Indeed, although the thing that actually was "regular System V init" was partly replaced with a new service manager subsystem several years before Linux was even invented.

* https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18788974

The motivation for writing systemd, and what it was initially intended to replace, was upstart, the software that preceded systemd on both Ubuntu and Fedora. The idea that only van Smoorenburg init+rc and systemd existed is a common fallacy.

* http://uselessd.darknedgy.net/ProSystemdAntiSystemd/ (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8488235)