Qualcomm acquires G.fast chip company Ikanos for $47 million

Communications chip giant Qualcomm has moved to augment the fixed-line offering of its Atheros subsidiary with the acquisition of broadband chip and software provider Ikanos for $2.75 per share.

That values Ikanos at around $47 million and Qualcomm is also taking on the company’s debts, with current liabilities in the region of $20 million. The acquisition is designed to improve Atheros’ presence in the consumer fixed line market, specifically in the high-performance segment, where Ikanos has G.fast and xDSL technology.

“Qualcomm Atheros has always viewed the home gateway as the enabler for consumers to not only access the internet for browsing and downloading content and video streaming, but also as the hub of the Internet in the home for a variety of reliable and high quality services,” said Rahul Patel, GM, connectivity at Qualcomm Technologies.

“The combination of Qualcomm Atheros’ broad home gateway IP portfolio, including Wi-Fi, powerline, small cell, and Ethernet switch technologies, and Ikanos’ advanced wired modem technology, is designed to create a complete solution for a wide range of home gateway products to better serve the carrier segment.”

“Qualcomm Atheros and Ikanos have a long history of collaboration in the carrier space and share a common vision for the connected home,” said Omid Tahernia, CEO of Ikanos. “Bringing the two companies together enables Qualcomm Atheros to accelerate implementation of its strategy for the connected home, and to move the home gateway forward as a key enabler for new carrier applications and services.”

The acquisition has been unanimously approved by the Ikanos board and is expected to close by the end of the year. It would be surprising if such a low value acquisition troubled the regulators.