What is the empty <text> element for in _CategoryLine.TopMenu.cshtml for?

In Nop.Web/Views/Shared/_CategoryLine.TopMenu.cshtml there is the following code:

...
<a href="@Url.RouteUrl("Category", new { SeName = Model.Category.SeName })">@Model.Category.Name
    @if (Model.Category.NumberOfProducts.HasValue)
    {
        <text> </text>@T("Categories.TotalProducts", Model.Category.NumberOfProducts.Value)
    }
</a>
...

Could anyone please tell me what the empty <text></text> block is for?

I do believe it may not be necessary, it may have been required in previous versions to create a space between the name and the count.

Can anyone else confirm if this is the case and if it applies to other hosting platforms other than windows.