The Compagnia Italiana dei Cavi Telegrafici Sottomarini (Italcable) was founded in 1921 to lay a cable from Anzio (Rome) to Malaga, where it branched off to New York and Buenos Aires. Inaugurated in 1925, this 9,000-mile route boosted telegraph communications between Europe and America, positioning Malaga as a strategic point. The Italcable Building, today the headquarters of the UNIA in Malaga, symbolises this technological milestone.
Commemorative event
The event was held on 16 December 2025 in the Mena Building (former Italcable), organised by the ETSI of Telecommunications of the UMA and the Professional Association of Telecommunications Engineering of Eastern Andalusia and Melilla. Participants included the rector of the UNIA, José Ignacio García; the vice-rector of Research of the UMA, Pedro Maireles; the director of the ETSI, Fali Godoy; the dean Ainoa Celaya; and the mayor Francisco de la Torre. García highlighted how the cable connected people through technology, paralleling the building's current role in postgraduate training, evoking Alfonso XIII's contact with the Plus Ultra flight.
Keynote speeches
Ritha Rodríguez Pintado (Telxius) presented «Submarine cables: underpinning a connected world», emphasising their role in diplomacy and trade. Rafael Pérez Jiménez, Professor of the ULPGC, addressed «100 years of Italcable in Malaga: history of the submarine cable». Maireles underlined the admiration for this living legacy in today's connectivity.
Relevance for the Telefónica Chair
Since its creation, the 5G Telefónica UMA Chair fosters debate and research in telecommunications and its societal impact, aligning itself with this centenary that vindicates Malaga's historic role in global networks. The city, with its universities and local talent, continues to attract transatlantic innovation, as highlighted by De la Torre.
