Telkom, South Africa’s incumbent telecommunications operator has dropped its case against the creators of Hellkom, a satirical site dedicated to protesting the high tariffs and poor service of Telkom. Telkom alleged defamation and copyright infringement. The copyright infringement claim referred to use of an artistic work, the phone logo used by Telkom.
The Freedom of Expression Institute suggests in its statement on the case that “that the company is attempting to curry favour with South African telephone users ahead of pending competition from the Second National Operator.” Perhaps it’s natural that media specialists would explain the decision in media driven terms.
Lawyers on the other hand might point to the recent Constitutional Court decision in Laugh It Off Promotions CC v South African Breweries International (Finance) B.V. T/A Sabmark International, in which a claim that use of a trademark for social commentary violated anti-dilution provisions was held to be unfounded. Although trademark and copyright claims differ in important details the case signals a willingness by the Constitutional Court to insist on readings of intellectual property laws that maximise freedom of expression. I’ll write more on this case tomorrow.
Perhaps it was simply concern that Helkom would point to President Mbeki’s characterisation of Telkom tariffs: ’the unacceptable situation in which some of our fixed line rates are 10 times those of developed (OECD) countries’ in a defence of truth for public benefit.