US chip vendor Qualcomm said Wednesday that it has made a strategic investment in femto and picocell manufacturer, ip.access.

Terms of the investment were not disclosed.

The Big Q joins existing investors Cisco, Intel Capital, ADC, Motorola Ventures, Scottish Equity Partners, Rothschild Gestion and Amadeus Capital Partners, with funding for ip.access’ latest bit of kit, the Oyster 3G femtocell.

The Oyster uses a residential broadband connection to provide backhaul for a 3G box in the home, and is currently being trialled by network operators worldwide.

“3G femtocells will have a very important role in future mobile network architecture,” said Frederic Rombaut, head of Qualcomm Ventures Europe, “ip.access has an innovative approach to the 3G femtocell market that will enable our customers to enhance the delivery of 3G services to mobile users.”