MWC 2014: MWC 2014: Novada bullish on the demise of traditional RTOS

sincity · February 26, 2014

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TechRadar Pro caught up with Novoda CEO Kevin McDonagh at MWC 2014 to talk about the company and its vision for 2014.

Novoda is best known for its work with Tesco on its popular Hudl tablet; it helped create the grocery app for the supermarket giant as well as the launcher screen.

We talked extensively about the Nokia X, something Kevin is particularly pleased with. Nokia could become like Amazon and have a differentiated Android offering with a significant following.

Time's up for Realtime?

Kevin also mentioned that he was at MWC to look for partners to develop Android ecosystems beyond the traditional platforms (mobile, entertainment) with a very clear focus on the RTOS market (Real-Time operating system).

He reckons the traditional RTOS market is ripe for disruption, just like the smartphone market was before Android landed and mentioned the opportunity offered by system-on-chips with Android baked in.

Obstacles to market entry, licensing fees and overtly protective players mean that it is difficult to have serious innovation and a fast evolving ecosystem. All this could change though if Novoda and other players get their ways.