Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, a method including receiving, at a first carrier, a first query for a record of a called number associated with a request to connect an internet protocol call between a first device of the first carrier and a second device of a second carrier, where the first query includes an inter-carrier telephone number mapping apex domain, querying an internetwork packet exchange telephone number mapping equipment of a partner network for a pointer to a second telephone number mapping equipment of the second carrier according to the first query, querying the second telephone number mapping equipment for the record of the called number using the pointer to the second telephone number mapping equipment of the second carrier, and forwarding the record from the second telephone number mapping equipment to an internet protocol multimedia subsystem of the first carrier for routing the internet protocol call to the second carrier. Other embodiments are disclosed.