Nexus One, satisfaction nil?

Sometimes I smile at the things that go on in IT. Who could have predicted that one day the executors of writer Philip K Dick’s estate would be suing Google for intellectual property rights infringement over the word “nexus”? Not me, but cynics might be looking at this differently. As a way of getting publicity for Dick’s back catalogue, it looks like pure gold.

The word nexus is enshrined in Dick’s 1968 novel Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?, adapted for film by Alien-meister Ridley Scott as Blade Runner. The movie features Harrison Ford running around a hellish, futuristic Los Angeles, “retiring” Nexus-6 androids, called replicants, with what looks like a souped-up .44 Magnum.

So, does the use of the word nexus for Google’s Nexus One phone infringe? Not really. Can you trademark a word? I suppose in conjunction with Google’s Nexus One phone running an Android operating system, Dick’s estate lawyers think there might be a case to answer.

But a possible legal tussle with Dick’s executors may be the least of Google’s problems when it comes to its first foray into the device market, because the Nexus One has generated lots of customer complaints. Problems for Google include customers having trouble accessing mobile operator T-Mobile’s 3G network in the US, and not knowing who to call for support about general Nexus One issues. Do you call Google, Nexus One manufacturer HTC, or T-Mobile?

The complaints against Google don’t end there. Android OS application developers have piped up, saying they have not received the latest software development kit. Add inferior comparisons between Google’s phone and its main rival the iPhone, and Google appears to have got itself into a spot of bother.

The latest twist in this tale is the search giant’s announcement that it will be bringing out an enterprise version of the Nexus One.

When you look at BlackBerry vendor RIM’s last set of financial results, it is easy to understand why Google would want to sell to enterprises. RIM’s first-quarter 2010 results showed profits of £315m on revenue of £2.1bn.

However, where Google will store the emails will be important as to which firms sign up for the enterprise version. Presumably, it will let companies do what they do with BlackBerry email – store it locally and link it through Exchange or Lotus Notes servers – in the knowledge that most corporates still have a problem with the idea of having their business-critical data reside outside the firewall.

RIM’s revenue and profit show that a mobile email service would be a decent earner for Google, but the bigger game is the mobile search and advertising market.

Microsoft’s acquisition of mobile search technology provider MotionBridge in 2006, and voice services provider Tellme in 2007, presaged its push into mobile search and advertising. Apple also made a move in this market recently, taking over mobile advertising company Quattro Wireless for $275m (£169m). Last autumn Google itself picked up AdMob for $750m, although the US Federal Trade Commission has asked Google for more information about the acquisition before it rubber-stamps the deal.

The amount of money being thrown around to acquire mobile-focused companies points to a big pot of gold at the end of the mobile search rainbow for the winner in this market. That’s why irritating key players in the Nexus community – the application developers – is not something Google should do.

And the name of Google’s enterprise phone? I would have thought something simple – such as the Nexus Enterprise. Cue writs from Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry’s estate lawyers?