Google might be in legal hot water due to its new Android handset, the Nexus One, after the estate of celebrated sci-fi author Philip K Dick said it plans to sue the company for using the Nexus name.
While Google’s handset is called the Nexus One, the cyborgs in his famous novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, which later became the movie Bladerunner, also share the Nexus name, with the Nexus-6 cyborgs specifically featured in this story, set in the distant future.
According to the Guardian, the daughter of the author, Isa Dick Hackett, was “shocked and dismayed” when she learned Google had chosen to go ahead with the Nexus One brand as she claims there was no consultation or permission granted to use it.
Dick’s estate reportedly yesterday sent a cease and desist letter to Google in relation to the usage of Nexus One.
While Google asserts that Nexus is being used in the general meaning of the word itself and that it is not associated with Philip K Dick or Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, Motorola’s equally appealingly-named Droid handset is in fact licensed for use from George Lucas, as it takes its name from the droid robots in the Star Wars film series.
By Marie Boran
Photo: Google’s Nexus One Android handset.
