Meta agrees to pay $18 billion in child abuse lawsuit
Meta has agreed to pay up to $18 billion in damages to US states as part of a lawsuit alleging it harmed children and teens. The company will also change the way its platforms work. The corporation was accused of intentionally increasing social media addiction among young people.
Meta agrees to pay $18 billion in child abuse lawsuits.
Meta, the owner of Facebook, Instagram and other social media platforms, has been accused of deliberately encouraging young people to use the platform. CNN reports that the company has agreed to pay up to $18 billion in damages to settle a lawsuit brought by US states.
As part of the settlement, Meta has agreed to make changes to its platforms, including setting limits on the daily time underage users can spend on them.
More than $17 billion will be used to settle a lawsuit filed by 29 states in 2023. The rest will be used to settle claims against Meta by other states and territories. The company said the money will be used to fund states’ “initiatives to keep young people safe online.”
The settlement comes more than a week after a California lawsuit was filed.
Meta has previously denied that its platforms harm children, saying it has spent significant resources developing safety features and that the states’ claims are “baseless.” As part of the settlement, the company denied the allegations.
“Ensuring that teens can use our platforms safely and effectively is an absolute necessity for Meta,” the company said in a statement. “We want to do the right thing for parents and teens, so we are working with state attorneys general to set a new standard for the industry.”
North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson explained that the states agreed to the settlement in an effort to accelerate changes in the way online platforms operate.
“If the lawsuits continue, it would be years before any improvements to child safety on these platforms are implemented. It would risk losing another generation,” he said.
The $18 billion is a small fraction of Meta’s projected $200 billion in revenue by 2025. But the changes, aimed at reducing the time teens spend on apps, could have a significant impact on the corporation’s advertising business model, CNN reported.
The money will be paid in installments over 10 years. California will receive the most money — up to $2.2 billion; New York state, up to $1.1 billion.
Meta said 70 percent of the amount, or $12.7 billion, will be paid in escrow. The remaining 30 percent ($5 billion) will be paid only if YouTube and TikTok agree to pay compensation to the states and implement similar measures to protect children.
The state attorneys general accused Meta of intentionally creating features such as endless scrolling, algorithmic recommendations, and frequent notifications to attract and keep children and adolescents on its networks. They also alleged that Meta misled the public about the risks of using the platforms for young people and illegally collected data from children under 13 without parental consent.
The settlement includes the following measures:
* Setting limits on daily screen time for minors.
* Changing algorithmic recommendations.
* Introducing new features aimed at ensuring the safety of children.
* Improving parental controls.
These changes are expected to take effect within a few months. Meta has also agreed to an independent audit to verify compliance with the terms of the agreement.