Despite some speed bumps along the way, Broadcom Friday closed its acquisition of Brocade Communications, wrapping up a deal that also has significant implications for Arris.

The Broadcom-Brocade deal close paves the way for Arris to move ahead with its $800 million acquisition of Brocade’s Ruckus Wireless and ICX switch businesses. Arris’s play for those assets was contingent on Broadcom and Brocade getting their deal done.

RELATED: Arris Puts Up $800M for Ruckus Wireless, ICX Switch Biz

Arris’s part of the deal will enable the company to further expand into areas like education, public venues, enterprise and MDUs, and greatly enhance its wireless and mobile technology portfolios.

RELATED: Arris Raises Some New Ideas About Ruckus

Arris, which has been reselling Ruckus products since 2011, has previously said the acquisition will add about 1,600 employees, and will lead to a dedicated business unit that will be led by current Ruckus COO Dan Rabinovitsj.

Arris issued this statement Friday: "As previously announced, ARRIS’s agreement to acquire Brocade’s Ruckus Wireless and ICX Switch business from Broadcom was contingent on Broadcom’s closing its Brocade acquisition. Now that Broadcom has closed its acquisition of Brocade, ARRIS expects to complete the Ruckus acquisition promptly following completion of the transaction’s review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (“CFIUS”).  The current CFIUS investigation period ends on November 30, 2017."

We look forward to soon welcoming the Ruckus team into the ARRIS family. Ruckus’ exceptional expertise and portfolio will provide us immediate diversification into the Enterprise market and build on ARRIS’s leadership position in networking and entertainment technology.

As for the deal that’s leading to Arris’s move, Brocade’s common stock will cease to be traded on Nasdaq, and the company will operate as an indirect subsidiary of Broadcom and be led by GM Jack Rondoni. 

The closing also gives Broadcom the ability to put more focus on its unsolicited bid for Qualcomm, whose board has already rejected the bid.

In a move that would fill a wireless gap in its technology repertoire, Arris is in talks to acquire Brocade Communications’s networking equipment business for up to $1 billion, Reuters reported.

Arris declined to comment on the report, but the company, which is a year removed from its acquisition of U.K.-based set-top maker Pace plc and a major supplier to cable operators, telcos and other service providers, has shown interest in growing its business by way of adjacent markets.

RELATED: Arris Wraps Up Pace Acquisition

Arris CFO Dave Potts hit on that topic Thursday (Jan. 12) at the Needham Growth Conference.

“As we continue to grow, we believe it’s possible we could get into adjacent markets, which could mean….as an example in wireless,” he said. “What happens to wireless over time – should we be more heavily into that? We’re always focused on what those next opportunities could really be.”

Arris’s reported interest in the networking unit of Brocade appears to come as wireless becomes a more important strategic focus for cable operators, which are already deploying millions of WiFi hotspots, while others, including Comcast and Charter Communications, have been pursuing wireless services that lean on MVNO agreements with providers such as Verizon.

RELATED: Charter Looking at Wireless Play Too

Arris already has some ties into the business of Brocade it is reported to be eyeing.

Brocade acquired WiFi specialist Ruckus Wireless in 2016, then Broadcom put up $5.5 billion for Brocade later in the year, though Broadcom announced an intention to sell off Brocade’s IP networking business, which includes wireless and campus networking products, data center switching and routing and software networking solutions. Arris isn’t interested in buying Brocade’s data center, switching and software assets tied to its anticipated divestiture, Reuters said.

Ruckus and Arris inked a global reselling deal in 2011, and continues to hawk several Ruckus products, including network controllers/gateways, analytics software, and WiFi access points.

RELATED: Ruckus Shares Soar on $1.2B Brocade Deal

Reuters said a sale of its networking business to Arris, or others that are also being courted, would ensure that Broadcom wouldn’t own a business that competes with clients such as Cisco Systems. The report added that a decision on a deal is expected by the end of January.

Arris shares closed Friday up 52 cents (1.78%) to $29.71 each. 

Shares in Ruckus Wireless jumped more than 31% in afternoon trading Monday after Brocade announced it had agreed to acquire the supplier of wireless gear and control systems that counts Time Warner Cable, Bright House Networks and Cablevision Systems among its WiFi technology clients.

Under terms of the deal Ruckus stockholders will receive $6.45 in cash and 0.75 shares of Brocade common stock for each share of Ruckus common stock. Based on the closing price of Brocade’s stock on April 1, 2016, the transaction values Ruckus at $14.43 per common share, or approximately $1.5 billion, though that number could fluctuate until the deal is closed. Net of estimated cash acquired, the transaction value is approximately $1.2 billion, they said.

Ruckus, which struck a global reselling deal with Arris in 2011, saw its shares soar on the news – its stock was up 31.60% ($3.16 each) to $13.16 each in afternoon trading. Brocade shares went into opposite direction -- they were down 13.96% ($1.49 each) to $9.15 each at last check. 

Brocade said the deal will complement its own enterprise networking portfolio with Ruckus’s “higher-growth wireless products” while strengthening Brocade’s strategic presence in the broader service provider space. Brocade said the deal will also help in its pursuit of emerging market opportunities around 5G, the Internet of Things, and LTE/WiFi convergence.

Ruckus competes in the WiFi arena with companies such as Cisco Systems and Ericsson, which acquired BelAir Networks in 2012.

The Ruckus organization will be led by current Ruckus CEO, Selina Lo, and report directly to Brocade CEO, Lloyd Carney, the companies said.  

Notably, Lo is scheduled to speak next Wednesday (April 13) at the CableLabs Inform[ed] Wireless event in New York in a session titled: “Evolution of Cable Networks and Mobile Opportunities”

"This strategic combination will position us to expand our addressable market and technology leadership with Ruckus’ fast-growing wireless LAN products, and supports our vision to deliver market-leading New IP solutions that enable the network to become a platform for innovation,”  Carney said in a statement.

"The combination of our two companies will create an exciting new thought leader in networking and significant opportunities for our stakeholders to participate in the combined company's future growth potential,” added Lo. "We operate in adjacent segments of the larger networking market with a number of common customers for our complementary products, and have a successful track record of working together.”

They said the deal, which has been approved by the boards of both companies, is expected to close in the third quarter of Brocade’s fiscal Q3.

Ruckus also announced updated Q1 2016 guidance. It expects total revenues of $98 million to $101 million, and non-GAAP diluted net income per share of $0.09 to $0.10.