Swatch Group Joins The Smartwatch Market

The already crowded smartwatch market will get even more crowded as Switzerland's Swatch Group is developing its own operating system to compete against iOS and Android-enabled devices.

According to a Bloomberg report, Swatch's Tissot brand will be the company's first product equipped with the new operating system and be introduced to the market by the end of next year.

Swatch's entry to the new market marks a historic shift for the four-century-old company but may be a necessary move to compete against technology companies, like Apple Inc. AAPL who recently started selling its own brand of watches.

Swatch CEO Nick Hayek explained to Bloomberg the company's lower-end brands have been most impacted by smartwatches. The executive acknowledged he was at first skeptical about smartwatches, but now it may not be a matter of choice to enter the market.

Swatch has even developed the world's smallest Bluetooth chip which will be fit into its many watches. The company also plans on using its technology in other small household products.

"There's a possibility for wearables to develop as a consumer product, but you have to miniaturize and have an independent operating system," Hayek told Bloomberg.

Finally, the company is open to supplying third parties with its operating system and has already received around 100 requests for more information. Half of those are actually coming from smaller Silicon Valley tech companies who don't want to be attached to the Android or iOS ecosystem.

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