On 2 June 2021, the University of Malaga and Telefónica Spain signed a collaboration agreement for the implementation of joint initiatives that contribute to the development, dissemination and application of new technologies.

The signing ceremony was attended by the rector of the UMA, José Ángel Narváez, and the director of the Southern Territory of Telefónica Spain, Joaquín Segovia. The Vice-Rector for Research and Transfer, Teodomiro López, and Telefónica's Director of Public Administrations in Andalusia, Rafael Expósito, also took part in the meeting.

Thus, this agreement between the two parties promotes, through another specific agreement, the creation of the Chair ‘5G Next Generation Networks and Information Technologies’, which will be directed by the professor of Art History at the UMA Nuria Rodríguez, a specialist in Digital Humanities.

The director of Telefónica's Southern Territory expressed his satisfaction at being part of the UMA, since «the university is the epicentre of thought and culture». «This is where innovation is and where the transfer takes place, this is where we have to be», he said. «Telefónica is the company we were missing,» said the rector, who thanked them for choosing the UMA to create this chair. «For us it is an opportunity to bring technology to all areas of knowledge,» he concluded.