In a significant development, Meta has reached an agreement to implement substantial changes to its Facebook and Instagram platforms. This settlement involves California along with 28 other U.S. states and addresses allegations that the company’s platforms have caused harm and fostered addictive behaviors among teenagers.
As part of the agreement, Meta will enforce new protective measures for teenage users throughout the United States. These measures include imposing daily usage limits and restricting notifications during school hours, as well as overnight access to its apps. Furthermore, Meta will limit the availability of certain plastic surgery filters aimed at younger users, in an effort to address concerns about their impact.
The settlement could result in Meta paying as much as $18 billion, with the funds being distributed among the participating states over a decade, pending court approval. California is anticipated to receive between $1.5 billion and $2.1 billion, while Colorado stands to gain approximately $615 million.
The states involved in the lawsuit accused Meta of intentionally designing features that encouraged excessive screen time among young users. Additionally, they claimed that the company collected data from children under the age of 13 without securing proper parental consent.
While Meta has denied any wrongdoing, the company emphasized that the settlement’s effectiveness could be enhanced if other major social media platforms adopted similar safeguards. Meta has urged TikTok, Snap, and YouTube to implement comparable protective measures. This agreement emerges amid a backdrop of numerous lawsuits targeting Meta and other social media firms, filed by families, schools, and government officials, over alleged harms associated with social media use among children and teenagers.