Vodacom Please Call Me battle lie

The biggest lie is that this is even a patentable idea. It's literally using SMS and USSD, 2 technologies that were invented long before. Why do you think MTN has never enforced their patent? Because it's not worth the paper it's written on.
 
The biggest lie is that this is even a patentable idea. It's literally using SMS and USSD, 2 technologies that were invented long before. Why do you think MTN has never enforced their patent? Because it's not worth the paper it's written on.

The way I understand it, Makate's original idea wasn't that - it basically what we called a "scotch call" before cellphones were invented. There was a * code you used to call the last missed call, and he basically just took that idea.

PCM is one generation on from that - fundamentally the same thing I guess. So yeah probably a tough time in the courts for an obvious idea - that I believe, it was later discovered, was used in other countries around the world before MTN patented it anyway.
 
I assume at this point it is cheaper for Vodacom to keep this in litigation than it is for them to pay him.
 
The way I understand it, Makate's original idea wasn't that - it basically what we called a "scotch call" before cellphones were invented. There was a * code you used to call the last missed call, and he basically just took that idea.

PCM is one generation on from that - fundamentally the same thing I guess. So yeah probably a tough time in the courts for an obvious idea - that I believe, it was later discovered, was used in other countries around the world before MTN patented it anyway.
Yup, his idea wasn't viable as you still required air time to connect.
 
The biggest lie that's being perpetuated is that this is an intellectual property dispute and it isn't at all. This is just a contract dispute. Who came up with Please Call Me Is irrelevant.

Makate came forward to vodacom a an idea, thet implemented it and then promised to compensate him for the idea.
 
The biggest lie that's being perpetuated is that this is an intellectual property dispute and it isn't at all. This is just a contract dispute. Who came up with Please Call Me Is irrelevant.

Makate came forward to vodacom a an idea, thet implemented it and then promised to compensate him for the idea.

There's 2 issues here.
- They never actually implemented his idea (I believe this is well documented, with solid evidence, including that of Makate's). So IP most certainly is relevant as the contract is based on that.
- The amount he's seeking is WAY out of whack. If they'd offered him R1mil at the time he'd have been the happiest guy in the world, and with good reason.

This all snowballed from Vodacom taking a crappy legal strategy and Alan Knott Craig trying to be a hero and say it was Vodacom/him that were amazing (pretending MTN's idea didn't exist), not thinking it'd go this far.
 
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