Telefónica today announced the creation of Axonix, a new company with the financial backing of Telefónica and affiliates of Blackstone's GSO Capital Partners. The company said in a press release Axonix is the first mobile advertising exchange platform owned and powered by a mobile operator.

Telefónica and Blackstone's GSO Capital will use a technology called MobClix to power Axonix, the company said in the release. MobClix is an analytics tool for mobile apps.

Simon Birkenhead has been appointed Chief Executive of Axonix, leaving his current role as Telefónica's director of global advertising sales, Telefónica announced in a press release. The newly formed company will have a completely new executive management team and will operate globally with its headquarters in London. While being independently run, Telefónica said Axonix will benefit from the financial credibility, advertising industry expertise and global reach of its two shareholders.

"Axonix is created specifically for the mobile advertising industry, using technology with a four-year heritage in leading this market to offer a central destination for operator-enriched advertising inventory," Stephen Shurrock, CEO of digital service and innovation at Telefónica, said in a press release. "We're proud to be the first telecoms company in the world to own and power a mobile ad exchange platform, demonstrating our unwavering commitment to putting digital services front and center as we transform into a digital telco."