Hellkom takes up Telkom`s challenge

By Paul Vecchiatto, ITWeb Cape Town correspondent

Cape TownCape Town, 15 Feb 2005

Hellkom, the Internet site that slams Telkom, has filed its answer to the telecommunications giant`s court application to prevent it from publishing defamatory statements and logos.

Last year, Telkom began legal proceedings against Hellkom`s owner, 26-year-old Greg Stirton. Telkom said his site was defamatory, carried hate speech and infringed on its copyright, as the logos that appear on the Hellkom site are deceptively similar to the company`s well-known "keypad" trademark.

Stirton was originally given until 31 December to respond, but an extension was granted in order for his defence team, Michalsons Attorneys, to obtain some additional documentation from Telkom. Their answering affidavit was filed with the Cape Supreme Court late last week.

Brendan Hughes of Michalsons Attorneys says it will be argued on Stirton`s behalf that the information contained on the Hellkom site is true and in the public interest, and that the comments expressed by Stirton are fair.

"It will be argued further that no copyright subsists in the Telkom keypad logo, alternatively that the Hellkom logos are a 'fair dealing` with the Telkom logo, and do not amount to an unlawful and actionable infringement of copyright in terms of the Copyright Act."

Hughes says the Cape Supreme Court will also be asked to consider whether parody of this nature is protected by section 16 of the Constitution that enshrines the right to freedom of expression in SA.

In his answering affidavit filed at the Cape High Court, Stirton refers to research conducted by NUS Consulting, an international telecommunications cost consultancy that surveyed 14 different countries in 2003/4. The research found that not only was SA the most expensive country for both national and international calls, it was as much as 63% more expensive for international calls than Finland, the second most expensive country surveyed.

Stirton claims that Telkom has sought to discredit the NUS report on the basis that it compares SA`s costs only with those of developed nations.

He says additional research carried out by Efficient Research for the Solidarity trade union across a range of both developing and developed nations led to the conclusion that telecommunications costs in SA are excessively high and are a major obstacle to economic growth and job creation.