UPDATE: Android and Me have confirmed that they were false. So Android 4.2 is probably not expected anytime soon.
Google might be planning a expansion of it’s Nexus brand very soon. As reported by Android and Me, any manufacturer will potentially be allowed to make their own version of Nexus phones but adhering to some technical requirements for hardware and support for NFC and Google Wallet.
Google might also expect manufacturers to ship a stock version of Android. This version will be available in either Android 4.2 or Android 5.0 versions.
The new version of Android will support exclusive games and content can be be accessed only from Nexus. Also Google will be in control of new version updates to the devices.
Google’s fight against a fragmented Android
Google’s Android OS has been making headlines for all the right reasons but some issues still exist. One of them is fragmented OS versions across millions of phones.
For example, 55% of Android phones run on Gingerbread version. While Ice Cream Sandwich runs on 23.7%. The latest release Jelly Bean has a meager 1.8% share.
Most manufacturers are not very quick to roll-out updates either, which is has really compounded the issue. Google has Nexus as a brand but Google can hardly become a successful mobile manufacturer without upsetting other manufacturers like Samsung.
But if these rumours do happen to be true, then Google has made a wise choice in not only bringing some uniformity in the user-experience of high-end Android phones but also in fighting the issue of Android fragmentation.