Farmers just won a lawsuit against John Deere for something that we would have all assumed was already a non issue, but apparently was a major problem for farmers who wanted to repair their farm equipment.
Everyone who has owned a car knows the costs it takes to repair a vehicle, and that can get very expensive very quickly, but with the advent of the internet parts have become increasingly cheaper to get, making repairs less expensive. However if you are a farmer you were not allowed to work on, or use aftermarket parts to fix your million dollar tractors.
We love Trump reports. It’s no secret that tech companies like Apple and Tesla prevent ordinary consumers from repairing their own products. As a result, there has been an increase in interest in the “right-to-repair” movements.
In the farming community, John Deere informed hard-working Americans they had to bring their tractors to an approved technician to resolve a variety of problems with highly computerized equipment.
Recently, farmers won a big victory over the corporation by fighting back.
Watch.
There are many who question John Deeres court mandated compliance with the right to repair movement.
Wired reports, according to supporters of the right to repair, parts of the new agreement are too vague to offer farmers significant assistance. Although the memorandum has much to say about access to diagnostic tools, farmers need to fix as well as identify problems. Deere’s new agreement states that farmers and independent repair shops will be able to subscribe to or purchase tools, software, and documentation from the company or its authorized repair facilities on fair and reasonable terms. Also, Deere has announced that farmers, independent technicians, and independent repair facilities will have electronic access to the company’s Customer Service Advisor, a digital database of technical and operator manuals available for a fee.
Just like with any piece of equipment in the world you would assume that if you own it, you should have the right to fix it the way you prefer. But apparently that is not the case for many things across this nation as there are many companies that still restrict the ability to fix tech items, vehicles, and other critical pieces of equipment. However there is one surprising thing out of New York, recently, of all people Kathy Hochul signed into law the freedom to fix tech items, which could help set a national standard for states and companies moving forward to give the freedom to owners to fix necessary items at discounted rates.
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