PURPOSE: To notify the time up to transmission end of still picture data to a terminal equipment user by calculating a communication time up to transmission end of the still picture data based on a communication speed and a data quantity and displaying the calculated communication time when the still picture data are sent.

CONSTITUTION: A still picture is read from a scanner 4, a still picture control section 8 compresses the picture and stores the result, and when transmission is selected, it is notified to a BAS control section 14 via a terminal equipment control section 9. A control section 14 assigns communication speed of high speed data based on a bit rate assignation (BAS) code and assigns the communication speed of low speed data for transmission of time data. Then a communication time calculation detection section 11 calculates the communication speed of sending still picture data based on a bit location assigned by the BAS code and the communication time based on a data quantity stored in the control section 8. Thus, the time till the end of transmission is displayed on both terminal equipment via an LSD control section 12 and a display control section 10.