In what may send ripples through the tech industry for years to come, Meta Platforms reached a historic multi-billion-dollar settlement with 47 U.S. states, territories, and the District of Columbia, agreeing to overhaul its services after accusations of endangering and addicting children.
The landmark agreement settles a series of lawsuits brought against the Facebook and Instagram parent company, accusing it of intentionally designing its platforms to be addictive, knowingly exposing children to mental harms, and deliberately misleading the public about the safety of its products.
Meta will pay $17.1 billion to settle the lawsuits brought by the states and territories, as well as $1 billion to settle a separate lawsuit brought by Texas.
Children using Facebook and Instagram will see significant changes to the platforms after the agreement, including new strict time limits.
Meta is also implementing robust age-verification protocols, content controls, and limits on features such as beauty filters and visible “like” tallies, among other changes.
These include “productive pauses” for five years, in which children’s access to Facebook and Instagram will be restricted from midnight to 6 a.m., and notifications will be silenced between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m.
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Meta also agrees to regular assessments by an independent auditor to ensure the implementation and effectiveness of the new safety features, giving oversight authority to the states that joined in the settlement.
One of the largest lawsuits included in the settlement was filed in a California federal court and joined by 29 states.
Plaintiffs accused Meta of violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act by amassing personal information from minors under 13 years old without seeking parental consent.
The agreement also settles another set of claims brought by Colorado, California, Kentucky, and New Jersey, alleging Meta violated consumer protection laws by making deceptive statements that would likely mislead users about the safety of its platforms.
Meta will only pay the full $17.1 billion if other social media companies like Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube also settle with the states suing and agree to both platform changes and monetary penalties.
If the companies decline, Meta will pay $12.1 billion.
If the other social media companies sign onto the agreement, the daily limit for children’s use on each platform will drop to 60 minutes for the next 10 years.
Meta has also prepared an open letter to TikTok and YouTube, asking the platforms to join in implementing the child safety features.
“The focus of this case was to protect our kids—stopping notifications and alerts at night and when they are in school, encouraging them to take breaks from social media, protecting them against harmful features, implementing age assurance technology, and more,” Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser said in a statement.
—Jacob Burg
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—Stacy Robinson
