Well this is interesting...

[discopanda]

Recently managed to download a PDF scan of (what appears to be a photocopy of) the manual for my microwave... found this interesting bit on one of the pages near the front:

Comments

[mazz]

GE is an evil corporation, they want to know where the microwave is so they can put it in their computers and secretly watch you.
--

IRL it's mostly there in case of recall, you get them with a lot of products. It's not required you tell them you got one.

[discopanda]

Something tells me they'd have trouble trying to secretly watch me with a microwave made in 1978 anyways. :-P