Deere challenges AGCO with patent infringement lawsuit

Deere challenges AGCO with patent infringement lawsuit. Deere's lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court in Delaware on Friday, states that products made or sold by Precision Planting infringe on 12 Deere patents on ExactEmerge. Introduced in 2014, Deere says the technology allows farmers to achieve accurate seed placement, uniform seed spacing and crop emergence while planting at higher speeds. The suit names Precision’s vSet seed meters and SpeedTube products, which Deere says have infringed on its patents and are taking sales away from Deere. AGCO acquired Precision Planting from Monsanto in September 2017. AGCO and Monsanto are cooperating on the legal defense. In an official statement, AGCO said the patent infringement claims "are believed to be without merit and will be vigorously disputed." Deere states in the court filing that it has not licensed or otherwise authorized use of its patents by Precision Planting or AGCO.