The telecom-turned-technology-provider wants to grow by building the backbone for AI and in the process has been offloading its nonprofitable business units.
The latest deal could value the unit at more than $5.5 billion, according to a report from Bloomberg News that cited people familiar with the matter. The report said the terms of the deal are not yet finalized and could change or the talks could collapse.
Lumen CFO Chris Stansbury hinted at the possible sale of the consumer business in late 2024 as the company continues to pivot toward becoming “an enterprise company.”
The Monroe, La.-based service provider has shifted its operations in recent years toward business services, which now account for about 75 percent of its revenue.
Lumen, formerly CenturyLink, did not respond to CRN’s request for comment prior to publication.
A spokesperson for Dallas-Based AT&T declined to comment on the matter, citing its policy not to comment on rumors or speculation.
In an effort to boost its financials, Lumen has been divesting certain areas of its legacy telecom business in the last couple of years. The company in 2023 closed the sale of its EMEA business to Colt Technology Services for $1.8 billion. Lumen in the same year finalized the $7.5 billion sale of its incumbent local exchange carrier (ILEC) business, which included its consumer, small business, wholesale and mostly copper-served enterprise customers and assets in 20 states to Brightspeed, a two-year-old company that was launched by former Verizon executives.
Instead, Lumen President and CEO Kate Johnson has spoken about the telecom-turned-technology- provider growing by building the backbone for AI.
The CEO last month called 2025 the “year of investment” for Lumen. The service provider in 2024 inked $8.5 billion in private connectivity fabric deals with Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud and Meta.
AT&T’s stock climbed 1.39 percent on Wednesday following news of the potential purchase, while Lumen’s fell 2.95 percent.
