The two-decade-long legal dispute between telecommunications giant Vodacom and “Please Call Me” inventor Nkosana Makate has reached a negotiated end, but the final chapter of the saga is proving to be anything but quiet. Just days after the confidential out-of-court settlement was approved by the Vodacom Board on 4 November 2025, two fresh and dramatic disputes have erupted: a British Virgin Islands firm is demanding a 40% cut of the payment, while the self-proclaimed “true inventor” has publicly labelled the entire payout a “great crime”.

Foreign Funder Demands 40% Share of Makate’s Winnings

A key challenge to Makate’s anticipated compensation comes from Black Rock Mining Limited, a litigation funding firm based in the British Virgin Islands (BVI). Black Rock Mining has formally demanded 40% of Makate’s payout, claiming it provided the necessary financing for his long-running court battle against Vodacom under a 2011 agreement.

This development highlights the risks inventors face, often needing outside financial assistance (litigation funders) to take on deep-pocketed corporate opponents. However, these deals typically involve the funder taking large cuts, often ranging from 30% to 50%, if the case is won.

The BVI-based firm has instructed Vodacom to hold back the funds until its share is protected, threatening swift court action if the telco fails to comply. Makate’s legal team is ready to fight back, insisting the funding agreement ended in 2015 and labelling Black Rock’s claim a “baseless grab” at his hard-won victory.

The exact figure of the settlement remains secret. However, the payment was substantial enough that its impact was reflected in Vodacom South Africa’s latest interim financial results, which showed an 11% decline in operating profit for the six months ended 30 September 2025. Based on the financial impact, analysts calculated the confidential payout cost Vodacom between R353 million and R748 million.

‘True Inventor’ Slams Payout as a “Great Crime”

Further complicating the narrative is the persistent and vocal challenge from Ari Kahn, a former MTN engineer. Kahn, who invented, patented, and helped launch the rival “Call Me” service while on contract with MTN in November 2000, called Vodacom’s settlement with Makate “absolutely unconscionable”.

Kahn asserted that Makate, a trainee accountant at the time, is not the true originator of the service and deserves no more than a cent (“a penny for his thoughts”). He quotes the maxim: “Behind every great fortune lies a great crime”.

Key facts central to Kahn’s claim include:

• Kahn conceived the “Call Me” idea on 15 November 2000, and filed a patent application on 22 January 2001, launching the service the next day.

• Makate’s initial idea, the “buzzing option,” was shared in a memo dated 21 November 2000.

• Kahn argues Makate’s “buzzing option,” which involved a user without airtime dialling a number to register a missed call, was not technically possible at the time because a mobile call needed credit to reach a ringing state. Vodacom’s eventual Please Call Me service, launched in March 2001, differed significantly from Makate’s initial idea and he was not involved in its development.

However, Vodacom’s decision to settle was ultimately rooted in a protracted legal history that saw Makate win a critical 2016 Constitutional Court ruling. This ruling ordered Vodacom to negotiate fair compensation. Furthermore, while some critics, including Kahn, focus on patent issues, it is noted that the Constitutional Court addressed the technical differences, finding that Makate’s successful service used a simpler USSD messaging system for prepaid customers, unlike MTN’s more complex Interactive Voice Response (IVR) offering.

Makate’s Long Road to Compensation

Makate’s fight, which began in 2000, led to the Constitutional Court finding in 2016 that Vodacom was legally bound by the verbal agreement for compensation made by Makate’s former manager, Philip Geissler.

The legal journey saw the case return to the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) after the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) controversially ordered Vodacom to pay Makate between 5% and 7.5% of the revenue generated by the service over 18 years. This SCA ruling was estimated to be worth between R29 billion and R55 billion. However, the ConCourt later handed down a “scathing judgement” against the SCA, stating the lower court had failed to provide a fair trial by ignoring Vodacom’s expert inputs and submissions. The matter was remitted for a rehearing by a differently constituted panel of judges. The recent settlement, approved on 4 November 2025, effectively halts this rehearing.

Moses Kau, an international relations and protocol expert, has praised Makate’s “courage, resilience and the fighting spirit to the end,” noting that the case serves as a sign of hope for everyday creators battling large systems. The dispute reinforces the crucial lesson for South African inventors: timely registration of intellectual property is essential, reminding the public that “ignorance of the law is no excuse”.