Despite ConCourt setback, 'Please call me' inventor Makate still resilient in battle with Vodacom
Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga handed down a judgment on Thursday, which set aside a supreme court ruling in Makate's favour and referred the matter back to be heard by a different panel.
READ: ConCourt grants Vodacom leave to appeal Supreme Court judgement in Nkosana Makate's favour
After nearly 20 years of legal battles, Makate is demanding compensation from Vodacom for the 'Please call me' product, with the company offering R47 million, while he maintains he is entitled to billions.
Justice Madlanga handed down a scathing judgment against the supreme court ruling that it made several errors in its ruling that ultimately favoured Makate.
The Constitutional Court has referred the matter back to the supreme court, but ordered that it be heard before a different panel.
However, Makate believes the apex court could have come to a conclusive finding on Thursday.
"The CC could have finalised the matter. I mean, we still had a hearing in the high court, which they could have gone to as well and ignored the SCA completely."
But Makate is ready to head back to the supreme court in line with Madlanga's judgment.
"We will go to the SCA, it must provide us with a judgment that will stand the test."
Makate said he remains confident that he will be able to convince the SCA to award him billions for his brainchild, the 'Please call me' product.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
IOL News
10 hours ago
- IOL News
Tafelberg site redevelopment: A new era for social housing in Sea Point
In 2016, the property over 1.7 hectares located on Main Road, Sea Point, was sold by the Western Cape Government to the Phyllis Jowell Jewish Day School for R135 million. Image: Armand Hough / Independent Media The controversial Tafelberg site in Sea Point is expected to give birth to social housing, with a proposal of up to 252 units and public comment by 2026, while social development is keen for it to be utilised for older persons. In February, judgment was reserved in the Constitutional Court following housing activist group Ndifuna Ukwazi's plight of spatial apartheid against the City, Western Cape Government, the Premier and MEC of Transport and Public Works. In the same breath, in January, Infrastructure MEC Tertuis Simmers and MEC for Social Development, Jaco Londt, announced the province's proposal to redevelop a portion of 353 Main Road in Sea Point, known as the 'Tafelberg site". Brett Herron, GOOD Party Secretary-General and MPL said various proposals were under way but that enough time had been wasted over the years. 'Where the initial proposals tabled two months ago offered as few as 63 social housing units, the preferred new design could deliver up to 252 social housing units, alongside 139 open market units and 92 affordable housing units. This marks a significant improvement and shows that sustained civic engagement can influence government decisions,' he said. In response to plans going forward, Simmers office told the Cape Argus that various phases were under way which include draft concepts, designs and public participation by 2026. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading 'The professional team is currently finalising the draft conceptual design based on stakeholder input, feasibility testing, and various impact assessments and specialist studies including traffic, infrastructure, storm water, visual and heritage assessments, are still under way and inform the development concept as well as the possible number of social housing opportunities on the site. The preferred feasible and viable concept is expected to be released in October 2025,' they said. 'Additional engagements will take place during the statutory application processes, targeted for March 2026, which will include opportunities for public comment.' Londt's office added the site would be feasible for much-needed older persons and low-income housing. The Sea Point Fresnaye and Bantry Bay Residents and Ratepayers Association said they supported social and affordable housing. 'However, the SFB is profoundly disappointed that our broader inputs, concerns and suggestions for community benefit in the development of the site have been summarily dismissed," they said. 'In prior public participation meetings, the participants were informed that the school building had been given over to the Provincial Department of Social Development, for their exclusive use. But even worse, the entire Tafelberg site would be fenced off and rendered impenetrable to the Sea Point community and the public in general which begs the question: why invite the community and affected residents to participate in the consultation exercise when the residents and the community will not even be allowed to access the site?' During an interview with the Atlantic Sun, Nathan Adriaanse, director of the public information and stakeholder relations for DOI said income of social housing, a state-subsidised, rental housing option, targeting low to medium income households ranging from R1850 to R22 000 per month. The property is over 1.7 hectares in size and has a legacy of forced removals. Up until June 2010, a portion of it was used as the WCED's Tafelberg Remedial School and a portion known as erf 1675 and 1424 was used by the Provincial Department of Human Settlements as affordable state-rental housing known as the Wyngard Mansions site. The application was prompted following the sale of the site, ' to the highest bidder, the Phyllis Jowell Jewish Day School at the price tag of R135 million in 2015. Get your news on the go, click here to join the Cape Argus News WhatsApp channel. Cape Argus
IOL News
3 days ago
- IOL News
Apex Court's surprise ruling extends Makate's Please Call Me Battle
Nqolokazi Nomvalo ss Head of Legal: Operations at Life Healthcare Group. Image: Supplied FOR nearly two decades, South Africans have watched the legal saga between Vodacom and its former employee, Nkosana Makate, unfold like a courtroom drama with no final act. The latest twist, a unanimous Constitutional Court judgment handed down on Thursday, has reignited public interest and legal debate. In a development that stunned many legal observers and defied predictions of finality, the apex court has remitted the case back to the Supreme Court of Appeal. It will now be reconsidered by a freshly constituted bench. This move injects fresh uncertainty into a saga long believed to be approaching its conclusion. But what does this mean, and why does it matter? It is important to clarify that Makate's original idea was a simple yet powerful proposition: a mobile user with no airtime should be able to 'buzz' another user, prompting them to call back. Vodacom, recognising the creativity, developed the concept into the now-famous "Please Call Me" free message. This version allowed for costless transmission and universal utility. That difference matters, especially when assessing the various compensation models, which have ranged from employee-equivalent remuneration to revenue-sharing frameworks. The Supreme Court of Appeal had previously affirmed the Gauteng High Court's decision in Makate's favour and went further, controversially substituting its own compensation formula and awarding Makate 5 to 7.5 percent of Please Call Me revenue. Vodacom challenged this ruling, arguing that the SCA overstepped its bounds as an appellate court, particularly because Makate had not lodged a cross-appeal. The Constitutional Court, being the highest court in the land, granted Vodacom leave to appeal and upheld its challenge. Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga, writing for a unanimous bench in what is widely regarded as his swan judgment before retirement, agreed. The Constitutional Court held that the SCA had impermissibly ventured into terrain that required a cross-appeal and had disregarded the true issues before it. This resulted in a failure of justice, specifically a breach of Vodacom's right to a fair public hearing as guaranteed under section 34 of the Constitution. The Constitutional Court has directed that the case return to the SCA, where a different panel of judges will now consider it afresh. It marks a rare judicial reset in a case that has already passed through every major court in the country. The legal significance of this moment cannot be overstated. The Constitutional Court has reinforced the boundaries of appellate authority and revived critical scrutiny around the quantum of fair compensation. The referral order compels the SCA to take a fresh look, with a new bench and a sharper lens, at the determination originally made by Vodacom's CEO. That figure was R47 million, reached after extensive modelling and expert input. It followed a failed negotiation between Makate, who proposed R20.2 billion, and Vodacom, which offered R10 million. Makate has challenged the CEO's determination as woefully low, especially in light of the widespread success of the Please Call Me service. Beyond the courtroom, this case has come to represent the struggle for equitable recognition of intellectual contributions, especially by employees in corporate ecosystems. The 'Please Call Me' litigation has gripped the public imagination. It's not just because of the staggering figures involved. It speaks to something profoundly South African: the courage to claim one's voice and the power of innovation born in unlikely places. As the legal process restarts again, one hopes that the eventual outcome will honour not just the merits of law but the deeper values it serves—justice, fairness, and transformative equity. That would be a fitting tribute to Justice Madlanga's legacy of principled clarity and constitutional fidelity. (Nomvalo is Head of Legal: Operations at Life Healthcare Group. She began her career in corporate litigation and commercial law at Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr Inc. Her expertise also encompasses traditional arts, heritage preservation, transformation, and the promotion of women's and children's rights. Her views don't necessarily reflect those of the Sunday Tribune or Independent Media) SUNDAY TRIBUNE
Eyewitness News
5 days ago
- Eyewitness News
Makate believes ConCourt could've had more conclusive findings in battle with Vodacom
JOHANNESBURG - 'Please call me' inventor, Nkosana Makate, said he believes that the Constitutional Court could have come to a conclusive finding in his battle with telecommunications giant Vodacom. The apex court has remitted the matter back to the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA), setting aside its ruling. ALSO READ: Despite ConCourt setback, 'Please call me' inventor Makate still resilient in battle with Vodacom In a scathing judgment, the Constitutional Court pointed out that the appeals court made several errors in its adjudication of the matter, which resulted in a ruling in Makate's favour. Makate and Vodacom have been in an almost 20-year battle over what is due to Makate over the invention of the 'Please call me' product. In his final judgment before retirement, Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga highlighted what he called the SCA's fatal shortcomings in that it did not make its own decision on the issues in the matter. The court has granted Vodacom leave to appeal the SCA's judgment but has also ruled that the matter should go back to the court before a different panel. "It seems to me the just and equitable remedy [77] is for the appeal to be decided on its merits by the court that ought to have decided it. More importantly, in the main, what remains for determination in the appeal are factual questions that do not ordinarily fall for determination by this court." But Makate said he was expecting a different decision. "I think the ConCourt could have finalised the matter. We still had a hearing in the high court, which they could have gone to as well, and ignored the SCA completely. They could have done that." Makate said he remains resilient and sure in his case.
