I have worked retail in the past and the Point of Sale System would create unique customer ID for each customer. if we didn't look you up in the database or your didn't want to give us your information it didn't matter because all of the sales systems talked. If you used your credit card at my store and then went down the street and bought something at another store with that same credit card the sales system would link the purchases to the same customer ID. If you have ever gone to an Apple store and they e-mailed your receipt to you then you go to another store and they run your credit card your e-mail address will pop up for them to send your receipt to you again. This also works in reverse you use card A and give them your e-mail address then go in another time and use card B but give the same e-mail address they system will link the 2 credit cards to your account. If you were to combine this with any online store purchases they have all the info that is needed to contact you later. The disc came from Best Buy. It is illegal for a retailer to use the credit card information to give to a manufacturer. More than likely information was given willingly and associated with the credit card number. This is completely legal because Samsung probably found out how many of the specific model was sold and sent Best Buy the discs paying them to send them to everyone that bought them.

My employer is actually working on setting up a system like this throughout our organization. The thinking is that Bob takes his laptop to room 102. When you cross the door way the "gateway" reads the RFID tag and updates the inventory system. We spend several million dollars a year for physical inventory of everything. Now if it is in my office it could take you hours to find it among all the mess but you know that it is there. How many times have you pushed that pager button on the cordless phone or called your cell phone and then figure out that you have to run from room to room to find out that it was never in the house it was left out in the car. I have been trying to figure out a system like this for a while. Since I am in the process of building a new house I want to see if I can integrate a "gateway" into the door jambs so you don't see it. Otherwise wire for later use.