The next version of Android will be called KitKat, and will feature a first-of-its-kind promotion with the chocolate bar.

Google’s Sundar Pichai let the naming news slip in a coy tweet on September 3, and Google has posted an official KitKat landing page to confirm.

Pichai also said there are now more than one billion activated Android devices in the world, an expected but significant milestone.

What will Android version 4.4 (that’s why they opt for the cute dessert monikers) contain? Google’s landing page hinted at greater accessibility for the world’s biggest phone operating system. “It’s our goal with Android KitKat to make an amazing Android experience available for everybody.”

And, in a new twist, the name for the phone upgrade is also a promotional campaign. Branded KitKat bars with labels showing an Android robot mascot chomping down on the candy are set to offer the chance to win a Nexus 7 tablet or Google Play credit.

KitKat is owned by Nestle and made by Hershey’s in the United States. A spokeswoman for Google said the company came up with the idea for the tie-in, and approached the candymaker.

That hadn’t been an option with previous Android versions, which were named after generic sweet treats: Cupcake, Donut, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread, Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwich and Jelly Bean.

Google has made a custom of mounting large statues of each namesake in front of the Android team’s headquarters in Mountain View, Calif.

The BBC reports that, in part to preserve the surprise, some at Google had actually used a different code name, Key Lime Pie, internally and with partners.

Source: AllThingsD