Mobile operator Telefonica is poised to inject fresh competition into the mobile ad tech sector with the imminent launch of Axonix, a mobile ad exchange built on the technology of the now defunct MobClix/Velti venture.

The mobile operator – which has an extensive amount of mobile operator brands, including O2 in the UK, taking in over 200 million subscribers – will launch Axonix in the coming weeks along with GSO Capital Partners, a division of investment firm Blackstone.

The Axonix exchange will be based on MobClix technology acquired by the pair in the wake of (MobLicx parent company) Velti’s Chapter 11 proceedings, and will be the first mobile ad exchange owned by a single global mobile operator group, according to Telefonica.

Simon Birkenhead, CEO of Axonix, who was formerly Telefonica global director of ad sales, told ExchangeWire the company will be switching the MobClix technology platform within weeks, adding that it will have over 100 demand side platforms (DSPs) plugged into the exchange, sourcing inventory from across the globe.

Axonix will be headquartered in the UK, but will source inventory in markets where Telefonica has a mobile operator licence – i.e across Europe and in the Latin Americas – and further afield. Inventory available on the exchange will predominantly be in-app ad units at launch, but Axonix is also shortly to offer mobile web inventory after a period of testing brand safety elements of the technology, according to the company.

Simon Bailey, Axonix COO, formerly of MobClix, said the technology will be made available to both the buy side, and sell side of the industry, offering the possibility of both private and public marketplaces to third parties. Later in the year, it will also offer “mobile ad network mediation” services, he added.

When asked what will differentiate Axonix from existing mobile ad exchanges on the market, Birkenhead said it will offer Telefonica audience data – an anonymised data set that contains age, gender, location information – which is not easily available elsewhere.

“Our geographic presence across the globe puts us at an advantage [for things like account management], especially given our presence across Latin America,” he adds.

Bailey also told ExchangeWire mobile ad inventory from both premium and “long tail” publishers would be made available via Axonix, but was unable to name specific names.

He added: “Long tail inventory works especially well for advertisers, especially when you have the right data set around it [to improve targeting]… We’ll also be going after the big names [i.e. publishers].”

The pair also explained that Axonix – whose parent company Telefonica also has a stake in Weve the joint venture mobile advertising outfit co-owned by O2, and other major UK operators – will also be able to supply inventory to its mobile ad offering, via their mutual relationship with Byyd (formerly Adfonic).

Figures from ZenithOptimedia show that in 2013, $13.4bn was spent on mobile ads equating to some 13% of all internet ad spend, and 2.7% of all global ad spend. By 2016 it’s estimated that this figure will rise to $45bn, or 28% of internet ad spend and 7.6% of total ad investments.

Separate research from eMarketer also predicts that real time bidding will account for 54% of total US display ad spend in 2017, with mobile-based RTB sales, in particular, accounting for approximately 20% of this spend.

The research firm also predicts that mobile ad spending in the UK continues to show significant growth and is expected to rise 90% this year to nearly £2.26bn, up from about £1.19bn in 2013.

By 2018, eMarketer expects mobile to claim more than one-third of total paid media spending in the UK. Mobile will account for 15.1% of total media spending this year, compared with just 13.8% for newspapers. In 2015, mobile will surpass print's total, at 21.0% of all spending vs. 17.3%