A first pictorial communication apparatus for transmitting and receiving a pictorial signal and a sound signal through a first channel and a control message through a second channel, having a line interface for communicating with ISDN, a video codec portion for coding and decoding of the pictorial signal, a key input portion and a camera, further comprises a character storing portion for storing character codes in corporation with the key input portion, a data conversion portion for converting character data train read from the character storing portion into a character video signal. On arrival of a call in an automatic answering mode, the character data train is read and transmitted through the first channel in place of a video signal from the camera after the conversion. The second apparatus has similar structure. A called second apparatus transmits the character code data train included in the control message through the second channel in the automatic answering mode on the arrival of call without the conversion. The called apparatus detects the character code data train from the control message and indicates the character code data train as an answering message after conversion by the data conversion portion.