John Deere owners will get the right to repair equipment under FTC settlement
John Deere owners will get the right to repair equipment under FTC settlement
根据联邦贸易委员会（FTC）的和解协议，约翰迪尔（John Deere）设备所有者将获得维修权
It looks like John Deere owners can soon feel free to fix their own machines. 看起来约翰迪尔的设备所有者很快就可以自由地维修他们自己的机器了。
The Federal Trade Commission and attorneys general from several states secured a right-to-repair settlement Wednesday with agriculture equipment giant Deere & Co. — commonly known as John Deere — that requires the company to let farmers and independent shops fix their own equipment. 周三，美国联邦贸易委员会（FTC）与多个州的司法部长共同与农业设备巨头迪尔公司（Deere & Co.，通常被称为约翰迪尔）达成了一项关于“维修权”的和解协议。该协议要求该公司允许农民和独立维修店自行维修其设备。
The Illinois-based manufacturer has faced complaints for years for withholding the software needed for repairs and forcing customers to use authorized dealers instead of independent ones. This marks the second right-to-repair settlement Deere has reached this year, following a separate $99 million class-action settlement with farmers in April. Though the class-action compensated consumers, the FTC’s settlement instead requires Deere to make its repair services available to equipment owners and independent shops. 这家总部位于伊利诺伊州的制造商多年来一直面临投诉，指责其扣留维修所需的软件，并强迫客户使用授权经销商而非独立维修店。这是迪尔公司今年达成的第二项维修权和解协议，此前在四月份，该公司还与农民达成了一项价值 9900 万美元的集体诉讼和解。虽然那次集体诉讼是对消费者的经济补偿，但此次 FTC 的和解协议则要求迪尔公司向设备所有者和独立维修店开放其维修服务。
The FTC and attorneys general from Arizona, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin brought the antitrust lawsuit in January 2025, arguing that Deere had illegally restricted farmers and independent shops that might otherwise service them from repairing farm equipment such as tractors. Deere also makes engines and equipment for forestry, landscaping and construction. FTC 以及来自亚利桑那州、伊利诺伊州、密歇根州、明尼苏达州和威斯康星州的司法部长于 2025 年 1 月提起了这项反垄断诉讼，理由是迪尔公司非法限制了农民和本可以提供服务的独立维修店对拖拉机等农用设备进行维修。迪尔公司同时也生产用于林业、景观美化和建筑业的发动机及设备。
Under the order filed in Illinois, Deere will now be required to make diagnostic and repair tools available to equipment owners and independent repair shops, not only its own network of authorized dealers. It also prevents Deere dealers from retaliating against equipment owners or repair shops who choose to fix their own equipment instead of paying for Deere’s services. The order is headed to Judge Iain D. Johnston for his approval. 根据在伊利诺伊州提交的命令，迪尔公司现在必须向设备所有者和独立维修店提供诊断和维修工具，而不仅仅是向其授权经销商网络提供。该命令还禁止迪尔经销商对选择自行维修设备而非付费购买迪尔服务的设备所有者或维修店进行报复。该命令目前正提交给法官 Iain D. Johnston 进行批准。
“For too long, Arizona farmers and independent mechanics have been at the mercy of Deere’s monopoly over repair tools, forced to wait — and pay — for authorized dealers just to fix broken tractors and other equipment,” Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said in a statement Wednesday. 亚利桑那州司法部长克里斯·梅耶斯（Kris Mayes）在周三的一份声明中表示：“长期以来，亚利桑那州的农民和独立机械师一直受制于迪尔公司对维修工具的垄断，被迫等待并支付高额费用给授权经销商，仅仅是为了修理坏掉的拖拉机和其他设备。”
Deere must pay $1 million collectively to the five states for antitrust enforcement costs and will be subject to strict compliance oversight for the next 10 years. In the complaint, the FTC argued that Deere provides a service software tool to authorized dealers but does not provide the full version to equipment owners or independent shops. Deere had said the lawsuit was baseless, denied that its distribution of service tools was anticompetitive and argued that it could not monopolize services since it does not directly provide them. 迪尔公司必须向这五个州总共支付 100 万美元作为反垄断执法成本，并将在未来 10 年内接受严格的合规监督。在诉状中，FTC 指出迪尔公司向授权经销商提供服务软件工具，却不向设备所有者或独立维修店提供完整版本。迪尔公司此前曾称该诉讼毫无根据，否认其服务工具的分发具有反竞争性，并辩称由于其不直接提供维修服务，因此无法垄断该服务。
Deere maintained its commitment to independent repair in a statement Wednesday, adding that the agreement with the FTC reinforces its innovation of more flexible repair options. “This is good news for our customers and for the future of how Deere equipment is supported,” said Denver Caldwell, vice president of aftermarket and customer support. 迪尔公司在周三的一份声明中重申了其对独立维修的支持，并补充说与 FTC 的协议加强了其在提供更灵活维修方案方面的创新。售后与客户支持副总裁丹佛·考德威尔（Denver Caldwell）表示：“这对我们的客户以及迪尔设备未来如何获得支持来说，是个好消息。”
Right-to-repair has become an increasingly common issue over the years, especially for tech products, with consumers complaining that even simple repairs can only be done by company-authorized dealers. 近年来，“维修权”已成为一个日益普遍的问题，特别是在科技产品领域，消费者抱怨即使是简单的维修也只能由公司授权的经销商来完成。