An Internet-based system provides substantially instantaneous communication between two devices for exchanging voice and multimedia signals. The system includes ISP gateways with unique IDs that service a plurality of devices with unique telephone numbers. The system further includes a directory which correlates the devices with ISP gateways. More specifically, the directory includes a RELATIVE records/words/cells in a RANDOM ACCESS TABLE (RRAT) with each entry being identified by a record number, which in this case corresponds to the telephone numbers (as they are or in reverse). The entry relates directly or indirectly the telephone number with the respective ISP gateway. Communication is established by having the ISP gateway of the calling device looking up the ISP gateway of the called device in the directory using the telephone number of the called device. The ISP gateway then generates a handle for the called ISP and uses the handle to establish a communication channel between two devices quickly and efficiently.