 

The following
description of our common stock summarizes provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and
restated bylaws and the Delaware General Corporation Law. For a complete description, refer to our amended and restated certificate
of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws, which are incorporated by reference as exhibits to the Annual Report on Form
10-K of which this exhibit is a part and to the applicable provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law.

 

Authorized Common Stock

 

Our amended and
restated certificate of incorporation authorizes 100,000,000 shares of common stock, $0.01 par value per share.

 

Rights
of Common Stock

 

 Voting Rights; Dividends; Liquidation.
Holders of common stock are entitled:

 

		·	to cast one vote for each share held of record on all
matters submitted to a vote of the stockholders;

 

		·	to receive dividends, which shall not be cumulative,
as may be lawfully declared from time to time by our board of directors, subject to any preferential rights of holders of any
outstanding shares of preferred stock; and

 

		·	upon our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, to
share equally and ratably in any assets remaining after the payment of all debt and other liabilities, subject to the prior rights,
if any, of holders of any outstanding shares of preferred stock.

 

Other
Rights and Preferences. The holders of our common stock do not have any preemptive, cumulative voting, subscription,
conversion, redemption, or sinking fund rights. The common stock is not subject to future calls or assessments by us. Except as
otherwise required by law, holders of our common stock are not entitled to vote on any amendment or certificate of designation
relating to the terms of any series of preferred stock if the holders of the affected series are entitled to vote on such amendment
or certificate of designation under the amended and restated certificate of incorporation.

 

Preferred
Stock. Under our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, our board of directors has the authority, without
further action by our stockholders, to issue up to 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock in one or more series and to fix the voting
powers, designations, preferences, and the relative, participating, optional, or other special rights and to fix the qualifications,
limitations, and restrictions of each series, including dividend rights, conversion rights, voting rights, terms of redemption,
including whether the series shall have a sinking fund for the redemption or purchase of shares of that series, liquidation preferences,
and the number of shares constituting any series.

 

    1

     

    

 

Fully Paid and Nonassessable 

 

All of our outstanding
shares of common stock are fully paid and nonassessable.

 

Anti-Takeover Effect of Our Certificate of Incorporation
and Bylaw Provisions

 

Our amended and
restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws contain provisions that could make it more difficult to complete
an acquisition of American Public Education by means of a tender offer, a proxy contest or otherwise.

 

Maximum
Number of Directors.  Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation does not limit the maximum size
of our board of directors.

 

Special
Stockholder Meetings.  Our amended and restated bylaws provide that a special meeting of stockholders may
be called only by a resolution adopted by a majority of our board of directors.

 

No
Stockholder Action by Written Consent.  Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that,
subject to the rights of any holders of preferred stock to act by written consent instead of a meeting, stockholder action may
be taken only at an annual meeting or special meeting of stockholders and may not be taken by written consent instead of a meeting,
unless the action to be taken by written consent of stockholders and the taking of this action by written consent has been expressly
approved in advance by our board of directors. Failure to satisfy any of the requirements for a stockholder meeting could delay,
prevent, or invalidate stockholder action.

 

Stockholder
Advance Notice Procedure. Our amended and restated bylaws establish an advance notice procedure for stockholders
to make nominations of candidates for election as directors or to bring other business before an annual meeting of our stockholders.
The amended and restated bylaws provide that any stockholder wishing to nominate persons for election as directors at, or bring
other business before, an annual meeting must deliver to our secretary a written notice of the stockholder’s intention to
do so. To be timely, the stockholder’s notice must be delivered to or mailed and received by us not more than 120 days, and
not less than 90 days before the anniversary date of the preceding annual meeting, except that if the annual meeting is set
for a date that is not within 30 days before or 60 days after such anniversary date, we must receive the notice not later
than the later of the 90th day prior to such annual meeting or the close of business on the tenth day following the day on which
we provide the notice or public disclosure of the date of the meeting. The notice must include the following information:

 

		·	the name and address of the stockholder who intends
to make the nomination and the name and address of the person or persons to be nominated or the nature of the business to be proposed;

 

		·	a representation that the stockholder is a holder of
record of our capital stock entitled to vote at such meeting and intends to appear in person or by proxy at the meeting to nominate
the person or persons or to introduce the business specified in the notice;

 

		·	if applicable, a description of all arrangements or
understandings between the stockholder and each nominee and any other person or persons, naming such person or persons, pursuant
to which the nomination is to be made by the stockholder;

 

		·	such other information regarding each nominee or each
matter of business to be proposed by such stockholder as would be required to be included in a proxy statement filed under the
SEC’s proxy rules if the nominee had been nominated, or intended to be nominated, or the matter had been proposed, or intended
to be proposed, by our board of directors;

 

		·	if applicable, the consent of each nominee to serve
as a director if elected;

 

		·	a statement whether such person, if elected, intends
to tender, promptly following such person’s election or re-election, an irrevocable resignation in the form required of
incumbent directors set forth in the amended and restated bylaws; and

 

		·	such other information that our board of directors
may request in its discretion.

 

    2

     

    

 

Undesignated
Preferred Stock. Because our board of directors has the power to establish the preferences and rights of the
shares of any series of preferred stock, it may afford holders of any preferred stock preferences, powers and rights, including
voting and dividend rights, senior to the rights of holders of the common stock, which could adversely affect the holders of the
common stock and could discourage a takeover of us even if a change of control of our company would be beneficial to the interests
of our stockholders.

 

Section 203
of the Delaware General Corporation Law.  We are subject to Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation
Law, which, with specified exceptions, prohibits a Delaware corporation from engaging in any “business combination”
with any “interested stockholder” for a period of three years following the time that the stockholder became an interested
stockholder unless:

 

		·	before that time, the board of directors of the corporation
approved either the business combination or the transaction which resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder;

 

		·	upon consummation of the transaction which resulted
in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, the interested stockholder owned at least 85% of the voting stock of the
corporation outstanding at the time the transaction commenced, excluding for purposes of determining the number of shares outstanding
those shares owned by persons who are directors and also officers and by employee stock plans in which employee participants do
not have the right to determine confidentially whether shares held subject to the plan will be tendered in a tender or exchange
offer; or

 

		·	at or after that time, the business combination is
approved by the board of directors and authorized at an annual or special meeting of stockholders, and not by written consent,
by the affirmative vote of at least 66 2/3% of the outstanding voting stock that is not owned by the interested stockholder.

 

Section 203
defines “business combination” to include the following:

 

		·	any merger or consolidation of the corporation with
the interested stockholder;

 

		·	any sale, lease, exchange, mortgage, transfer, pledge
or other disposition of 10% or more of the assets of the corporation involving the interested stockholder;

 

		·	subject to specified exceptions, any transaction that
results in the issuance or transfer by the corporation of any stock of the corporation to the interested stockholder;

 

		·	any transaction involving the corporation that has
the effect of increasing the proportionate share of the stock of any class or series of the corporation beneficially owned by
the interested stockholder; or

 

		·	any receipt by the interested stockholder of the benefit
of any loans, advances, guarantees, pledges, or other financial benefits provided by or through the corporation.

 

In general, Section 203
defines an “interested stockholder” as any entity or person beneficially owning 15% or more of the outstanding voting
stock of the corporation and any entity or person affiliated with or controlling or controlled by that entity or person.

 

The application
of Section 203 may make it difficult and expensive for a third party to pursue a takeover attempt we do not approve even
if a change in control would be beneficial to the interests of our stockholders.

 

    3

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