Meta to pay $17 bln in settlement over social media addiction claims

Meta, the owner of the social media platforms Facebook and Instagram, settled a landmark lawsuit on Wednesday brought by a coalition of dozens of US states over allegations of social media addiction.

The proposed settlement includes a monetary payment of up to $17 billion to the states over 10 years – California alone will receive between $1.5 billion and $2.1 billion if this settlement is approved by the court, according to a statement released by Rob Bonta, the attorney general of California.

The agreement resolves claims by 47 states and the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands that the company designed its platform with addictive features, knowingly exposed young users to serious mental harms, and intentionally misled the public about the safety of its platforms, among other things.

California was among the states that first filed suit against Meta in 2023.

Trial in the case began on August 18 in the US District Court for the Northern District of California.

The settlement, subject to court approval, provides for strong injunctive terms designed to help protect children from the mental health harms associated with social media, including default daily time limits on social media and a block on overnight use that can only be lifted by a parent, enhanced parental supervision tools, robust age assurance measures to detect users under 18 and children under 13 that are on the platform, and the appointment of an independent auditor to oversee compliance, the statement added.

"Today, we have secured a settlement with Meta that will make social media less dangerous for our kids and make a world of a difference for children and their families," said Bonta.

"Meta has agreed to make massive transformations that will reduce the risk of harm from its platforms – and will do it within months.

We are talking about time limits, stopping notifications during school, a block on the app during critical overnight hours, bans on plastic surgery filters, and so much more." "While this is an important step, the fact is that teens move fluidly between dozens of apps a day.

All platforms should empower parents and support teens by putting the same measures in place, because we know that when teens are restricted on one app, they simply move to another," Meta responded in a statement.

"For meaningful progress to happen, we urge TikTok and YouTube to join us and state attorneys general in adopting this new standard, to ensure teens use social media in a healthy and responsible way," the company noted.