Google has announced that the next version of its Android 4.4 operating system will be called KitKat, in a surprise move to use the chocolate bar brand over Key Lime Pie.
"Android is the operating system that powers over [one] billion smartphones and tablets. Since these devices make our lives so sweet, each Android version is named after a dessert: Cupcake, Donut, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread, Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwich, and Jelly Bean," said Google. "As everybody finds it difficult to stay away from chocolate we decided to name the next version of Android after one of our favorite chocolate treats, Kitkat!"
A deal with Nestlé, which owns the Kit Kat name, came about after a decision by Google to take a break from the norm and name its latest OS after a candy bar. No money changed hands as part of the deal, Google told the BBC, although the decision by Google is clearly a massive bonus for KitKat.
"One of the snacks that we keep in our kitchen for late-night coding are Kit Kats. And someone said: 'Hey, why don't we call the release KitKat?'," John Lagerling, director of Android global partnerships, told the BBC. "We didn't even know which company controlled the name, and we thought that [the choice] would be difficult. But then we thought well why not, and we decided to reach out to the Nestlé folks."
Nestlé said it decided within an hour to grant Google's request.
The Kit Kat marketing team has responded to the deal by rebranding its website in a pastiche of Apple's site, with a long scrolling page touting Kit Kat’s compatibility with all liquids – tea, coffee and water – global coverage and the fact it can even be taken to work.
The head of Android, Sundar Pichai, posted a picture of the new KitKat symbol at the Google headquarters on his Google+ page, pictured above, although no details on what the KitKat 4.4 operating system update will contain have yet been announced.
“On my return from Asia, I was also thrilled to find this guy waiting to greet me on the front lawn -- love the new #AndroidKitKat statue and can’t wait to release the next version of the platform that is as sweet as the candy bar that’s one of our team’s favorites,” he wrote.
KitKat also released a tongue-in-cheek video of its "Chief Break's Officer" discussing the new features of the KitKat 4.4 chocolate bar.
This article was originally published on V3.
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