Please Call Me ‘Inventor’ Demands R10 Billion from Vodacom

Kenneth Makate, the man who came up with the idea for ‘Please Call Me’, is demanding more money from mobile giant Vodacom.

According to the Sunday Times, Makate has increased his demands to R10 billion. He has gone to the North Gauteng High Court to challenge a previous settlement of R47 million, saying it’s too little.

The amount was arrived at by Vodacom CEO Shameel Joosub, who Makate is now saying acted “irregularly, unreasonably, irrationally, unfairly, unjustly and inequitably”.

Vodacom continues to insist that the amount is reasonable.

Makate argues that since 2001, Vodacom has generated an estimated R205 billion from his idea, and he now wants 5% of that (plus interest). That equates to a minimum of R10.25 billion.

If Vodacom agrees to pay that, or even a fraction of that, it would make Makate one of the wealthiest people in South Africa. Already, the R47 million offered to him by Vodacom is the largest amount the company has ever paid for an idea. The second largest payout is a measly R500,000.

While it’s highly likely that such a payout will never be made, Makate may be hoping to substantially increase his earlier payout.

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