Patent ID: 7587371

Claim:
A charging method using a use point that is a unit of charging common to a plurality of apparatuses, the charging method comprising the steps of: (a) converting a result of use of each function of one of the apparatuses to use points for each of a plurality of operation modes of the one apparatus using an information processor of the apparatus, the operation modes further include a normal mode and a power-saving mode, and a use point being a predetermined unit for charging a user of the apparatus for use of a function of the apparatus; (b) totaling the use points of said one apparatus for said each operation mode obtained in said step (a); (c) displaying charges to the user for the use of the functions of the one apparatus based on the use points totaled in said step (b), wherein said step (c) further comprises the step of selecting, by the user, at least one of the operation modes based on the use points which are converted and totaled for each of the operation modes; and (d) charging the user for the use of the functions of the one apparatus based on the use points totaled in said step (b) and the user selection made in said step (c).