Remote controls sold with various audio-video equipment, such as televisions, audio amplifiers, tape players and disc players, are used to control other types of devices, such as toys and home appliances. In order to accommodate different brands of remote controls that emit infra-red control signals according to different protocols, the controlled device that is not audio-video equipment includes a universal decoder that recognizes and decodes a variety of such signals. In a preferred embodiment, the same control function that is specified for one or more keys of a remote control is carried out in the controlled device. As examples, a sound source in the controlled device is muted when a mute button of any one of many different brands of remote controls is pushed, and/or the volume of the sound source is increased and decreased when volume-up and volume-down buttons, respectively, are pushed. When a television, or other piece of audio-video equipment, and a toy or home appliance, or other type of device that emits sounds, are both within range of the audio-video equipment remote control, the sound of both is controlled at the same time.