1. An appliance control device comprising: a control unit configured so as to: acquire a list identifying one or more functions executable by a first appliance, the list including information indicative of a corresponding protocol corresponding to each said function executable by the first appliance; and, transmit a request to the first appliance for execution of a desired function selected from the list identifying the one or more functions executable by the first appliance, the transmitted request being transmitted in accordance with a specified protocol selected from a specified plurality of protocols, the specified protocol being selected from the specified plurality of protocols based on the information in the list indicative of the corresponding protocol corresponding to the desired function.