Patent ID: 7953669

Claim:
An information processing apparatus for communicating with a server which controls an operation of software pre-installed in the information processing apparatus, the information processing apparatus comprising: a storage unit to store the pre-installed software, the pre-installed software including a plurality of functions operable on the information processing apparatus; a controller for detecting a function of the pre-installed software was selected to operate on the information processing apparatus; a network communication unit for transmitting, via a network, unique information and select information to the server, the unique information identifying the information processing apparatus, the select information identifying the detected function among the plurality of functions of the pre-installed software, the server managing license fees corresponding to the detected function via the network; and a display unit for displaying the license fees of the detected function received from the server after the network communication unit sends the select information to the server; wherein the controller receives information for accessing the detected function from the server, using the unique information, when the controller is indicated not to use the detected function in accordance with the received information, the controller does not activate the detected function and does not perform an accounting processing of the license fees corresponding to the detected function to the server, and when the controller is indicated to use the detected function in accordance with the received information, the controller activates the detected function and performs the accounting processing of the license fees corresponding to the detected function to the server.