Nkosana Makate
1Min
South Africa
Nov 5, 2025
Nkosana Makate has won a landmark victory after Vodacom settled their 17-year “Please Call Me” dispute. The former employee, who created the service that changed mobile communication in South Africa, will finally be compensated. The settlement marks a triumph for fairness, innovation, and employee recognition.
Vodacom has finally reached an out-of-court settlement with Nkosana Makate, the man who created the “Please Call Me” service, ending one of South Africa’s longest-running corporate legal battles. The 17-year dispute, which tested the boundaries of intellectual property rights and corporate accountability, has concluded with what Makate’s supporters are calling a moral and symbolic victory for innovation and fairness.
Makate, a former Vodacom employee, first introduced the concept in 2000 as a way for users without airtime to request a callback. The idea became a revolutionary feature that changed mobile communication in South Africa and across Africa. However, Vodacom went on to implement the service without compensating him, leading to years of litigation and public debate about how corporations treat the creative ideas of their employees.
After years of court battles, the Constitutional Court ruled in 2016 that Makate was indeed the originator of the “Please Call Me” service and was entitled to compensation. Despite this, Vodacom delayed reaching an agreement, with disagreements over the valuation dragging on for nearly a decade. On 4 November 2025, Vodacom’s board approved a final settlement, closing a chapter that had strained the company’s public image and credibility.
