by LUCY ASHTON
Meta will pay up to $17bn and make sweeping changes to Instagram and Facebook to settle a major US court case.
The tech giant has been fighting a lawsuit against the attorneys general of 29 US states, who accused it of knowingly damaging young people’s well-being with its platforms.
Now, the two sides have reached a settlement that commits Meta to bring in a host of changes, including daily limits and nighttime blocks on teenagers’ accounts on Instagram and Facebook. Young people will also be blocked from being able to see the number of likes or reactions to posts.
But overnight reports suggested that Meta and the states’ attorneys general were working towards a mid-trial settlement that would bring the hearings to an end. Meta, which has always denied the claims in the case, did not admit to wrongdoing as part of the newly announced settlement.
The landmark case is just part of a range of legal actions and regulatory investigations into Meta. States, local governments, school districts and individuals have alleged that the group and other social media companies fueled a nationwide youth mental health crisis.
Those behind the case hailed the settlement as a major success – and suggested that more similar actions are likely to come in the future. They hailed it as the largest settlement against Big Tech ever, and the biggest consumer protections agreement of its kind in history outside of the Big Tobacco settlements of the 1990s.
“Meta intentionally exploited kids for profit and then lied about it, claiming its products were safe when its own internal research confirmed the platforms were addictive and harmful,” said Brian L Schwalb, attorney general for the District of Columbia. “This is a monumental public health victory for young people in DC and across the country, and the safety features Meta is required to install will fundamentally and immediately change how young people use Instagram and Facebook.
The settlement requires Meta to pay at least $12.1bn to resolve the lawsuits, over a period of ten years. That could increase by another $5bn, depending on agreements with other major social media companies.
It also forces Meta to bring in a host of changes to its platforms, aimed at protecting the young people who use them. They include several restrictions on when and how the sites can be used, as well as blocks on certain features and new tools to allow parents to help ensure their children’s safety.
Children will also be blocked from accessing the sites overnight. They will be banned between midnight and 6am, and notifications will be silenced between 10 pm and 7 am.
Children will also be limited in their access to the apps through the school day. The services will not be able to send push notifications to children between 8 am and 3 pm during the school year.
Meta’s implementation of those features will be regularly checked by an independent auditor to ensure they are working, the settlement says. That process will be overseen by the states that have settled.