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News / NationalVodacom reaches landmark settlement with ‘Please Call Me’ inventorby Staff reporter2 hrs ago |140ViewsSouth African telecoms firm Vodacom and Kenneth Nkosana Makate have reached an out-of-court settlement, ending nearly two decades of legal wrangling over the hugely popular “Please Call Me” service.The agreement, concluded on November 4, 2025, brings to a close one of South Africa’s longest-running intellectual property battles – a dispute that began in 2001 when Makate first proposed the idea to Vodacom while working at the company.Vodacom confirmed the resolution in a statement, saying:”The matter has been settled by the parties.
Both parties are glad that finality has been reached in this regard.”While the terms of the settlement remain confidential, Vodacom said the deal had already been factored into its interim financial results for the six months ended September 30, 2025.The breakthrough comes after years of litigation that saw the case move through almost every level of South Africa’s judiciary.In 2016, the Constitutional Court ruled that Makate was entitled to negotiate reasonable compensation for his idea and ordered Vodacom’s CEO, Shameel Joosub, to determine the amount if talks failed.
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