Nkosana Makate, the man who came up with Vodacom’s “Please Call Me” idea, is hoping for final justice today as the Constitutional Court is expected to deliver its decision in a case that has lasted nearly 20 years.
Final showdown: Nkosana Makate’s long legal fight nears end
According to the Constitutional Court’s schedule, the ruling is set for 14:00 today. This could either secure Makate a payment worth billions or finalise a much smaller settlement offer originally proposed by Vodacom.
Makate invented the “Please Call Me” feature in the early 2000s. It allows someone who has no airtime to send a free message asking the recipient to call them back.
Vodacom launched the service commercially but has since argued about how much Makate should be paid for his idea.
Vodacom initially offered him R47 million in 2019. However, Makate believed this was too little, and the case moved through multiple courts.
What the SCA decided earlier
The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) ruled in February 2024 that the R47 million was not enough. The SCA ordered Vodacom to pay Makate between 5% and 7.5% of the revenue made from the Please Call Me service over an 18-year period.
Vodacom did not agree with this decision and took the matter to the Constitutional Court — South Africa’s highest legal authority — asking for clarity and to challenge the SCA ruling.
Speaking outside court, Makate said he hopes this will be the end of the matter.
“I’m feeling a bit relaxed. I’m hoping that the court has taken a long time — I mean, eight months — to apply their minds properly and bring finality,” he told reporters.
Makate believes that the SCA made a fair decision and expects the Constitutional Court to possibly agree with it. He added that the judgment should clear up any confusion left by the previous ruling.
If the court rules in Makate’s favour, he could receive a multi-billion rand payout.
If Vodacom wins, the amount could be far less. Either way, the judgment will bring closure to one of the most high-profile intellectual property disputes in South Africa’s corporate history.
