In an approach to governance of document printing, one or more computer processors receive a request from a user to print a document. One or more computer processors identify a content and a context of the document. Based on the content and the context of the document, one or more computer processors determine whether the request complies with one or more printing policies. Responsive to determining the request complies with the one or more printing policies, one or more computer processors determine one or more format attributes of the document. Based on the one or more format attributes, one or more computer processors determine whether the document format is optimized, where optimization minimizes use of one or more printing supplies. Responsive to determining the document format is not optimized, one or more computer processors provide a recommendation for optimizing the document format to the user.

The disclosure discloses methods and systems for reserving a tray for a user for special media printing. The method includes receiving one or more special media sheets as loaded by the user in the tray. Based on the loaded special media sheets, a tray ID of the tray is automatically identified. A user interface is provided to the user to input loaded media details such as media size, type, and color. Then, it is checked with the user whether to reserve the identified tray for the user for special media printing. Based on the check, a user interface is further provided to the user to input a user ID. Finally, the identified tray is automatically reserved for the user using the user ID and the tray ID, for printing a document later received from the user on the one or more special media sheets as loaded in the identified/reserved tray.

A service printer includes a printer printing unit that executes a print function, a scanning unit that executes a scan function, a printer communication unit that acquires, from a service providing server that provides a delivery service of delivering ink, status information indicating at least one of the status of a contract for use of the delivery service and the status of payment of the usage fee for the delivery service, and a printer controller that enables or disables execution of the print function and execution of the scan function based on at least one of the contract status and the payment status that are indicated by the status information acquired by the printer communication unit.

A billing method for a liquid jet device includes, counting a consumed amount of liquid by printing, counting the number of printed sheets, counting a consumed amount of liquid for maintenance of a jet head, calculating a maintenance consumption amount per unit number of sheets, from a maintenance consumption amount consumed in current maintenance, and the number of printed sheets for which printing is performed from previous maintenance to the current maintenance, setting, as a liquid consumption amount, a value obtained by adding the maintenance consumption amount per unit number of sheets, to a print consumption amount consumed in printing for the unit number of sheets, and billing for printing for the same number of sheets as the number of printed sheets performed after the current maintenance, in accordance with the liquid consumption amount.

An example of an apparatus includes a network interface to receive print data from a device, the print data associated with a first subscription service. The apparatus also includes a memory storage unit to store the print data including a database of subscription services, wherein the database of subscription services includes the first subscription service and a second subscription service. In addition, the apparatus includes a subscription manager to manage the database of subscription services. The subscription manager deducts print credit from a first subscription service account based on the print data. The apparatus includes a selection engine to select a printing device for the print data, wherein the printing device is associated with the second subscription service.

An information processing apparatus includes at least one processor configured to: acquire physical-property-value information of a recording medium; using information regarding a printing machine, perform an evaluation as to whether there is a possibility that the recording medium causes trouble for printing by the printing machine, the evaluation being performed with respect to at least one printing performance indicator based on the physical-property-value information; and output a result of the evaluation to a display device.

An image processing apparatus includes a storage that stores a setting value pertaining to execution of a job, a job executor that can execute the job based on the setting value, and a controller that controls the job executor on a basis of the setting value read from the storage. When reading the setting value, if a specific setting value is changed from an initial value, the controller restricts application of the specific setting value.

A printing device is provided. The printing device includes: an attachment/detachment unit which an option is attachable to and detachable from; a communication unit notifying an external management device of installation of the option, using encrypted communication; and a management unit managing whether a function using the option is available or not, in response to a permission report that the option is available or a no-permission report that the option is unavailable, from the management device.

An example method comprises identifying a plurality of supply levels corresponding to a set of print supplies of a print device. The example method further comprises coordinating depletion of the set of print supplies by selecting between black print and process black print for a print job of the print device based on the plurality of supply levels.

An information processing system includes an information processing apparatus that obtains a state of a job input to a printing apparatus, generates, based on the state of the obtained job, notification information including instruction information used to control the job, and transmits the generated notification information to a network. A mobile terminal apparatus receives the notification information from the network, and notifies, based on the received notification information, the instruction information used to control the job. The information processing apparatus also estimates an execution result of a job which has been input to the printing apparatus but is in an execution standby state, obtains, as a state of the job, the estimated execution result, and in a case in which the estimated execution result indicates abnormal completion, generates the notification information including the instruction information used to control the job.