• Verizon is acquiring FWA operator Starry
• Qualcomm bolsters its IoT portfolio with another acquisition
• Telefónica shrinks its LatAm presence

In today’s industry news roundup: Verizon snaps up fixed wireless access broadband service provider Starry; Qualcomm adds to its IoT-related M&A roster; Telefónica shrinks its presence further in Latin America; and much more!

Verizon is to acquire US fixed wireless access (FWA) service provider Starry for an undisclosed sum in a move that “advances [its] differentiated ability to deliver high-speed internet to multi-dwelling units (MDUs) and urban communities, leveraging Starry’s innovative millimetre wave technology,” the telco has announced. Starry, which emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in August 2023 after a disastrous IPO in 2022, operates in Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Denver and Washington, DC and has about 100,000 MDU customers. Verizon, which just this week announced a sudden change of CEO, ended June with 5.1 million FWA customers. Joe Russo, EVP and president of global networks and technology at Verizon, stated: “As the number one mobility provider, Verizon’s acquisition of Starry is another step to extend our leadership in mobility and broadband. Starry has demonstrated a unique and efficient approach to delivering high-speed internet in complex MDU environments. By integrating their technology and expertise, we will accelerate our fixed wireless access capabilities, giving millions of new customers a powerful and affordable broadband option. This architecture is less expensive to build, quicker to deploy and uniquely addresses the complexities of urban settings where we can leverage our existing fibre and mmWave assets.” The acquisition is expected to close by the first quarter of 2026, subject to approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and “other customary closing conditions”.

Qualcomm Technologies is to acquire (for an undisclosed sum) open-source hardware and software company Arduino, which is based in Somerville, Massachusetts, but which has its roots in Italy. Qualcomm says the acquisition accelerates its “strategy to empower developers by facilitating access to its unmatched portfolio of edge technologies and products,” as it will combine the chip giant’s “processing, graphics, computer vision and AI with Arduino’s simplicity, affordability and community”. According to Qualcomm, the acquisition builds on its recent integrations of Edge Impulse and Foundries.io, “reinforcing its commitment to delivering a full-stack edge platform that spans hardware, software and cloud services”. Both of those previous acquisitions helped Qualcomm’s standing in the internet of things (IoT) tech sector – IoT is one of Qualcomm’s fastest-growing lines of business. “Following this acquisition, the 33 million-plus active users in the Arduino community will gain access to Qualcomm Technologies’ powerful technology stack and global reach,” stated the chip vendor. “Entrepreneurs, businesses, tech professionals, students, educators and hobbyists will be empowered to rapidly prototype and test new solutions,” it added. Nakul Duggal, group general manager of automotive, industrial and embedded IoT at Qualcomm Technologies, stated: “With our acquisitions of Foundries.io, Edge Impulse, and now Arduino, we are accelerating our vision to democratise access to our leading‑edge AI and computing products for the global developer community. Arduino has built a vibrant global community of developers and creators. By combining their open-source ethos with Qualcomm Technologies’ portfolio of leading edge products and technologies, we’re helping enable millions of developers to create intelligent solutions faster and more efficiently – including a path towards global commercialisation by leveraging the scale of our ecosystem.”

Telefónica’s ongoing exit from Latin America took another step forward with the completion of the sale of its business in Uruguay to Millicom for $440m. The transaction was confirmed by the Spanish group in a brief note to investors, while Millicom also declared that it has officially entered the Uruguayan market following final approval from the country’s government, “further consolidating its presence in South America and reinforcing its position as a leading regional telecommunications provider”. In this statement, Marcelo Benitez, CEO of Millicom, said the acquisition “marks a decisive step in our growth strategy. We are thrilled to establish a presence in Uruguay – a country known for its stability and clear vision for digital transformation. We see tremendous value in the country’s talent, and our commitment is to invest in infrastructure, foster innovation and create new opportunities that drive long-term digital growth”. With about 1.4 million customers, Telefónica Móviles del Uruguay S.A. is the second-largest mobile operator in the country (with a total population of about 3.5 million), after state-owned Antel, and is bigger than América Móvil’s Claro. Headquartered in Luxembourg and 40% owned by French billionaire Xavier Niel (via Atlas Investissement, which is owned by Iliad Holding), the expansive Millicom (which operates under the Tigo brand) is now present in 10 markets –  Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay and now Uruguay. In contrast, Telefónica is seeking to exit the region (apart from Brazil), and has also sold its operations in Argentina, Colombia and Peru (see this article). In June, it agreed to sell its operations in Ecuador to Millicom for $380m, a deal that is expected to conclude before the end of 2025. 

Staying with Telefónica and its Latam exit strategy… previous reports have suggested a sale process is also underway for the telcos’ businesses in Mexico and Chile. Chilean telco Entel has now confirmed reports that it is evaluating a possible joint bid with América Móvil (which owns Claro Chile) for certain assets of Telefónica in Chile. According to an “essential information” filing to Chile’s securities regulator, the Comisión para el Mercado Financiero (CMF), the two groups have submitted a non-binding offer and have participated in a due diligence process. However, Entel said no decision has yet been made regarding the submission of a binding offer. It further noted that extensive analysis of Telefónica’s information is still required to “adequately value the assets, understand the business risks, and define and reach the necessary agreements with América Móvil to determine the assets or business lines that would ultimately be acquired by each company”. Entel operates in Chile and Peru and has more than 20.3 million mobile subscribers that are fairly evenly split between the two markets. In its financial report for the second quarter of 2025, it claimed to hold a 47.8% share of the 5G market in Chile, connecting over 3.2 million customers as of March 2025. The operator is also deploying 5G standalone technology in partnership with Ericsson. Meanwhile, Telefónica’s Movistar unit in Chile holds second place in the mobile market but is the market leader in terms of fixed, with a 28.1% share of the fixed-line internet market and a 37.6% share of the fibre optic broadband market as of June 2025. As noted in this BNamericas article, Entel is interested in Movistar’s fixed line business to expand its limited market share, while Claro could be interested in the mobile business.

The CEOs of Australia’s three main telcos – Vicki Brady of Telstra, Iñaki Berroeta of TPG, and Stephen Rue of Optus – have issued a joint statement following a meeting on Tuesday with the country’s communications minister, Anika Wells, about the recent challenges with the country’s Triple Zero emergency services. They stated: “Today’s meeting with the minister for communications was a constructive and important discussion about the reliability of the end-to-end Triple Zero system, the resilience of our networks and natural disaster preparations. The industry supports ongoing collaboration with the government to strengthen the Triple Zero ecosystem, improve real-time network information sharing, and enhance emergency response coordination… Australians need to be able to trust that calls to Triple Zero will work when it matters most, and we take that responsibility seriously. While no network is infallible and outages can occur due to factors such as severe weather, power loss or technical faults, our focus is on minimising the risk of disruption and responding swiftly when issues arise. We reaffirm our responsibility to the Australian public and are taking action to protect the integrity of the Triple Zero emergency system. We look forward to working with government, regulators and the broader industry to strengthen the resilience of Australia’s emergency call network.” Those words now need to be followed up with actions. 

The Telecom Infra Project (TIP)’s Neutral Host & Infra Sharing Project Group has published the TIP Neutral Host Infrastructure Sharing Framework, “a new industry resource designed to guide stakeholders in understanding, deploying and scaling neutral host networks,” it has announced. “Neutral hosting is more than a technical model, it’s a business and policy enabler. By reducing capex [capital expenditure] and opex [operating expenditure], increasing coverage and fostering collaboration between operators, enterprises, municipalities and governments, neutral host networks create a pathway for more sustainable and inclusive connectivity,” added TIP. 

– The staff, TelecomTV