As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 5, 2008

Registration No. 333-          

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

 

 

FORM S-1

REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER

THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

 

 

 

 

Dell Inc.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One Dell Way
Round Rock, Texas 78682
(512) 338-4400
(Address, Including Zip Code, and Telephone Number, Including Area Code, of Registrant’s Principal Executive Offices)

 

 

 

 

Lawrence P. Tu
Senior Vice President and General Counsel
Dell Inc.
One Dell Way
Round Rock, Texas 78682
(512) 338-4400
(Name, Address, Including Zip Code, and Telephone Number, Including Area Code, of Agent For Service)

 

 

 

 

With copies to:

 

 

 

 

 

Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: As soon as practicable after this Registration Statement becomes effective.

 

If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, check the following box.  þ

 

If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.  o

 

If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.  o

 

If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(d) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.  o

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):

 

 

 

 

The registrant hereby amends this Registration Statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this Registration Statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until this Registration Statement shall become effective on such date as the Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.

 

 

 

Subject to Completion, Dated [•], 2008

 

PROSPECTUS

 

Dell Inc.

 

1,852,486 Units
Dell Inc. Common Stock Fund
Dell Inc. 401(k) Plan
Rescission Offer

 

Under the terms and conditions described in this prospectus, we are offering to rescind (the “Rescission Offer”) the previous purchase of units in the Dell Inc. Stock Fund (the “Dell Stock Fund”) by persons who acquired such units (the “Units”) through the Dell Inc. 401(k) Plan (the “Plan”) between March 31, 2006 and April 3, 2007 (the “Purchase Period”). Each Unit represents an interest in shares of our common stock, par value $0.01 per share, plus a varying amount of short-term liquid investments.

 

The Rescission Offer applies to Units purchased during the Purchase Period at prices ranging from $109.03 per Unit to $162.45 per Unit.

 

If you purchased Units pursuant to the Plan during the Purchase Period and accept the Rescission Offer, you will receive:

 

 

Although this prospectus uses the term “interest” when describing the calculation of the Rescission Offer price, the term is only intended to describe the method used to calculate the payment amount, and the payment is not considered interest for federal income tax purposes. Instead, the entire amount will be considered as a payment for the sale of your Shares.

 

The Rescission Offer will expire at 3:00 p.m., U.S. Central Time, on September 26, 2008 (the “Expiration Date”), which is [•] days from the date of this prospectus.

 

Our common stock is listed on The NASDAQ Stock Market under the trading symbol “DELL.” The last reported sale price of our common stock (as reported on The NASDAQ Stock Market) on [•], 2008, was $[•] per share. The value of a Unit on such date was $[•]. Our principal executive offices are located at One Dell Way, Round Rock, Texas 78682. Our telephone number is (512) 338-4400.

 

You may elect to accept the Rescission Offer by submitting a Rescission Offer Acceptance Form to us on or before the Expiration Date as set forth in this prospectus. You do not need to take any action to reject the Rescission Offer. If you fail to return the Rescission Offer Acceptance Form by the Expiration Date, you will be deemed by us to have rejected the Rescission Offer. Acceptance or rejection of the Rescission Offer may prevent you from maintaining any action against us based on a claim that we failed to register shares of our common stock represented by the Units purchased pursuant to the Plan during the Purchase Period. In any event, any such claim may be barred by applicable statutes of limitations. See “Risk Factors – Your right of rescission, if any, under federal and state law may not survive if you affirmatively reject or fail to accept the Rescission Offer” on page [•].

 

 

 

 

Investing in Units, and in the shares of our common stock represented thereby, involves risks. See “Risk Factors” on page [•].

 

The shares of our common stock represented by the Units subject to the Rescission Offer may be deemed not to have been properly registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), because we inadvertently exceeded the number of shares of our common stock registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) for offer and sale to participants under the Plan. This prospectus is part of a Registration Statement on Form S-1 filed with the SEC to register these shares, regardless of whether or not you accept the Rescission Offer.

 

Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or passed upon the adequacy or accuracy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

 

The date of this prospectus is [•], 2008

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

 

You should rely only on the information contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with additional or different information. If anyone provides you with additional or different information, you should not rely on it. This prospectus is not an offer to sell or purchase nor is it soliciting an offer to buy or sell these securities in any jurisdiction where such offer, solicitation or sale is not permitted. You should assume that the information contained in this prospectus is accurate only as of its date and that any information incorporated by reference is accurate only as of the date of the document incorporated by reference. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since those dates.

 

Unless otherwise stated or the context otherwise requires, references in this prospectus to “Dell,” “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to Dell Inc. and its subsidiaries.

 

This prospectus and the documents to which we refer you in this prospectus contain “forward-looking statements” that are based on Dell’s current expectations. Actual results in future periods may differ materially from those expressed or implied by those forward-looking statements because of a number of risks and uncertainties. In addition to other factors and matters contained or incorporated by reference in this document, including those disclosed under “Risk Factors,” these statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, including, among others:

 

 

The following questions and answers are intended to address briefly some commonly asked questions regarding the Rescission Offer. These questions and answers do not address all questions that may be important to you as a participant in the Plan who acquired Units between March 31, 2006, and April 3, 2007. Please refer to “The Rescission Offer” beginning on page [•] and the more detailed information contained elsewhere in this prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference into this prospectus, which you should read carefully.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To make any of the above elections, contact the Dell Benefits Center at 1-888-335-5663. Proceeds will be transferred to your 401(k) Plan account within 3-5 business days following the Expiration Date.

 

We strongly encourage you to review the Plan Summary Plan Description that contains additional information on distribution of account balances. To obtain a copy of the Plan Summary Plan Description, go to the Dell intranet or contact the Dell Benefits Center at 1-888-335-5663. Payment of proceeds directly to you may result in adverse tax consequences. See “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dell Inc. Rescission Offer
70 University Avenue, P.O. Box 5
Toronto, ON
M5J 2M4

 

 

Dell Inc. Rescission Offer
70 University Avenue, 8th Floor
Toronto, ON
M5J 2M4
877-[•]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dell Inc. Rescission Offer
70 University Avenue, P.O. Box 5
Toronto, ON
M5J 2M4

 

 

Dell Inc. Rescission Offer
70 University Avenue, 8th Floor
Toronto, ON
M5J 2M4
877-[•]

 

 

 

 

An investment in our common stock involves risks. You should carefully consider the following risk factors relating to the Rescission Offer in addition to the risks identified in “Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” above and the risks identified in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended February 1, 2008, including those risks identified under the caption “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K. Please see “Where You Can Find More Information” on page [•].

 

The Rescission Offer may not bar claims relating to our possible non-compliance with securities laws, and we may continue to be contingently liable for rescission or damages in an indeterminate amount.

 

It is not certain that the Rescission Offer will have the effect of barring claims relating to our possible non-compliance with applicable federal securities laws. If a person accepts the Rescission Offer, we believe our potential liability to that person will be eliminated. Should the Rescission Offer be rejected, we may continue to be contingently liable for rescission or damages, which could result in an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. In addition, the Rescission Offer will not prevent regulators from pursuing enforcement actions or imposing penalties and fines against us with respect to any violations of securities laws. In any event, we do not expect the Rescission Offer to have a material impact on our financial condition or liquidity.

 

Your right of rescission, if any, under federal and state law may not survive if you affirmatively reject or fail to accept the Rescission Offer.

 

The rights remaining to the recipients of a rescission offer are not clearly delineated under federal or certain state securities laws. If you affirmatively reject or fail to accept the Rescission Offer, it is unclear whether your federal right of rescission, if any, will be preserved. The staff of the SEC takes the position that a person’s federal right of rescission may survive a rescission offer. However, the few federal courts that have addressed this issue in the past have suggested that, at least in certain circumstances, a person who rejects or fails to accept a rescission offer may be precluded from later seeking similar relief.

 

The Rescission Offer may also affect your right of rescission and your right to damages, if any, under state law. We believe that the sale of shares of our common stock included in the Units that are the subject of the Rescission Offer were exempt from registration under state laws. Furthermore, we believe that the Rescission Offer is exempt from registration under the laws of such states and thus need not comply with the laws of such states regulating such offers. However, we do not make any representation as to the compliance of this Rescission Offer with applicable state law. Under most state laws, acceptance or rejection of rescission offers may preclude offerees from initiating an action against the rescission offeror in connection with the registration of securities that are the subject of the rescission offer. We may assert, among other defenses, in any litigation initiated by a person eligible to participate in the Rescission Offer who accepts or rejects the Rescission Offer, that such person is stopped from asserting such claims as a result of the Rescission Offer.

 

Generally, the statute of limitations for enforcement of federal statutory rescission rights by a security holder is one year commencing on the date of the sale of the security sold in violation of the federal registration requirements, but in no event later than three years after the security was bona fide offered to the public. The Company believes that the one-year federal statute of limitations on sales of shares of our common stock represented by the Units has expired and that participants in the Plan now have no federal rescission rights except as a result of the tolling agreement described below under “The Rescission Offer–Effect of the Rescission Offer.” Statutes of limitations under state laws vary by state, with the limitation time period under many state statutes not typically beginning until the facts giving rise to a violation are known. Our Rescission Offer is not an admission that we did not comply with any federal and state registration or disclosure requirements nor is it a waiver by us of any applicable statute of limitations or any potential defense we may have. Determining when a statute of limitations expires under federal or state law can be a difficult issue, and you should consult with an attorney if you have any questions regarding how federal or state statutes of limitations may apply to any claims you have.

You will not be permitted to conduct any transactions within your Plan account for a period of time following the Expiration Date.

 

Because you will not be permitted to conduct any transactions with respect to your Plan account during this period, you will be subject to the risk that due to events in the securities markets, the value of your account could significantly decline during this period and you would not be able to make transfers to avoid or mitigate this result. In addition, any proceeds you receive for the sale of Units in the Rescission Offer will not be deposited into your Plan account for up to 3-5 business days following the Expiration Date. If you still have a Plan account and are an active employee of Dell, these proceeds will be allocated to your Plan account in accordance with your current investment elections for new contributions to the Plan. If you have separate investment elections on file for both employee and employer contributions, your proceeds will be invested in accordance with your investment elections for employer contributions. If you are not an active employee of Dell or do not have current elections on file, these funds will be credited to your Plan account and invested in the Dodge & Cox Balanced Fund. In all cases, you will be subject to the risk that the purchase price of the applicable investment could increase in value prior to the reinvestment of proceeds in your account, resulting in a higher unit cost for such investment. See “Notice of Blackout Period” for additional information.

 

Dell listens to customers and delivers innovative technology and services they trust and value. As a leading technology company, we offer a broad range of product categories, including desktop PCs, servers and networking products, storage, mobility products, software and peripherals, and services. According to the IDC Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker, we are the number one supplier of personal computer systems in the United States, and the number two supplier worldwide.

 

Our company is a Delaware corporation and was founded in 1984 by Michael Dell on a simple concept: by selling computer systems directly to customers, we can best understand their needs and efficiently provide the most effective computing solutions to meet those needs. Our corporate headquarters are located in Round Rock, Texas, and we conduct operations worldwide through subsidiaries.

 

Our principal executive offices are located at One Dell Way, Round Rock, Texas 78682. Our telephone number is (512) 338-4400.

 

Background and Reasons for the Rescission Offer

 

The Plan is a qualified defined contribution plan under Section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The purpose of the Plan is to provide a voluntary, systematic method for participants to save a specified percentage of the participant’s compensation for retirement and to defer federal income tax and, where allowed, state, city and county income tax, on such compensation. JP Morgan Chase is the Trustee of the Plan.

 

Amounts in participants’ accounts are held in a trust fund maintained for the benefit of participants in the Plan. There are currently 11 core investment funds plus 6 pre-mixed portfolios available to participants under the Plan. All contributions to a participant’s Plan account are invested in accordance with his or her investment elections.

 

One of the investment choices in the Plan is the Dell Stock Fund, which gives participants the opportunity to invest some or all of the amounts deposited in their Plan account in Units principally comprised of Dell common stock. A participant’s investment in the Dell Stock Fund is measured in Units. Each Unit represents an interest in shares of our common stock plus a varying amount of short-term liquid investments. To effectuate purchases and sales of Units by participants, the Trustee will from time to time purchase and sell our common stock in the open market at market prices.

Plan participants can purchase Units, which include indirect interests in Dell common stock, through the Plan. The Trustee holds the Plan’s shares of Dell common stock in the Dell Common Stock Fund, and Plan participants who invest in Units have an indirect interest in those shares through their Unit investment. Although the shares of Dell common stock held by the Trustee are purchased in the open market by the Trustee, the SEC takes the position that the participants’ investments in Units are investments in the shares of Dell common stock and that we are required to register the deemed sale of these shares to Plan participants with the SEC. We have discovered that we inadvertently exceeded the number of shares of our common stock registered with the SEC for sale to participants in the Plan.

 

We are making the Rescission Offer with respect to 1,852,486 Units sold pursuant to the Plan during the Purchase Period. We are making the Rescission Offer to ensure compliance with the Securities Act and to limit any contingent liability we may have as a result of possible noncompliance with applicable federal registration requirements in connection with the purchase of Units by Plan participants. Non-employee members of our Board of Directors were not eligible to participate in the Plan and therefore are not eligible to participate in the Rescission Offer. Our current executive officers and employee directors who purchased Units pursuant to the Plan during the Purchase Period do not intend to participate in the Rescission Offer.

 

Effect of the Rescission Offer

 

If you reject, fail to timely accept, or fail to accept in full, the Rescission Offer by 3:00 p.m., U.S. Central Time, on the Expiration Date, or if you accept the Rescission Offer but we determine that you are not eligible to accept the Rescission Offer under the terms set forth in this prospectus, you will retain ownership of the Units and will not receive any payment for the Units subject to the Rescission Offer. In addition, the shares of common stock included in the Units that you now own that are subject to the Rescission Offer, for purposes of applicable federal securities law, will be registered securities as of the date of this prospectus.

 

Your acceptance of the Rescission Offer may preclude you from later seeking similar relief, if any is available. For federal securities law purposes, rejection or the failure to accept a rescission offer may not terminate an offeree’s right to bring a civil action against the offeror for failure to register securities under the Securities Act before expiration of the applicable statute of limitations. The staff of the SEC takes the position that a person’s federal right of rescission may survive a rescission offer. However, the few federal courts that have addressed this issue in the past have suggested that, at least in certain circumstances, a person who rejects or fails to accept a rescission offer may be precluded from later seeking similar relief.

 

The above discussion relates primarily to your potential rescission rights and does not address the antifraud provisions of federal securities laws or rights under state securities laws, common law or equity. We believe that the sale and issuance of shares of our common stock included in the Units that are the subject of the Rescission Offer were exempt from registration under state laws. Furthermore, we believe that this Rescission Offer is exempt from registration under state laws and thus need not comply with state laws regulating such offers. However, we do not make any representation as to the compliance of this Rescission Offer with any applicable state law. Under most state laws, acceptance or rejection of rescission offers may preclude offerees from initiating an action against the rescission offeror in connection with the registration of securities that are the subject of the rescission offer.

 

Generally, the federal statute of limitations for enforcement of such statutory rights by a security holder is one year commencing on the date of the sale of the security sold in violation of the federal registration requirements, but in no event later than three years after the security was bona fide offered to the public. The Company believes that the one-year federal statute of limitations on sales of shares of our common stock represented by the Units has expired and that participants in the Plan now have no federal rescission rights except as a result of the tolling agreement described below. Statutes of limitations under state laws vary by state, with the limitation period under many state statutes not typically beginning until the facts giving rise to the violation are known. Our Rescission Offer is not an admission that we did not comply with any federal or state registration or disclosure requirement nor is it a waiver by us of any applicable statute of limitations or any potential defense we may have. Determining when a statute of limitations expires under federal or state law can be a difficult issue, and you should consult with an attorney if you have any questions regarding how

federal or state statutes of limitations may apply to any claims you have or regarding any of your legal rights and remedies before deciding whether or not to accept the Rescission Offer.

 

Prior to the commencement of the Rescission Offer, Dell entered into a Tolling and Standstill Agreement (the “Tolling Agreement”) with the Dell Inc. Benefits Administration Committee, acting on behalf of the Plan. Effectively, the Tolling Agreement stops the running of the one-year federal statute of limitations (or any other time related defense) as of March 31, 2007, for claims related to the Plan’s acquisition of unregistered Dell securities. As a result, claims of Plan participants for rescission of purchases of Units on and after March 31, 2006, will be deemed to be preserved until the earlier of completion of this Rescission Offer or termination of the Tolling Agreement. The Tolling Agreement may be terminated by Dell or by the Benefits Administration Committee at any time upon thirty days prior written notice. It may also be terminated by Dell upon ten (10) business days prior written notice if any claim related to the Plan’s acquisition of unregistered securities is brought against Dell by any person.

 

Terms of the Rescission Offer

 

If you purchased Units through the Plan during the Purchase Period and have already sold such Units at a loss, you may accept the Rescission Offer, in which case you will receive an amount equal to the amount you paid for the Units less the proceeds of the sale of the Units, plus interest at a rate of 5.27% per year. Interest will be paid on the amount originally paid for the Units from the date you purchased the Units through the date you sold the Units. Interest will also be paid on the loss realized from your sale of the Units from the date of such sale through the date that payment is made by us.

 

If you currently hold Units purchased through the Plan during the Purchase Period, you may accept the Rescission Offer, in which case the Trustee will sell the shares included in the Units and credit your Plan account with the amount you paid for the Units, plus interest at a rate of 5.27% per year for the period from the date you purchased the Units to the date payment is made by us. However, we will not repurchase any Unit if the price you paid for the Unit plus interest (to the Expiration Date) is less than the value of the Unit as of the Expiration Date, as it would not be economically beneficial to you.

 

Units are deemed sold in the order in which you purchased them. In order to determine which Units acquired during the Purchase Period are eligible for repurchase and which, if any, Units so acquired were sold at a loss, all Units acquired on your behalf pursuant to the Plan will be matched against all sales of Units during or after the Purchase Period by matching the first Unit acquired with the first Unit sold. This principle, commonly called “first-in, first-out,” or “FIFO,” will be used by Dell in determining which Units you sold at a loss and which Units you now hold are eligible for repurchase and should be used by you to help determine whether or not you wish to accept the Rescission Offer. An example of the application of the FIFO principle is included with the Rescission Offer Acceptance Form that accompanies this Prospectus.

 

Federal law does not provide a specific rate of interest to be used in rescission offers. We have determined that an appropriate interest rate to be applied in this Rescission Offer is the weekly average 1-year constant maturity Treasury yield (“CMT”), as published by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. We have selected the CMT rate in effect on both June 30, 2006, and July 7, 2006, (5.27%), which was the highest CMT rate in effect for any calendar week during the Purchase Period and significantly higher than the CMT rate in effect on the date of this prospectus. Consequently, we will apply an annual rate of interest of 5.27% to all interest rate calculations used in this Rescission Offer.

 

The Rescission Offer will expire at 3:00 p.m., U.S. Central Time, on September 26, 2008, which is [•] days from the date of this prospectus. If we receive a legible and properly completed Rescission Offer Acceptance Form from you on or before the deadline specified in the preceding sentence, and we determine that you are eligible to accept the Rescission Offer, we expect any proceeds to which you are entitled will be credited to your Plan account, or a Plan account established for you within 3-5 business days following the Expiration Date.

 

If you still have a Plan account and are an active employee of Dell, we will credit all proceeds resulting from acceptance of the Rescission Offer to your Plan account in accordance with your current investment

elections for new contributions to the Plan. If you have separate investment elections on file for both employee and employer contributions, your proceeds will be invested in accordance with your investment elections for employer contributions. If you still have a Plan account, but you are not an active employee of Dell or do not have current investment elections on file, all proceeds resulting from acceptance of the Rescission Offer will be credited to your Plan account and invested in the Dodge & Cox Balanced Fund. If you no longer have a Plan account, a Plan account will be established for you and all proceeds payable to you under this Rescission Offer will be invested in the Dodge & Cox Balanced Fund. The Plan’s distribution rules vary based on your personal circumstances such as your account balance, age, and employment status. As a result, you should review the Plan Summary Plan Description and the “Questions and Answers About the Rescission Offer” located in this Prospectus for more information on your distribution options. Payment of proceeds directly to you may result in adverse tax consequences (see “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations”).

 

As of [•], 2008, the closing sale price of our common stock (as reported on The NASDAQ Stock Market) was $[•] per share. The value of a Unit on such date was $[•].

 

How to Accept or Reject the Rescission Offer

 

YOU ARE NOT LEGALLY REQUIRED TO ACCEPT THE RESCISSION OFFER.

 

How to accept the Rescission Offer

 

Acceptance of the Rescission Offer is optional. Generally, acceptance of the Rescission Offer is economically beneficial only if you have sold Units purchased during the Purchase Period at a loss, or if you currently hold Units purchased during the Purchase Period and the value of a Unit on the Expiration Date is less than the price you paid for the Unit, plus interest (to the Expiration Date).

 

You may accept your Rescission Offer by mail or fax. In order to accept the Rescission Offer, you must complete the Rescission Offer Acceptance Form and return it by mail or fax so that it is received by us on or before 3:00 p.m., U.S. Central Time, on September 26, 2008. The Rescission Offer Acceptance Form must be legible. You may mail your Rescission Offer Acceptance Form to:

 

Dell Inc. Rescission Offer
70 University Avenue, P.O. Box 5
Toronto, ON
M5J 2M4

 

If you choose to overnight your Rescission Offer Acceptance Form, please send it to:

 

Dell Inc. Rescission Offer
70 University Avenue, 8th Floor
Toronto, ON
M5J 2M4
877-[•]

 

You may fax your Rescission Offer Acceptance Form to [•].

 

If you choose to accept the Rescission Offer, we recommend that you mail or fax the Rescission Offer Acceptance Form sufficiently in advance of the Expiration Date to ensure its receipt by the deadline specified above. The method for returning the Rescission Offer Acceptance Form is at your option and risk, and delivery will be deemed made only when actually received by us at the address or fax indicated above. If delivery is by mail, we recommend using registered mail with return receipt requested. You can also call the Dell Inc. Rescission Offer Call Center by dialing your country’s international long distance access code followed by 877-[•], Monday through Friday, between hours of 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., U.S. Central Time to confirm your Rescission Offer Acceptance Form was received.

 

WE MUST RECEIVE YOUR LEGIBLE AND PROPERLY COMPLETED RESCISSION OFFER ACCEPTANCE FORM ON OR BEFORE 3:00 P.M., U.S. CENTRAL TIME, ON THE EXPIRATION DATE, SEPTEMBER 26, 2008. OTHERWISE, YOU WILL BE DEEMED TO HAVE REJECTED THE RESCISSION

OFFER. WE WILL, IN OUR SOLE DISCRETION, DETERMINE WHETHER YOUR RESCISSION OFFER ACCEPTANCE FORM HAS BEEN PROPERLY COMPLETED AND WHETHER YOU ARE ELIGIBLE TO ACCEPT THE RESCISSION OFFER.

 

Proceeds will be disbursed to your 401(k) Plan account within 3-5 business days following the Expiration Date.

 

How to reject the Rescission Offer

 

You do not need to take any action to reject the Rescission Offer. If you change your decision and want to reject the Rescission Offer after having submitted the Rescission Offer Acceptance Form, you may reject the Rescission Offer by sending a notice that includes your name, your identification number located on your Rescission Offer acceptance form, and a clear indication that you are rejecting the Rescission Offer to the attention of Dell Inc. Rescission Offer, at the address or to the fax number above.

 

If you have previously accepted the Rescission Offer and you change your mind, we must receive a legible notice of rejection on or before 3:00 p.m., U.S. Central Time, on September 26, 2008. Otherwise, you will be deemed to have accepted the Rescission Offer pursuant to your original Rescission Offer Acceptance Form.

 

IF YOU FAIL TO NOTIFY US IN WRITING OF YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THE RESCISSION OFFER ON OR PRIOR TO 3:00 P.M., U.S. CENTRAL TIME, ON THE EXPIRATION DATE, SEPTEMBER 26, 2008, OR ATTEMPT TO ONLY ACCEPT THE RESCISSION OFFER IN PART, YOU WILL BE DEEMED TO HAVE REJECTED THE RESCISSION OFFER. ACCEPTANCE OR REJECTION OF THE RESCISSION OFFER MAY NOT TERMINATE YOUR RIGHT TO BRING A CIVIL ACTION AGAINST US FOR FAILURE TO REGISTER THE SHARES INCLUDED IN THE UNITS UNDER FEDERAL SECURITIES LAWS. HOWEVER, FEDERAL LAW DOES PROVIDE THAT YOU MAY LOSE ANY RESCISSION RIGHTS UNDER FEDERAL SECURITIES LAWS ONE YEAR FROM THE DATE OF PURCHASE OF SUCH SHARES AND THREE YEARS FROM THE DATE SUCH SHARES WERE BONA FIDE OFFERED TO THE PUBLIC.

 

If you have questions regarding how to reject the Rescission Offer, you can also call the Dell Inc. Rescission Offer Call Center by dialing your country’s international long distance access code followed by 877-[•], Monday through Friday between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., U.S. Central Time.

 

Funding the Rescission Offer

 

We have sufficient funds available to pay for the purchase of any Units that may be tendered to us as a result of the Rescission Offer.

 

Questions about the Rescission Offer

 

If you have questions about the Rescission Offer, you may call the Dell Inc. Rescission Offer Call Center by dialing your country’s international long distance access code followed by 877-[•], Monday through Friday, between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., U.S. Central Time. If you have any questions about accessing your Dell Stock Fund transaction history, you can find more information by accessing your account at http://resources.hewitt.com/dell. If you need further assistance or if you do not have access to your online account, you should call the Dell Benefits Center at 1-888-335-5663 to request a detailed listing of your transactions by mail or fax. Please allow 10-13 days to receive your Dell Stock Fund transaction history.

 

The following discussion summarizes the material U.S. federal income tax considerations relating to the Rescission Offer. This discussion is based on current law. The following discussion is not exhaustive of all possible tax consequences. It does not give a detailed discussion of any state, local or foreign tax consequences, nor does it discuss all of the aspects of U.S. federal income taxation that may be relevant to

you in light of your particular circumstances and only applies if you are an individual citizen or resident of the United States.

 

You are urged to consult with your own tax advisor regarding the specific consequences to you of the Rescission Offer, including the U.S. federal, state, local, foreign and other tax consequences and the potential changes in applicable tax laws.

 

Your acceptance or rejection of the Rescission Offer, or the sale of the Units representing our common stock and short-term liquid investments to us pursuant to the Rescission Offer or the receipt of the specified payment if you had previously sold your Units at a loss, is not considered to be a taxable event before withdrawal or distribution of funds from your Plan account. If you currently have a Plan account and are an active employee of Dell, your proceeds from the Rescission Offer will be credited to your Plan account and will be invested in accordance with your current investment elections in the Plan. If you have separate investment elections on file for both employee and employer contributions, your proceeds will be invested in accordance with your investment elections for employer contributions. If you currently have a Plan account, but you are not an active employee of Dell or do not have current investment elections on file, your proceeds from the Rescission Offer will be credited to your Plan account and invested in the Dodge & Cox Balanced Fund. Upon any later withdrawal or distribution, any gain resulting from the Rescission Offer will generally be taxable as ordinary income. An additional ten percent income tax may be imposed in cases of early withdrawal.

 

If you have directed and caused a full distribution from the Plan and no longer have an individual account in the Plan, a new Plan account will be established for you and any amounts paid in respect of the Rescission Offer will be credited to your account and invested in the Dodge & Cox Balanced Fund. The Plan’s distribution rules vary based on your personal circumstances such as your account balance, age, and employment status. As a result, you should review the Plan’s Summary Plan Description and the “Questions and Answers About the Rescission Offer” in this Prospectus for more information on your distribution options. A direct rollover into an individual retirement account or other qualified retirement plan is not considered to be a taxable event. If the proceeds from the Rescission Offer are not rolled over, however, and you receive a distribution from the Plan, such distribution will generally be taxable as ordinary income to you as described above. An additional ten percent income tax may be imposed depending on your age.

 

To ensure compliance with U.S. Treasury Department Circular 230, we inform you that the preceding discussion (and any other discussion of U.S. federal tax issues herein) is written in connection with the promotion or marketing of the Rescission Offer and is not intended to be relied upon, and cannot be relied upon) by a participant in such offer for the purpose of avoiding penalties that may be imposed under the Internal Revenue Code. Each prospective participant in the Rescission Offer should seek advice based on his or her own particular circumstances from an independent tax advisor.

 

We will receive no proceeds from the Rescission Offer.

 

This notice is intended to comply with the requirements of Department of Labor Final Regulation Relating to Notice of Blackout Periods to Participants and Beneficiaries, 29 C.F.R. Section 2520.101-3, to the extent such requirements apply to the Rescission Offer. Accordingly, this notice is intended to inform affected participants (and beneficiaries) of the Plan of a “blackout period” during which their right to direct or diversify their Plan investments may be temporarily suspended.

 

If you are being offered the opportunity to participate in this Rescission Offer and you hold Units in the Dell Stock Fund in your Plan account on the Expiration Date, all transactions related to your Plan account will be temporarily suspended on the Expiration Date. The temporary suspension is called a “blackout period” and applies whether or not you accept the Rescission Offer. The blackout period will begin at 3:00 p.m.,

U.S. Central Time, on September 26, 2008, and, if you accept the Rescission Offer, will end at 11:59 p.m., U.S. Central Time on October 1, 2008. You will be notified in the event that the blackout period is extended past October 1, 2008. If you do not accept the Rescission Offer, the blackout period will end at 12:01 a.m., U.S. Central Time, on September 29, 2008.

 

The blackout period is required to ensure smooth processing of the Rescission Offer. The Trustee will not permit any transactions related to your Plan account during the blackout period. This means:

 

 

You will need to initiate any requests prior to 3:00 p.m., U.S. Central Time, on the date the blackout begins for those requests to take effect. It is important that you review and consider the appropriateness of your current investments in light of your inability to direct or diversify investments in your Plan account during the blackout period. For your long-term retirement security, you should give careful consideration to the importance of a well-balanced and diversified investment portfolio, taking into account all your assets, income and investments. You should be aware that there is a risk to holding substantial portions of your assets in the securities of any one company, such as the Dell Stock Fund, as individual securities tend to have wider price swings, up and down, in short periods of time, than investments in diversified funds. Our common stock may have a wide price swing during the blackout period resulting in a large loss, and you will not be able to direct the sale of Units from your Plan account during the blackout period.

 

If you have any questions concerning this notice or the blackout period, including whether the blackout period has ended, you should contact the Dell Benefits Center at 1-888-335-5663. Whether or not you are planning retirement in the near future, we encourage you to consider how this blackout period may affect your retirement planning, as well as your overall financial plan.

 

For additional information and limitations on Plan investments and how to direct investment of your Plan account, see the Plan Summary Plan Description. To obtain a copy of the Plan Summary Plan Description, you may view and print a copy from the Dell intranet or you may contact the Dell Benefits Center at 1-888-335-5663.

 

We maintain an Internet website at www.dell.com. All of our reports filed with the SEC (including annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and proxy statements) are accessible through the Investor Relations section of our website at www.dell.com/investor, free of charge, as soon as reasonably practicable after electronic filing. The public may read and copy any materials that we file with the SEC at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, NE, Room 1580, Washington, DC 20549. You may obtain information on the operation of the Public Reference Room by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. The SEC maintains an Internet site that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC at www.sec.gov.

 

We have filed with the SEC a registration statement under the Securities Act that registers the distribution of the securities offered hereby. The registration statement, including the attached exhibits and schedules, contains additional relevant information about us and the securities being offered. This prospectus, which forms part of the registration statement, omits certain of the information contained in the registration statement in accordance with the rules and regulations of the SEC. Reference is hereby made to the registration statement and related exhibits for further information with respect to us and the securities offered hereby. Statements contained in this prospectus concerning the provisions of any document are not necessarily complete and, in each instance, reference is made to the copy of such document filed as an exhibit to the

registration statement or otherwise filed with the SEC. Each such statement is qualified in its entirety by such reference.

 

We incorporate into this prospectus by reference the following documents filed by us with the SEC, each of which should be considered an important part of this prospectus:

 

 

Any person, including any beneficial owner, to whom this prospectus is delivered may request copies of this prospectus and any of the documents incorporated by reference in this prospectus, without charge, by written or oral request directed to Dell Investor Relations, Dell Inc., One Dell Way, Round Rock, Texas 78682, telephone (512) 728-7800, on the “Investor Relations” section of Dell’s website at http://www.dell.com/investor or from the SEC through the SEC’s website at the address provided above. Documents incorporated by reference are available without charge, excluding any exhibits to those documents unless the exhibit is specifically incorporated by reference into those documents.

 

Unless otherwise specified in this prospectus, certain legal matters relating to the securities to be offered hereby will be passed upon for us by Janet B. Wright, Esq., Director — Corporate Legal of our Company.

 

The consolidated financial statements incorporated in this Prospectus by reference to Dell’s Current Report on Form 8-K dated June 5, 2008, and the financial statement schedule and management’s assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting (which is included in Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting) incorporated in this Prospectus by reference to the Annual Report on Form 10-K of Dell Inc. for the year ended February 1, 2008 have been so incorporated in reliance on the report of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, given on the authority of said firm as experts in auditing and accounting.

PART II
INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS

 

 

The following is an itemized statement of the expenses expected to be incurred in connection with the Rescission Offer. With the exception of the SEC registration fee, the amounts set forth below are estimates.

 

 

 

Under our Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Restated Bylaws, our officers and directors are entitled to indemnification from Dell to the fullest extent permitted by the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, or DGCL. In addition, Dell may, to the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL or to such lesser extent as is determined in the discretion of the Board of Directors, indemnify its other employees and agents. Pursuant to Section 145 of the DGCL, Dell generally has the power to indemnify its present and former directors and officers against expenses and liabilities incurred by them in connection with any suit to which they are, or are threatened to be made, a party by reason of their serving in those positions so long as they acted in good faith and in a manner they reasonably believed to be in, or not opposed to, the best interests of Dell, and with respect to any criminal action, they had no reasonable cause to believe their conduct was unlawful. With respect to suits by or in the right of Dell, however, indemnification is generally limited to attorneys’ fees and other expenses and is not available if the person is adjudged to be liable to Dell unless the court determines that indemnification is appropriate. The statute expressly provides that the power to indemnify authorized thereby is not exclusive of any rights granted under any by-law, agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors, or otherwise. Dell also has the power to purchase and maintain insurance for its directors and officers.

 

The preceding discussion of our Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Section 145 of the DGCL is not intended to be exhaustive and is qualified by the Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Section 145 of the DGCL.

 

We have entered into indemnification agreements with each of our non-employee directors. Those agreements do not increase the extent or scope of the indemnification provided but were entered into to establish processes and procedures for indemnification claims.

 

 

Set forth below is a listing of all sales of securities by Dell during the past three years not registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended:

 

Internal Restructuring. We have modified the corporate organizational structure of certain of our subsidiaries to achieve more integrated global operations and to provide various financial, operational, and tax efficiencies. In connection with this internal restructuring, on December 28, 2006, we issued approximately 475 million shares of our common stock valued at $12.0 billion based on the closing price on The NASDAQ Stock Market on that date, to a wholly-owned subsidiary in return for an equivalent value in equity interests in the subsidiary. As part of the restructuring, the subsidiary used these shares to acquire a controlling interest in another wholly-owned subsidiary. Because all the shares issued as part of this restructuring are held by one or more of our wholly-owned subsidiaries, the shares are not considered outstanding in our consolidated financial

statements or for voting purposes. We continue to be the ultimate beneficial owner of all subsidiaries involved in the internal restructuring.

 

These shares have not been registered under the Securities Act and were issued in a transaction not involving a public offering pursuant to the exemption under Section 4(2) of the Securities Act. The shares may not be resold absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements under the Securities Act or other applicable law.

 

Certain Employee Benefit Plan Securities. As a result of our inability to file our Annual Report on Form 10-K for Fiscal 2007 on its due date (April 3, 2007), we suspended our sale of Dell securities under our various employee benefit plans. In preparing for that suspension, we discovered that we had inadvertently failed to file with the SEC certain registration statements relating to securities under the plans.

 

 

 

 

 

The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes:

 

(a) (1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement:

 

(i) To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933;

 

(ii) To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement;

 

(iii) To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement.

(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

 

(3) To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.

 

(4) That, for the purpose of determining liability under the Securities Act of 1933 to any purchaser, each prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) as part of a registration statement relating to an offering, other than registration statements relying on Rule 430B or other than prospectuses filed in reliance on Rule 430A, shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the date it is first used after effectiveness. Provided, however, that no statement made in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such first use, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any such document immediately prior to such date of first use.

 

(b) That, for purposes of determining liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each filing of the registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) that is incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

 

(c) That insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the registrant has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Round Rock, State of Texas, on the 5^th day of June, 2008.

 

DELL INC.

 

Michael S. Dell

Chairman and

Chief Executive Officer

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this registration statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated. Each person whose signature appears below hereby authorizes and appoints each of Michael S. Dell and Lawrence P. Tu as his or her attorney-in-fact to sign on his or her behalf individually and in the capacity stated below all amendments and post-effective amendments to this registration statement as that attorney-in-fact may deem necessary or appropriate.

 

INDEX TO EXHIBITS