Kinze Manufacturing, Ag Leader Technology and John Deere have resolved outstanding litigation and launched an initiative aimed at increasing interoperability. The three brands aim to make their disparate software stacks better communicate with one another — benefiting operators who own multiple brands.

This comes six months after an Iowa jury found that Kinze’s True Speed and Ag Leader’s SureSpeed planting platforms infringed on several John Deere patents.

“We’re proud of the equipment and technology solutions we develop for farmers, but we also know our customers have choices when they make equipment purchase decisions,” says Aaron Wetzel, vice president of production and precision agriculture production systems at John Deere.

“We put our customers first with this agreement, which will result in a more seamless integration of Kinze planting solutions with John Deere equipment and our technology stack,” he says. “We remain committed to helping all of our customers, including those with mixed fleets, be more productive, profitable and sustainable in their operations.”

Lawsuit origin

John Deere filed its patent infringement lawsuit against the two smaller machinery brands in late 2020, arguing at the time that True Speed and SureSpeed infringed on its planting patents. The technologies deliver metered seed still at proper spacing at the bottom of the trench, allowing uniform singulation and placement even at higher speeds.

The jury sided with the plaintiff last October, awarding Deere & Co. $16 million in damages — about $2 million due to lost profits and a little more than $14 million in royalty compensation. Both Kinze and Ag Leader steadfastly denied infringement allegations throughout the legal process, even filing a countersuit in 2021 claiming that Deere & Co. cornered the market unfairly.

Valued at more than $20 billion, John Deere is the world’s largest agricultural machinery distributor and claims 40% of the North American market share.

As part of the recent collaboration agreement, John Deere will license out its patented planting tech to Kinze and Ag Leader. True Speed and SureSpeed are once again available to growers, according to a joint statement.

“We are excited to have True Speed back on the market,” says Susanne Veatch, president of Kinze. “A key component of technologies like True Speed is the creation and collection of data. This agreement will benefit our joint farmer-customers who utilize John Deere Operations Center by ensuring they can seamlessly integrate their data generated by any Blue Vantage-controlled equipment.”

Looking ahead, the statement notes that Deere and Kinze will explore future technology collaborations. The legal resolution and collaboration agreement are both wins for farmers, say officials for the firms.

“Our focus has always been to provide tangible solutions to the market through quality precision products that fit the mixed fleet grower,” says Al Myers, president of Ag Leader. “Being able to connect with other platforms like John Deere Operations Center through AgFiniti gives our growers the ability to seamlessly map and analyze data in one place, regardless of equipment color. This agreement allows us to take another step toward better serving our customers’ growing needs.”