Patent ID: 7319537

Claim:
An image reading system in which a client apparatus connected, via a network, to a charging management apparatus to which an image scanner is locally connected, said client apparatus comprising: a requesting unit adapted to ask said charging management apparatus to read an image; and a receiving unit adapted to receive an image read by said image scanner from said charging management apparatus; an acquisition unit adapted to acquire, from said charge management apparatus, information indicating a setting relating to whether a use of said image scanner is set to be charged or not; a first determination unit adapted to determine whether said client apparatus matches a charging condition of said image scanner or not; and a display control unit adapted to control a display device to display information indicating the use of said image scanner is set to be charged if the information acquired by said acquisition unit indicating that the setting relating to said image scanner is set to be charged, wherein said display control unit does not control the display device to display the information indicating the use of said image scanner is set to be charged, if said first determination unit determines that said client apparatus does not match the charging condition of said image scanner even if the information acquired by said acquisition unit indicating that the setting relating to said image scanner is set to be charged, and said charging management apparatus comprising: a setting unit adapted to set whether a use of said image scanner is to be charged or not; a calculating unit adapted to calculate charge amount if said image scanner was used by said client apparatus and the use of said image scanner was set to be charged by said setting unit; and a storage unit adapted to store the charge amount.