PRETORIA, South Africa – Safaricom’s parent company, Vodacom, has reached an out-of-court settlement with former employee Nkosana Makate, ending a 17-year legal dispute over the creation of the company’s iconic “Please Call Me” service.
The long-running battle, which has captivated South Africa’s corporate and legal circles for nearly two decades, revolved around Makate’s claim that he was never compensated for developing the idea that became one of the telecom industry’s most successful innovations.
Makate, then a junior employee at Vodacom in the early 2000s, proposed a free call-back messaging feature that allowed users without airtime to request a call from another person.
The service, later branded “Please Call Me,” became a key feature in emerging markets, including Kenya through Safaricom.
In a statement filed with the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) on Wednesday, Vodacom confirmed that its board had approved a settlement agreement on November 4, 2025, bringing the matter to a close.
“Shareholders are hereby advised that on November 4, 2025, the Vodacom board approved a settlement agreement and the matter was settled by the parties out of court,” the company said. “The parties are glad that finality has been reached in this regard.”
Vodacom, which is majority-owned by Britain’s Vodafone and holds a 35 per cent stake in Safaricom, did not disclose the settlement amount.
However, it said the cost would be reflected in its half-year financial results for the period ending September 30, 2025, to be released on November 10.
As part of the deal, Vodacom said it had withdrawn its appeal at the Supreme Court of Appeal and formally abandoned a 2022 High Court judgment that had ordered it to pay Makate a higher sum.
The settlement brings an end to one of South Africa’s most closely watched intellectual property disputes, which had raised complex questions about employee innovation and fair compensation in large corporations.
Makate has not commented publicly on the settlement. He had earlier rejected Vodacom’s reported offer of about $2.7 million (Sh348 million), arguing that it undervalued his contribution to the service’s commercial success.
In July 2025, South Africa’s Constitutional Court gave Vodacom a partial win, ruling that the previous determination of Makate’s compensation contained errors — a decision that set the stage for fresh negotiations.
While the financial terms remain confidential, the settlement is widely seen as a move by Vodacom to close a reputationally damaging chapter and refocus on its operations across Africa.
