Amount information stored in an IC chip installed in a portable terminal
has been encoded, and no key is contained in the same terminal for
protection against unauthorized use. On the other hand, in order to allow
the information to be viewed even offline, a portion of the information
can be displayed by a specific application. After a viewer application is
downloaded from a service provider, followed by mutual authentication
with the IC chip, the application is enabled on the terminal, and the
extent viewed is registered. Therefore, the amount information stored in
the IC card or IC chip can be displayed even in an offline environment.