Abstract: A system and method for communicating audio/video data in a packet-based computer network wherein transmission of data packets through the computer network requires variable periods of transmission time. The system comprises: (1) a packet assembly circuit for constructing a data packet from a portion of a stream of digital audio/video data corresponding to an audio/video signal and (2) a packet disassembly circuit, having a buffer associated therewith, for receiving the data packet from the backbone. The packet assembly circuit generates a position identifier indicating a temporal position of the portion relative to the stream, inserts the position identifier into the data packet and queues the data packet for transmission through a backbone of the computer network.