Abstract: A method, system, and apparatus are disclosed for reducing set-up time for calls by pre-allocating channels in communication networks. The present invention is based on doing as much of the set-up work as possible before communication resources are actually needed, and then, after resources are needed, using a fast way of executing that work which could not be completed until after the resources were needed. An embodiment of the present invention deploys a first agent to proactively manage communication resources configuring and reserving channels for a principal required to report to a network the address of a suitable supplementary channel available through a second agent. Allocating channels in advance permits fast, consistent, and predictable service times in response to requests for data-burst service. All embodiments of the present invention address a pressing need of service providers who must set-up data-burst sessions very quickly to permit applications to run faster across networks.