NOTE 10. STOCK OPTION PLAN

We have one stock option plan. The Amended and Restated 1999 Stock Incentive Plan (the “Plan”) allows the company to grant equity-based awards, including stock options and restricted share awards to employees, advisors and non-employee members of the Board of Directors to the company. At the annual meeting of the company held on June 22, 2012, the company stockholders approved a revision to the Plan to increase the number of shares authorized by 1,900,000. As a result, a maximum of 5,000,000 shares are now authorized under the Plan. Options generally vest over a four-year period and have a maximum term of five years from the vesting date. The Plan provides that vesting may be accelerated in certain corporate transactions of the company. The Plan provides that the Board of Directors, or a committee appointed by the Board, have discretion, subject to certain limits, to modify the terms of outstanding options. We recognize non-cash stock-based compensation expense related to the estimated fair value of stock options granted in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718 “Compensation—Stock Compensation.”

During the year ending December 31, 2012, the Board of Directors accelerated the vesting period for two outstanding stock awards issued to two employees. This accelerated vesting resulted in additional compensation cost of $0.1 million recognized in the fourth quarter of 2012. The following table reflects the components of stock-based compensation expense recognized in the Consolidated Statements of Operations for the years ended December 31, 2010, 2011 and 2012:

Stock option and restricted stock grants

The Plan allows the company to grant stock options and shares of restricted stock to employees, directors, officers and advisors of the company. The option exercise price is set at the closing price of the company’s common stock on the date of grant, and the related number of shares granted is fixed at that point in time. The Plan also provides for grants of restricted stock. Eligible employees may receive stock options annually with the number of shares and type of instrument generally determined by the employee’s salary grade and performance level. In addition, certain management and professional level employees typically receive a stock option grant upon commencement of employment. Non-employee directors of the company have been awarded restricted stock grants that vest one year from the date of issuance as well as stock options that vest immediately. The Plan does not allow key employees and directors (restricted persons) to exercise options during pre-defined blackout periods. Employees may participate in 10b5-1 plans that allow them to exercise options according to predefined criteria.

We use the Black-Scholes option valuation model to estimate the fair value of stock options as of the grant date. The expected volatility considers the historical volatility of our stock as determined by the closing price over a six to ten year term that is generally commensurate with the expected term of the option. Expected dividends reflect the quarterly dividends authorized and declared on March 7, 2012, May 31, 2012, August 30, 2012, and November 29, 2012 of $0.035 per share on Class A and Class B common stock. The expected term of the options are based on evaluations of historical and expected future employee exercise behavior. The risk-free interest rates for periods within the expected term of the option are based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect during the period the options were granted. We use historical data to estimate future forfeiture rates to apply against the gross amount of compensation expense determined using the option valuation model.

The weighted-average assumptions used to estimate the fair value of the stock options using the Black-Scholes option valuation model were as follows for the years ended December 31, 2010, 2011 and 2012:

Stock option information with respect to the company’s stock-based compensation plans during the three years ended December 31, 2012 is as follows (Dollars in thousands, except weighted average exercise price and weighted average grant date fair value):

The aggregate intrinsic value represents the difference between the company’s closing stock price on December 31, 2012 of $5.46 and the option exercise price of the shares for stock options that were in the money, multiplied by the number of shares underlying such options. The total fair value of options vested during the years ended December 31, 2010, 2011 and 2012 was $1.1 million, $1.0 million and $1.2 million, respectively.

The fair values of shares of restricted stock are determined based on the closing price of the company common stock on the grant dates. There were no restricted stock awards outstanding during the year ending December 31, 2012. Information regarding the company’s restricted stock during the years ended December 31, 2010 and 2011 is as follows:

As of December 31, 2012, there was $1.2 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested awards of stock options and restricted shares. This cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 2.1 years.

Additional information regarding options outstanding as of December 31, 2012, is as follows: