In an arrangement for accounting for consumption of a resource, e.g., utilization of a postal service or utilities, a data center (503, 803) periodically communicates with multiple franking systems (100, 505-1, 505-2, 505-n) dispensing postage for the postal service utilization. The data center (503,...http://www.google.de/patents/US7120610?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US7120610 - Technique for effective management of resource consumption
