Qualcomm is acquiring 4G IoT technology from Sequans Communications, a France-based fabless semiconductor company. This deal includes several employees, assets and licenses. Sequans’ specialization in developing cellular semiconductor solutions for huge and critical IoT markets makes this acquisition significant for Qualcomm. Now that Qualcomm has the 4G IoT technologies under its control, the company plans to integrate them into its end-to-end solutions, expanding its current industrial IoT portfolio.

Nakul Duggal, Group General Manager for Automotive, Industrial and Embedded IoT and Cloud Computing at Qualcomm, said: “The acquisition of Sequans’ 4G IoT technology complements Qualcomm’s broad portfolio and strengthens our offering to enterprise customers of low-power solutions for reliable, optimized cellular connectivity for industrial IoT applications.”

This adoption is in line with market trends. An April forecast by ABI Research estimates that the manufacturing sector will have 108 million IoT connections over private LTE (4G) and 5G networks by 2030. Similarly, the transportation industry expects 71 million IoT connections over private LTE and 5G networks over the same period.

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Interestingly, Sequans retains full commercial use rights to the technology through a perpetual license agreement. Georges Karam, CEO of Sequans, commented: “We are committed to pushing the boundaries of innovation and providing cutting-edge 4G/5G semiconductor solutions that meet the increasing demands of AI-powered Internet of Things applications. This transaction is expected to provide us with the resources and flexibility to enhance our product offering and expand our market presence.”