R80m offered to Makate a generous, equitable compensation for his 'Please Call Me' idea: Vodacom tells ConCourt

Mobile telecommunications giant Vodacom is arguing in the Constitutional Court that the R47m compensation offered to 'Please Call Me' inventor Nkosana Makate, which now stands at R80m with interest, was a generous and equitable offer for his idea.

The argument was made by Vodacom counsel advocate Wim Trengove who stated that at the time Vodacom rolled out Makate's idea it had lost novelty, as MTN had rolled it out first.

Vodacom is arguing in its leave to appeal application as it seeks to convince the apex court to overturn the decision of the Supreme Court of Appeal [SCA] which found in favour of Makate, setting aside the R47m compensation which Makate rejected in 2019.

The SCA ordered Vodacom to make a fresh offer which could be R9.4bn or more. Makate is asking for R9.4bn.

Trengove said Makate's idea was novel and “worthy of a generous compensation”, however it was wrong to assume that Makate's idea was the cause of all revenue derived from the 'Please Call Me' service which was already in the public domain.

“Even if Vodacom didn't have the benefit of Makate's idea, it would have got the idea from MTN,” Trengove argued.

Trengove called the ruling of the SCA's majority, which set aside the R47m compensation and ordered Vodacom to make a fresh determination, as a “fundamental failure of justice” as the court “failed to recognise evidence” before it.

This is a developing story.

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