The deal should be closed within three months. It's worth $400 million, according to The Wall Street Journal. It will see the outfit swallowed up by Intel's Client Computing Group. This division has led the firm's charge into the Internet of Things.

Client Computing Group senior vice president Kirk Skaugen said that by 2018, Intel expected more than 800 million broadband connected households worldwide.

The combination of Intel's cable gateway business with Lantiq's technology and talent can allow global service providers to introduce new home computing experiences and enable consumers to take advantage of a more smart and connected home.

Intel's next stage will see it try to convince is partners that they should use its products in any IoT products. This might be tricky as its track record on mobile is patchy and it is taking on Qualcomm to Samsung.