Patent ID: 7189910

Claim:
A musical tone signal-generating apparatus comprising: a connecting device that connects to a server storing users' usage data concerning use of the musical tone signal-generating apparatus, on a user-by-user basis; a reading and writing device that reads and writes user's usage data concerning the use of the musical tone signal-generating apparatus by a user into and from a portable storage medium storing the user's usage data; a mounting-detecting device that detects mounting of the storage medium in said reading and writing device; a comparison device that compares the users' usage data associated with the user stored in the server and the user's usage data stored in the storage medium to determine which is a newer one, when said mounting-detecting device has detected the mounting of the storage medium in said reading and writing device; an enabling device that enables the newer one of the users' usage data associated with the user stored in the server and the user's usage data stored in the storage medium, based on a result of the comparison; and an updating device that updates the older one of the users' usage data associated with the user stored in the server and the user's usage data stored in the storage medium, based on a result of the comparison.