Thread by @esmeraldo99

So this evening I stumbled upon the ”Please Call me case” posted by @_ARIPO see link for further details
dailymaverick.co.za/article/2019-0…
If you are Nigerian I am pretty sure you must have received a ”Please Call me” text😁

For intellectual property (IP), authors are entitled to moral & economic right. The exclusive rights held by a creative or innovator can be among the most valuable assets a business/brand/cooperation can own.

Mr Nkosana Makate, the inventor of Please Call Me, wants a settlement of more than R10-billion from Vodacom. Now this case has been in court for more than 10 years 😱
My first thought was did they explore. arbitration or mediation or any other form of ADR?

The reason why they have been unable to settle is based on ”fair settlement”. As an IP owner when you know the worth of your work, you should never settle for less. Exploit all forms of commercialization such as licensing, assignment, franchising, merchandising etc

Let's paint a better scenario
In the movie Acrimony Lyriq Bent who played Robert Gayle refused to settle for the meagre sum that was offered to him by the company and finally got what he wanted which was to license his product for XXXX amount of money

As an IP owner, you need to know and always remember that you have the upper hand and depending on the type of work your IP falls under you are entitled to a certain duration of protection. In this case which was a patent protection is for a period of 20 years

BENEFITS OF SECURING A PATENT
A. A patent gives the patentee exclusive right to make, use, or sell the invention;
b. By granting the patentee a monopoly, a patent shields a business or invention from competition;

c. A patent enables the patentee avoid the risk of patent infringement by competitors and other third parties;
d. A patent portfolio impresses investors since it functions as a monopoly in a market, thus boosting investment;
e. A patent provides revenue-generating opportunities

Take note that when a patent application is made it is not immediately granted upon filing, it is merely “patent pending” but it is an important part of a successful long-term business. First in time and priority is key to patent registration

Can software be patented? 🧐
Yes or No? 😁

Back to the case.
”Mr Makate invented Please Call Me when he was a trainee accountant at Vodacom in November 2001. The invention was born out of his communication difficulties with his then long-distance girlfriend (now wife) because they couldn’t afford airtime. Love is Sweet ☺️

”This gave rise to Please Call Me, which enables a user without airtime to send a text to be called back by another subscriber.”
Now when you are employed make sure you go through the letter with a lawyer while you may be focused on other terms

take a good look at the IP clause. What does it say about what done in the cause of your employment? Do you retain your right or the company owns the right?
This is very important because ”The Please Call me” was invented while Mr Makate was a trainee accountant at Vodacom.

”Makate’s legal team estimated that Please Call Me will have earned Vodacom R205-billion in call revenue from 2001 to 2020. 🙆‍♀️🏾😱 amazing right?
”This figure excludes advertising revenue linked to the innovation, Please Recharge Me

(a service similar to Please Call Me, but the sender asks another subscriber to buy them airtime)
I recall MTN, in particular, had these two services strange how these services disappeared in Nigeria 👀
Anyways moving on

Turns out Mr Makate had an AGREEMENT with the company that there would a SHARE of the revenue IN PERPETUITY — “that is for as long as it (Please Call Me) continued to generate material revenue.”😱😱
Steady income right?

But then Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub is saying Please Call Me was never patented, thus using a duration of nearly 20 years to determine the compensation of R10-billion is “unrealistic”.😑🤔
What do you think?

What is the implication of a patent not being registered? What are the requirements for an in mention to be patented?
1. If new/novel it must result from an inventive activity and is capable of industrial application or

b. If it constitutes an improvement or a patented invention, results from inventive activity and is capable of industrial application.

Parties are back in court again after 3 years of trying to settle out of court 😒 lets hope this time they settle it for good.
The trend that has been prevalent in this digital age is the act of calling out infringers on SM instead of suing. Let's do better this year and beyond